Monopoly
Telling the story of the city where one was born and raised is anything but simple. Even today when I arrive at Porta Vecchia to enter the Murattian suburb the emotion is strong, untouched. Monopoli for me is a dive to the heart, it is going to meet the beauty that leaves you breathless. There is the daily life of the fishing village, the history and the sacred intertwined with the white of the houses and streets. To wander through its streets and squares, without losing sight of the sea that caresses its jagged edges, is a rich experience.
The sea and the beaches
In the long summers as a child, I bathed in all the creeks and beaches that surround Monopoli: each has its own colors, shapes, and light. Growing up, I chose the ones that corresponded most to me. If you want a beach with fine, light-colored sand overlooking a clear, transparent sea with turquoise gleams, there it is. If you prefer a small bay enclosing a crescent-shaped beach protected by the rocks behind, there is. If your setting is the reef, the one that has a sea with crystal-clear green depths underneath, that's there, too. You can also bathe immersed in history: the ancient submerged harbor of the acropolis of Egnatia is a cove to explore.
Villages and cities of art
Behind the masseria lies the Itria Valley, with its villages towering in their clarity. I return to visit them periodically, to see if anything has changed, with the intimate hope of regaining that atmosphere that enchanted me the first time around. They throng in the evening, when the lights amplify their charm. In the stillness of the morning they express their veracity. Moving farther in two opposite directions are Matera, a Unesco heritage site, and Lecce, the capital of Apulian Baroque. Two visits that leave their mark. The land of Monopoli and its surroundings contain so much beauty that is revealed little by little. One vacation is not enough to get to know it all, but a few days are enough to get it into your heart.
