Vieste to Martina Franca…by way of Monte d’ Saint Angelo and Trani

October 19th

We leave Vieste refreshed and ready to take on more adventures, it has been a nice stay and our AIRBNB was very comfortable…having a balcony really ups one’s game. The weather continues to hold with sun and more sun. One last look at Vieste and the drive begins…

It is about 4-hours of driving to our destination but we expect to take our time and visit several towns en route as our unit will not be available until about 16:00.

A scenic drive as the first portion skirts the shoreline of the rugged Gargano Peninsula, below an aquaculture project, the first we have seen…

Monte st. Angelo is our first stop and getting there is an interesting piece of driving, as it is a hilltop town with about 12 kilometers of switchbacks each way. It is an incredibly rocky area and the folks here have terraces all the way up the slopes.

The major attraction of the town is the Sanctuary of Monte Sant’Angelo, an ancient church in a cave. The story is that in the 5th century the Archangel Michael appeared to a bishop who had taken shelter in an underground cave, and requested that the cave be turned into a place of Christian worship. It was one of the earliest pilgrim destinations and later became part of a medieval pilgrim trail (the Via Francigena) that began at Mont St Michel in France and passed through Rome on the way to the Holy Land. You can still walk this route today. The Sanctuary is now part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site due to its historic and artistic importance. Interestingly as we have seen many UNESCO sites in Italy, I found there are currently 1,154 UNESCO sites worldwide and Italy possesses the largest number at 58.

Arriving we park our car (pay the attendant> if you rent a car in Italy be prepared to pay for parking almost everywhere you stop) and find it rather cool as the temperature has dropped by about 10C due to its elevation. We trudge down to the Sanctuary passing through a gauntlet of stores selling religious items, regional food items, etc. Given the time of the year there were also some chestnut vendors..

The cave being underground you descend down a series of staircases which in their own right are rather interesting…eventually reaching the grotto, at the time we were there it was filling up quickly as service was about to begin:

Below are some pics of the Monte Sant’Angelo Castle built around 837 by the Doge of Venice Orso I.  It is easy to see why this site was chosen: it commands panoramic views of the surrounding countryside and any advancing armies would have been spotted long before they attempted the steep climb up to the town. Though mostly Norman it also has Swabian (southwest Germany), Angevin (France) and Aragonese (Spanish/Catalon) influences as the respective empires held sway.

Then back down to the seaside highway and a short stop in Trani, a few pics of the port area, and a cash refill at BNP Paribas (BNL), the town did look pretty and would have been a good spot to stop on the other hand there are so many great places and not enough time to see them all.

…so back in the car and onwards to Trulli il Castagno, where we will spend several days primarily visiting the Trulli villages nearby. This is an agriturismo where there is an ancient Trulli farm built in the early 1800s. Today, the Spalluto family after a long and meticulous renovation offer guests a unique stay in four Trullo houses amidst their vineyards as well as various services: wine tasting, cooking lessons, etc. Located in the countryside, the three main Trulli towns are situated within a 15km radius. Below is our home for the next four nights…