Puglia 2

While visiting southern Italy, the city of Lecce  was one of our first stops. Lecce  is commonly nicknamed “The Florence of the South” because of its many baroque  monuments.

I call this one, the “Stairway to heaven”!

The oldest part of the city is said to be 2000 years old, dating back to the Greeks at the time of the Trojan War. Below is the Piazza Duomo, or Cathedral Square. It is a beautiful square with ornate buildings. Here you’ll find the duomo, Cathedral of the Madonna Assunta, originally built in 1144 and completely restored in 1659-70 when the 70-meter tall bell tower was added.

The old city was typical in the many quaint side streets and residences.

The Italians, especially in southern Italy, really do love their pastas!

Another city we visited was Gallipoli . This was located on the western coast of the boot heel, on the Ionian Sea. The old city features the Angevine-Aragonese Castle which was built in the 13th century by the Byzantines. The old city is very scenic and you can easily feel the influence of the Ionian Sea on the culture there.

Many quaint shops and outdoor restaurants can be found while walking through its narrow streets.

And Jayne is having fun checking out the wares of this shop.

One of the highlights for me was watching the fishermen go about their maintenance chores.

Although different from each other, both Lecce and Gallipoli are fun examples of a lifestyle that dates back centuries.

Enjoy life!