Ostuni

We are at the northern end of the 'heel' of Italy, a land of wines and olive trees and the virtuosities of the Lecce Baroque, Alto Salento. This is the white city, the queen of the olive trees and the nativity city. Nicknames that should be enough to convey the image of one of those photogenic cities, as is also the territory that surrounds it. On the last foothills of the Murge, the town stands out against the green landscape of olive groves. A labyrinthine path, whitewashed houses on streets, winding alleyways and ladders, eight Aragonese towers (there were 15 originally) that dominate the winding streets of the medieval old town. At the top, the ancient village, called La Terra, dominates the late 15th-century Cathedral, with Gothic forms and a beautiful tripartite façade by pilasters. At less than 10 km, the coast is dotted with views of the Marina di Ostuni, the marina of Villanova and the bathing and thermal resort of Torre Canne. Along the coast, north of Brindisi, is the Torre Guaceto nature reserve, where a 16th-century tower dominates dunes and sandy bays, habitats of numerous bird species.