Cisternino

Nestled on a green hill, Cisternino is an ancient town, destroyed by the Goths and rebuilt by the Basilian monks who in the Middle Ages built the abbey around which the town developed. The historic centre is intimate and quaint, white, paved and dotted with pots of colourful flowers. Awarded the Orange Flag by the Italian Touring Club, the village has retained its oriental charm with its low houses, hidden courtyards, small stairways, tangle of alleys and small arches. Surrounding the central Piazza Vittorio Emanuele are four districts. A Norman tower and the Romanesque church of St Nicholas can be seen near the Porta Grande. Walking to Piazza Garibaldi, you can look out from the belvedere for the most beautiful view of the Itria Valley with the villages that dot it. But there is an aroma that lingers in the air as we wander through the alleyways, and indeed today the town\'s most famous attraction is culinary. What has made Cisternino famous above all among lovers of good food are in fact the \'fornelli\', taverns where meat bombettes, roulades, and chops skewered on a spit are cooked at all hours of the day, and which are the gastronomic pride of the entire valley, but of which Cisternino is proclaimed the undisputed capital.