Discovering Cisternino

Duration

2 hours

Tour Type

Walking

Group Size

Meeting point: Pro Loco “Cisternino in Valle d’Itria”

In the heart of Valle d’Itria, Cisternino enchants with whitewashed houses, narrow streets, arches, stairways, flower’s balconies, exciting views and cosy squares: “A great masterpiece of architecture without architects” as said by Hidenobu Jinnai, professor of engineering and design at Hosei University of Tokyo.

Our guided tour starts from the biggest square of the village, Piazza Garibaldi, where you will enjoy panorama of Valle d’itria scattered by Olive trees and Trulli. Here there are also the Norman-Swabian Tower with its 18 meters high and the Main Church dedicated to Saint Nicola, in Neoclassical style. We will take you to the Archaeological Itinerary under the Church where you will admire ruins of the ancient abbey made by monks in the Middle Age.

Like all villages built in the Middle Age, Cisternino had a city wall, today destroyed or incorporated in the private houses. As evidence of this, the circular shape of the Old Town and the last two remained towers: Torre Amati near Palazzo Amati and Torre Capece near Corso Umberto I. We will show you them before starting the discovery of the Old Town’s heart.

The main street of the Old Town (Via Basiliani, then via Santa Lucia) still connects piazza Garibaldi to piazza Mazzini and Porta Piccola, one of the entrances to the historic centre. Nearby, there are two important buildings: Palazzo del Governatore, built in XVI century, first dwelling of Bishops of Monopoli and after lived by following governors; Palazzo Lagravinese, a pretty private residence of Lagravinese family which lived in Cisternino at the end of the 1700, where today exhibitions and events are hosted.

The most famous and cosy square of Cisternino is Piazza Vittorio Emanuele III, situated in the heart of the Old Town and here you will admire the symbol of the village: Torre dell’Orologio, built in 1850 by master craftsmen Curri. Stop here by one of local butcheries and enjoy our legendary “bombette” (slices of veal stuffed with cheese, rolled and skewered on a spit).

Walking throughout our narrow streets, you will cross all the districts of Old Town, showed by signs on walls: “Bere Vecchie“, the oldest and largest district; “Scheledd“, that means “small steps” because of steps and stairs that typify this quarter; “L’Isule“, the isolated district by the same streets that surround it; “U Pantene“, the low-lying area of the Old Town swampy when it rained; “U Burie“, the neighbourhood that developed out of the walls in the XVII century, characterized by beautiful and prestigious buildings.

Also we suggest to discover all the area and our countryside: you could have a walk or ride a bike in the Cycle Route of the Apulian Aqueduct, a 23 km route that connects Locorotondo to Ceglie Messapica or take a rest at Giardini di Pomona, while learning lot of curiosities about our Mediterranean flora.