Adventures with Julia

September 12, 2023

We were picked up by our driver, Massimo, and left Matera for Altamura and Castel del Monte. We rendezvoued with our guide for the day, Silvia, at the Di Gesu Bakery in Altamura . We were met by Giuseppe, the 5th generation proprietor of the business. He was quite proud of his product and walked us through the steps of making the best bread around. We had to admit that it was very tasty, soft in the middle and crispy on the outside The wood burning oven behind us in the photo is 6 meters in diameter. Quite huge. It takes 40 minutes to load the oven and the best bread is what goes in first and comes out last.

From the bakery we walked through Altamura’s Old CIty, which had been abandoned in the 600’s when Rome fell and was rejuvenated by Frederick II in 1233. We stopped at the Cathedral of the Assumption to view the intricately carved portal, a lovely sculpture of a young Joseph with Jesus and a special painting of the conversion of St Paul.

I bought a purple outfit I saw in a store window and could not resist. Then we headed for the next town, Gravina, where we stoped at the Church of Purgatory and took in the sayings on the wall. “What you are, is what I used to be.” “What you are going to be, is what I am.” Sylvia had her own saying. “The mother of the idiot is always pregnant.” Not sure what she had in mind.

On that note we all had a coffee and then hit the road for my big goal for the day, the Castel del Monte an hour north of Gravina. The countryside was mostly gentle rolling hills. Very lovely even though the fields were mostly brown cut grass. Trees were very sporadic but added variety to the sameness of the undulating hills. Most of the buildings we saw along the way were abandoned farm houses. Farming and sheep raising had once been the main economy of the region. Today the economy is mostly olive oil, then olives and grapes, followed by almonds, fruit trees and then wheat–the crop we were passing through.

As we approached the Castel, the conversation turned to Frederick II, who commissioned the castel in the 1240’s. He was born in 1194, became the king of Germany in 1212=]\ and Emperor of Italy and the Holy Roman Empire in 1220. He was a Christian, but was excommunicated 3 times by the pope. He died in 1250 after having been a forward thinking leader and commissioner of great works.

This structure is a perfect octagon, that took years to get perfect. there are 8 sides, 8 equally sized rooms on two floors, beautiful marble walls with corinthian columns, and bathrooms on both floors. The building sits on top of a hill with a 360 degree view of the area. It was built with great precision and has a grace about it that makes me think of it more like the Taj Mahal. We spent an hour roaming around the place and taking in the atmosphere. I was pleased to have added it to our list of sights to see. We drove back to Matera and called it a good day. Mark and I had dinner in a local underground restaurant called La Lopa and went to bed. We have not yet adjusted to the time change..