Sassi Living in Matera and Trulli Magic Alberobello

The intriguing Italian city of Matera does “Sassi” living like nowhere else in the world. These primitive “Sassi” (cave houses) loiter inconspicuously under elegant homes and grand cathedrals. Matera was once upon a time considered to be the “shame-of-Italy”, but it has since then gone from rags to riches and it has even recently been recognized as the European Capital of Culture in 2019. The Sassi and the Park of the Rupestrian Churches are UNESCO World Heritage sites since 1993. 

Situated in the Basilicata region of Italy, the “Sassi di Matera” is believed to be among the first-ever human settlements in Italy, with many scholars debating the possibility of the cave dwellings having been occupied by humans since the 10th millennium BC (Paleolithic Age), making it potentially one of the oldest continually inhabited settlements in the world.  

Just across the border into Puglia, the magical “trulli” of Alberobello (trulli are stone houses with a conical-shaped roof) feels like entering a gnome world of fantasy. This UNESCO World Heritage site has more than 1500 well-preserved “trullo” (singular form of trulli) homes concentrated in this small town. 

Our motorhome travels in Italy have now taken a new direction. Leaving Campania’s Amalfi Coast on the West side of Italy behind, we were looking forward to exploring the Southeast side, particularly the regions of Puglia and Basilicata.

It took us about four hours to drive across from the West to the East on the good tarmac that was surprisingly a lot better than we had been told to expect. Both Basilicata and Puglia are renowned to be very beautiful, but with lots to explore and only a few days left in Italy, we chose to explore just Matera and Alberobello. 

Matera

We arrived at the Agriturismo Masseria del Pantaleone (GPS N40.65265 E16.60617) near Matera at lunch time. Situated about a 15 minutes drive from town or 40-45 minutes uphill walk. We opted for relaxing on the campsite for the rest of the day, leaving the exploring for the following day. We found out that the campsite offered a free shuttle van service into town, which we were told would be leaving the campsite for Matera’s town center at around 10 am the next morning, so we decided to take full advantage of this service. 

Looking out into the ravine below, one can imagine the struggle of life here just decades ago.

Matera felt almost otherworldly after what we had just experienced on the Amalfi Coast, it was a total contrast. An evocative landscape of deep ravines, rocks, and caves. The previous occupants of this troglodyte city lived in extreme poverty and widespread disease, as cave dwellers living on the edge of a ravine. Matera’s original settlement of underground homes had been carved into the limestone rock by the side of two canyons carved by the Gravina River.

Matera felt almost otherworldly, carved out of the limestone rock at the side of a ravine.

Due to the poor sanitation, the entire population of the Sassi was forcefully relocated in the 1950s, to areas of the developing modern city. But since early 1990, many of the cave houses have been modernized with some grants from the European Union, and private investors keen to cash into these unique settings. Nowadays they house many thriving businesses such as shops, restaurants, elegant hotels, and holiday properties. Tourists love the romantic idea of sleeping in a cave-hotel/cave-home. 

Matera got a financial and popularity boost when it became a Unesco World Heritage site in 1993. The UNESCO protected site is composed of the ancient districts of the city of Matera and also the Park of the Rupestrian Churches. The city was further boosted in popularity when it won the award of  European Capital of Culture in 2019.

Matera has several interesting museums, including “Casa Noha” supposed to be an excellent place to learn about the cave houses’ history. Unfortunately, Casa Noha was closed during our stay in town, but we did find a visit to one of the cave houses “Casa Grotta di Vico Solitario” absolutely fascinating. It is now preserved as a museum showcasing how the inhabitant’s lives would have been, complete with fixtures, fittings, and even model livestock. The entire family (on average six members) including animals like donkeys, chicken, and pigs lived together in the cave and it has been furnished as it would have been in those days. 

Casa Grotta di Vico Solitario, for a glimpse of life in old Matera.

Casa Grotta di Vico Solitario. On average 6 people would live in this small cave-house. Due to Covid-19 restrictions, only a small group of people were allowed inside at a time and face masks were also obligatory. Once inside a guide explained all about the cave-house history.

We explored mostly the two Sassi (means stones in Italian) districts called Sasso Caveoso and Sasso Barisano, both built on natural caves that have been excavated and turned into a home for thousands of years. It is a strange world that doesn’t quite feel real. The best way to explore these neighborhoods is on foot (since only the local’s cars are allowed here in any case), therefore we just kept walking through the labyrinth of narrow alleyways, up and down uneven stone staircases, coming to some weird dead ends and little courtyards adorned with flower pots.

Many of the cave houses are still uninhabited

Interesting artwork all over the town.

It is also worth visiting the Church of Saint Mary of Idris, nestled within the Monterrone cliff that sits within Matera. The church is built within the rock itself. There are some lovely views across the Sassi from there. See below, the church is the highest stone building, 

Views of the ravine below and at the very top sits the Church of Saint Mary (Chiesa di Santa Maria di Idris) dug into the Idris rock.

For the accolade of the capital of culture, we were not surprised to see this giant bronze Salvador Dalí sculpture, called “Surrealist Piano” in Piazza San Francesco d’Assisi.

The “Surrealist Piano” by Salvador Dali.

Matera has also been used as a backdrop for some biblical movies, such as Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ (2004), and even a James Bond movie. Being such a unique-looking city it is not surprising that it has been used many times by the film industry. 

I celebrated my Birthday in Matera, enjoying a lovely meal at a local restaurant and a few phone calls from friends and family.

“Have I mentioned to you that it’s my Birthday today?”

Before leaving the city we stopped at a little bakery to buy the local bread. There are a variety of different loaves in this region, but none held in such high regard as the ancient Pane di Matera. It is a large beast of a loaf, with a dark brown, hard crust with a soft pale yellow crumb. Apparently, the strange conical shape is supposed to resemble the nearby mountains of Murgia.

