Alto Salento in October: Ceglie Messapica and Carovigno

The next day it almost seems a waste to desert the Trulletto 

but in the morning we go to visit Ceglie. These small towns and villages of Salento – province of Brindisi, are often similar but each one has a different character. All have paved historical centres, white and cream stone houses, a castle of some description. During the day, it’s quiet and relaxing to stroll around.

We stop on the way back to buy local meat at the Macelleria Braceria owned by our hosts. We get some bombette a spiedo porchettate and the torcinelli we often eat in Vieste. The trullo is small but well equipped for a simple meal so we eat outside and then have a rest before going to Carovigno.

The bars and restaurants in the main square are closing for the season and it’s very quiet. The castle is still open but costs 5 euros and considering the stairs we decide it’s not worth it. The churches are nice from the outside, the warm, crumbling, almost, sandstone and sculptures, but too baroque for our tastes inside. We did think we could visit San Vito dei Normanni before returning to Ceglie but by the time we get there, it’s peak time for traffic so we give up and instead drive through the countryside towards San Michele Salentino where we stop to buy some olive oil at the Cooperativa Borgo Ajeni. Driving through the countryside in Puglia has always been spectacular and now we are sad to see the amount of olive trees dying or being cut down because of Xylella fastidiosa, a name which is an understatement since it’s destroying a centuries-old irreplaceable landscape of ancient olive trees.

We buy some Coratina and a blend of the various e.v. olive oils they produce and then it’s time to head back to our trulletto for supper. It’s interesting to see that the temperature inside hardly varies, independently of the ups and downs of pre-autumn weather outside.