Salento: art, history, uncontaminated wilderness twine together
to create a happy surprise for travellers venturing into this unusual
vacation destination.
Arriving in Lecce, visitors are immediately struck by the warm and
delicate yellow tones of the local masonry, so carefully worked
by the hand of Baroque masters.
Lecce, is indeed a refined and precious Baroque gem, offering its
citizens and guests a delicate brocade of wondrous sights: a play
of light and shadow, the vine-laced contours of a well, the leaves
of an ancient capital, a cherub's wings, the confines of the spacious
Cloister of S. Cataldo.
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The city's winding alleyways pass by the
Chiesa di S. Croce, the magnificent Piazza Duomo, and the ruins
of the Roman amphitheater. |
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Looking upwards, visitors can admire the lovely balconies,
windows and doors all decked out in stony floral garlands. Lecce,
city of talcum powder is different from its neighbors, a most unusual
place, both ancient and noble, elegant and refined, rich in history
and culture.
Along the "paesaggio delle pietre" there are fortified farms, relics
of architectural history. Paying a visit to one of these sites is
like stepping into the past. The nucleus of these structures is
the large courtyard surrounded by a high wall, often dominated by
a tower. Some of these old structures still retain their sentry
boxes, drawbridges, underground bunkers, wells and paved threshing
floors and. The fortifications were built as a defensive measure
some time in the middle of the 16th century. All of them are characteristically
square at the base, gradually forming a pyramid: Torre S.Foca, Torre
dell'Orso, Torre S. Andrea, Torre S. Emilano, Torre Vado, Torre
Mozza, Torre Roccavecchia...
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Arriving in "Greek Salento"
(Martano, Castrignano dei Greci, Pisignano, Corigliano, Sternatia,
Zollino), visitors will be delighted to find vestiges of the
early Greo-Byzantine empire. |
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In this area, where "griko" is the local dialect, the ancient
Hellenic roots still run deep and many local traditions date back
to this period.
It is evident in the stone churches and the monolithic settlements;
in the Roman monuments erected in honor of the Pre-Hellenic civilization;
in the Magna Grecia with its medieval castles; in the Paleochristian
crypts adorn with ancient frescoes; in the Baroque churches in all
their glory.
Lecce and Salento have to be explored to be fully understood. The
lucky traveller who can discern the true identity of the region
is sure to be smitten with the desire to return for a yet more profound
exploration of the soul of Salento.