Local Matera bread is a beast of a loaf.

The true Pane di Matera is made with a Lucanian-milled semolina grain known as ‘Senatore Cappelli’ and the fermentation process is also important with the yeast taken from grapes and figs fermented in local spring water. We really enjoyed eating it later on when we got back to Big Bill (our motorhome) with our evening meal and a glass of Italian wine. 

Once we finished exploring we walked back to our agriturismo campsite. Perhaps walking back was not the best idea, since it was a good 45 minutes under a hot sun, walk back and we ended up getting a little lost. Matera was certainly a very memorable city, even just a short visit, we stayed for two nights, was enough to leave us gobsmacked. Some of the attractions were closed due to the Coronavirus pandemic, but the main event really was just what can be seen whilst walking around this most incredible Italian city. 

We combined this visit to Basilicata with a visit to the neighboring region of Puglia, leaving our campsite just after breakfast the following day we drove just a short one and a half hours, via a lovely countryside road to magical Alberobello.  

Alberobello

The town of Alberobello was named after the primitive oak forest Arboris Belli ( meaning beautiful trees) that was once endemic to this region. This UNESCO World Heritage town has a dense concentration of cone-shaped roof houses that are scattered around the Puglia countryside. The Alberobello “Zona dei Trulli” consists of a dense mass of these beehive-shaped houses, constructed using a dry-stone technique (without the use of cement and mortar). 

Trulli houses, often bear mythological or religious markings in white ash and terminate in a decorative pinnacle believed to ward off evil influences or bad luck.

Brian and I loved looking around the Trulli houses.

The whitewashed walls of the Trulli comprise a double skin with a rubble core. There is the main doorway into the home and small windows. The roofs have a domed inner skin of wedged-shaped stone capped by a closing stone, with the outer cone-shaped layer built up of corbelled limestone slabs. The roofs of “Trulli” often bear mythological or religious markings in white ash and terminate in a decorative pinnacle believed to ward off evil influences or bad luck.

There are many theories behind the origin of the design. One of the more popular theories is that due to high taxation on property, the local’s landowners built dry stone wall construction so that they could be dismantled quickly when tax inspectors were in the area.

From our Alberobello Sosta (GPS N40.78296; E17.23383) it was just a very short walk into the town center and the roads where most of the Trulli are concentrated. One of the areas called Rione Monti has more than one thousand Trulli cascading down the hillside.  We found this area particularly atmospheric at night.  

From Piazza del Popolo there are panoramic views over the entire “Zona dei Trulli”. 

Aberobello “Zona Dei Trulli”.

We really enjoyed visiting the Trullo Sovrano, built by a wealthy priest’s family, the only two-floor Trullo. It is now a small museum, recreating what life would have been like for a Trullo resident. The original building dates back to the 17th century. Over the years it has been used as a court, chapel, grocer’s shop, monastery, oratory and now the property belongs to the Sumerano family. All furnishings and fittings are original. 

Trullo Sovrano

Bedroom at Trullo Sovrano.

Kitchen at Trullu Sovrano.

In the early 1800s, this Trullo was home to the relics of Cosmo and Damian, Patron Saints of Alberobello. It has been UNESCO protected since 1996. 

Alberobello was unusually quiet during our visit in late October 2020, since this town is firmly on the tourist route and it can get mobbed by large tour groups. We virtually had it to ourselves, a small silver lining of the current coronavirus pandemic. Half a day is enough to explore this small town, but I would recommend an overnight stay here if possible since is super charming in the evening with the twinkling fairy lights of the town. 

Alberobello at night looks like a fairy tale.

Alberobello is even more charming at night.

There were lots of souvenir shops, cool bars, and great restaurants, where one can shop, eat and drink in “Trullo” style. After our evening of exploring we returned home to Big Bill (our motorhome) situated just a very short walk from the town center.

Just a short walk from the town, this Sosta was the perfect overnight stop.

Parked under some olive trees we had a very peaceful night. Leaving soon after breakfast the next day we drove along the pretty Valle d’Itria heading for Ostuni. Surrounded by olive groves Ostuni is quite a large “white city” built on the top of a hill. Driving the motorhome through town was a little stressful, but we managed to find a large parking area downhill from the town center. 

Our intention was just to explore Ostuni for a couple of hours and then stay overnight at a coastal place. We paid for a few hours of parking and set off on foot uphill to explore the old town with its historic center and the 15th-century Gothic Cathedral. The roads are like a maze of alleyways, with staircases, ancient arches, and whitewashed buildings. 

This small vegetable delivery lorry was perfect for the small roads of Ostuni.

Finally, we ended up at the Ostuni Cathedral and I did have a peep inside. The facade was not as impressive as the inside, in my opinion. 

Gothic-Romanesque-Byzantine facade with a frilly rose window.

Inside there was sacred art covering the ceilings.

There was beautiful 18th-century art covering the ceilings and above the altar. It was definitely worth a visit. We walked back to our home-on-wheels soon after for a bite to eat and a good rest. Getting out of town was easier since we were already on the right side to drive to the coast. We found a friendly Sosta at Villanova (GPS40.78726 E17.58855), the owner even gave us a bottle of his own wine for a taste. I think we did purchase a couple of bottles to take with us the next day. 

Ostuni marked the end of our visit to the South of Italy and it was time to start heading North again. Altogether we drove for over 6 hours on the toll roads going Northwards to get to our next destination, the remote village of Genga for our visit to the Grotte di Frasassi, one of Europe’s largest cave systems. My next blog post will be the last of our two-months motorhome travels in Italy. I will be writing about our visit to the Frasassi Caves in Le Marche and our last days in the stunning town of Portofino on the Ligurian Coast of Italy.  

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