{"id":9715,"date":"2014-07-17T08:07:53","date_gmt":"2014-07-17T06:07:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.arttrav.com\/?p=9715"},"modified":"2014-07-17T08:42:17","modified_gmt":"2014-07-17T06:42:17","slug":"martina-franca-puglia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.arttrav.com\/it\/martina-franca-puglia\/","title":{"rendered":"What to do and see in Martina Franca, Puglia"},"content":{"rendered":"

Martina Franca<\/strong> is a pleasant town in the Valle d’Itria area of Puglia in southern Italy. Blessed by a cool breeze much of the time, it’s a popular destination for an evening stroll and dinner. On a summer evening, you’ll find its narrow streets slowly moving with strolling, well-dressed Italians doing the passeggiata<\/em> – a walk down the main strip to see and be seen. Year-round, Sunday mornings when church lets out have a similar feel, in Winter with an abundance of fur coats. People-watching is thus part of the reason to visit this town – there’s not really all that much specifically to do in Martina Franca, Puglia, though the architecture and the town itself is worth a look. I’ve included Martina Franca in my one-week itinerary to Puglia<\/a>, and this article is an excerpt from the itinerary.<\/p>\n

\"Colourful
Colourful bulidings in Martina Franca<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The modern town of Martina Franca is quite extended, and works its way up to the historical center which is, on the other hand, rather contained. Like Ostuni and Locorotondo<\/a>, its white polished stone and whitewashed facades make everything look clean and shiny. But, Martina also has some impressive, and occasionally more colourful, architecture. Although there was a town here in the Middle Ages, what we see now is from the Baroque period and later.<\/p>\n

\"Ducal
Ducal palace<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The historical importance of Martina is testified to by the presence of a huge, rich Ducal palace<\/strong>, begun in 1668 on a project by none other than the great Baroque architect, Gianlorenzo Bernini<\/strong> (you might know him if you’ve ever been to Rome, where he’s most famous for the Fountain of the Four Rivers<\/a>). Although it took almost four centuries to reach its present size and state, the very fact that the Rome-based architect deigned to come this far south must tell us something about how rich the patrons – the Caracciolo family – were. They were, in fact, the feudal rulers of the area from the 16th through 19th centuries.<\/p>\n

\"Church<\/a>
Church of San Martino<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Further hints of the glory of this town, in this period, can be found in the impressive late Baroque church of San Martino<\/strong> designed by the Milanese architect Giovanni Mariani and built in the mid-18th century – it’s prettier on the outside than it is inside, really. The church is located on a large Piazza (del Plebescito) that is also home to the University building and the city’s bell tower.<\/p>\n

\"Caff\u00e8
Caff\u00e8 Tripoli<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Another not to be missed feature of this town, that has more to do with one’s stomach than with art and culture, is a bar called Tripoli<\/strong>. Ask anyone for directions and they’ll point you to a place that has been here for about a hundred years. Stylish as it must have been in the 1950s, the must-have sweet here is called a “bocconotto” – a small pastry with custard baked in and just a touch of jam in the middle. The traditional flavour is custard and cherry jam, although there’s also a baked ricotta version and sometimes other variants.<\/p>\n

\"Waiting
Waiting outside the funeral home…<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For more about the area around Martina Franca, take a look at my Unanchor itinerary – one-week itinerary to Puglia, the Valle d’Itria and Matera<\/a> available on Unanchor.com or on Amazon (link below).
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