Puglia

[bond_and_beyond]

I'm going to Puglia, Italy for a week this July.

Do any members have experience with this area that they'd like to share? Particularly any sartorial opportunities (tailors or shirtmakers worth visiting for example).

Recommendations for particular towns / restaurants / hotels also greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
BB

[Screaminmarlon]

Please, do not miss Lecce.

[davidhuh]

Dear BB,

don't miss getting a good pasta with ricotta schianta (sometimes also called ricotta forte). A bit of an acquired taste. But if you can stand it, wonderful

Cheers, David

[bond_and_beyond]

Thanks.

Any tailors / shirtmakers / habedasheries in this region worth visiting?

Thanks,
BB

[Sammyo77]

Did you find anywhere worth visiting?

[Melcombe]

Cherished Co-Loungers

On account of this thread stumbling somewhat, I took it upon myself to visit Puglia last week in order to check the place out, so you don't have to.

Actually, you do have to. It is very lovely every particular, I'm pleased to report.

Mrs M and I are regular visitors to Italy and have tried to visit somewhere different every time we go. Last year Sicily, this year Puglia. I think I have found the region to which I could happily return again and again (not including Rome in this assessment obvs.)

The reason? : It isn't spectacular. (Stick with me, there is method in this). More specifically,

1) It is fairly remote. Bari Airport is however great example of what a regional airport should be - v easy to find, and very easy links to main roads - also efficient, comfortable and compact. Puglia is trickier to get to than Tuscany so the San Gimignano crowd seem not to be able to find it (this is a major plus, in my estimation).

2) Puglia is surrounded by water. I like holidays by the sea (I live by the sea) and Puglia has lots of sea - Adriatic and Ionian coasts are quite different : rocks / coves vs. long sandy beaches, respectively. The crucial point however is that there is a higher than average ratio of beachfront to population, so while busy, it's not going to be hopelessly overcrowded.

3) The quaint towns (we visited Polignano, Alberobello, Monopoli, Matera, Otranto) are very quaint without overdoing quaintness. Your average Centro Storico is touristy, but not Positano-touristy. Plus no Amalfi coast 100m fatal overcliff plunges from road into sea etc. The landscape is variable and generally quite flat in the south / east. If you want rolling green hills, try Tuscany / Umbria. There is however plenty to see and also lots places to explore. The region has some fairly wealthy spots so infrastructure is (in Italian terms of variability) good. We went to Lecce v briefly - it looks lovely but needs a couple of days to see properly.

4) The local produce is super. Italy, like many southern European countries has strong local preference for local produce, so you're not going to get something Roman in Brindisi outside of a tourist restaurant. The local cheese, oil, wine, fruit, bread is all lovely. It's also majorly cheap. Even with the Brexit-crippled £1 at €1 after card charges, it is still very affordable. Eating out was half the cost like-for-like as in the UK, and the quality and service was fantastic. We stayed in a very professional B&B run by an Anglo-Italian couple and, to my preferences, it was just perfect.

5) I was not specifically on the lookout for sartorial opportunities, but did come across a few tailors in Martina Franca, one of whom that we passed had works in progress, showing tons of hand-work, hanging impressively at the back of his (open front) shop behind a large and ancient work bench - and, reassuringly, no till, no shopfront, no web address, just a very small sign outside with his name on. I shall venture a pair of trousers during our next outing there next June.