European Home Rentals

There are so many reasons to explore the heel of Italy’s boot – the flat, rural region that juts between the Adriatic and the Ioanian sea’s known as Pugila (Apulia)
But none are as whimsical or as one-of-a-kind as the hundreds of trulli, some dating back to the 16th century, that are, quite literally scattered through the Itria Valley between the UNESCO World Heritage site of Alberobello and the hilltop “white city” of Ostuni.
Along the stretches of rural roads you will pass farmer’s fields, almond trees and olive groves littered with piles of old stones that were once meager homes to impoverished locals in what is still considered the poorest, but most productive, region of Italy – it accounts for more than 75% of the countries wine, olive oil and wheat.
Hundreds of these stacked stone homes – originally built without mortar so they could be collapsed quickly if the tax collector came to call – are now beautiful whitewashed homes.  Thanks to a royal decree in 1797 that acknowledged the stacked stone residences as permanent fixtures, most were taken apart and mortared back together long ago.
Trulli are a unique home base for exploring the relatively unknown heel of Italy, which boasts caves and caverns, medeval hill top towns and some 800 kms of rocky shoreline and sandy beaches.

Sites to see:

Alberobello: there are some 1,500 grey steeple roofs, many painted with fanciful white religious or folk hex symbols, in this trulli capital of Italy, declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1996.  Within the winding street is a trulli church Casa Albergo Sant Antonio built in 1927.  Trullo Sovrano is a collection of 18 century trulli that feature a unique second story and a sense of what life was really like in these elfin cottages.

Cisternino: A lovely little hilltop village that, like the rest of this area, is a virtual ghost town during siesta from about 1:30 to 4:30pm daily.  Outside of those hours it is a pleasant place to stroll and a great perch for seeing trulli scattered in the fields below

Ostuni: ” La Citta Bianca” comes by its nickname honestly, given that a local law requires home owners to whitewash their homes regularly.  This city, founded in the 9th century, looks more Greek then Italian and has a real Mediterranean feel especially given its backdrop, the Adriatic Sea.  Stroll its maze of narrow streets and arched walkways to neatly stepped houses.

Mola di Bari:  A busy harbour town where the local fishing boats come in every late afternoon and unload their fresh catches of squid, sardines and octopus all for purchase.

Lecce:  founded as a Greek settlement it became an important center of the Roman Empire and during the Middle Ages a strong scholarship was established.  Much of the architecture is in the Lecce Baroque style, which flourished in the 17th century.  Characterized by rich sculptural decoration made possible by the use of a stone that was easily carved.

Click here to visit and discover the Trullo’s of the Apulia region of Italy with a short term apartment or villa rental with European Home Rentals, specialists in renting weekly short-term vacation rentals apartments, houses, cottages and villas in France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, England, Ireland, Scotland and Greece www.europeanhomerentals.com