Firstly, I feel this needs to be said before I can dive into the beauty of this region. The “G” in Puglia is silent and in no circumstance is it pronounced PU-G-LIA! OK, now that that’s out of the way… this entire region is magical. I don’t just mean that the 4 start restaurants and tourist attractions are noteworthy… I mean that the people, the natural landscape and the simple yet phenomenal food seem to be something quite out of this world!!
City of Bari
One of my favorite memories was walking the tiny corridors of Bari Vecchia early in the morning. Some of the scenes I witnessed were well dressed business professionals grabbing a quick cafe, saying hello to their passing neighbors and hopping on their vespa. There were also many mothers walking their young children to the local school. A marching band processed their way to an elaborate shrine of Mother Mary tucked underneath a passageway. These were the simple yet real moments of Puglia.
I think the most alluring aspect of visiting this region is its accessibility by car. During my brief travels, I was able to see so many more cities than we stayed in with very little travel time between. Bari is a great starting point and while I only got as far south as Monopoli this trip, we could have easily covered Ostuni, Lecce and beyond via car. Otherwise, there are train stations in most of these major cities which make it an excellent multi-stop travel destination.
*Pro Tip… reserving a car in advance is CRUCIAL, especially if you’re like me and can only drive an automatic vehicle. I learned the hard way that automatic cars are very hard to come by in this region and price gouging is expected by rental companies.
Another pro tip if you do decide to drive.. go with the smallest vehicle possible. As you can imagine roads, parking spaces and maneuvering areas are TIGHT. I’ll continue to have nightmares about a traumatizing “K turn” in Bari Vecchia! Also, make sure to familiarize yourself with the rules of the road here and well as traffic signs and signals. Learning on the fly is ill advised. There are also different zones in these city centers that signify the level of vehicle access. Blue zones, for instance are pedestrian only roads and there is a substantial fine associated with trespassing here! There’s a lot to be aware of but all in all, I was grateful for the accessibility that a car allowed for.
Linking some awesome excursions from Bari here:
Stay tuned for my part 2 blog post on all things Puglia!
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