Published on Nov, 2024
We visited Southern Italyās east coast all the way down to Leuca at the heel of the Italian boot. Stefano was our guide and very knowledgeable in the culture and history of this relatively undiscovered region.
After leaving Lecce, our base for visiting this part of Salento district, we drove to Galatina and on to Otranto a small town with a rich history and a remarkable church with mosaic flooring and artistic depiction of the tree of life and depictions of good and evil. The fishing port and protected harbour were very picturesque. Then on to the tip of Italy Leuca via a coastal highway as picturesque as the famous Amalfi Coast drive, without the frenetic traffic and huge tourist coaches! We had a pizzeria based light meal at Leuca and then on to Gallipoli, a fishing port and young people party spot, not to be confused with the Turkish town of the same name and made infamous by the disastrous military debacle during WW1. A typical narrow street village, lots of churches and chapels, a colourful waterfront and the most spectacular sunset ! We returned tired but exhilarated 9 hours after our start.
The trip has moderate levels of exertion, uneven steps, cobblestones, etc but my partner with both knees replaced managed just fine!
Stefano was