{"id":33758,"date":"2018-05-15T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2018-05-14T22:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.trullionline.com\/castellana-grotte-2\/"},"modified":"2018-05-15T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2018-05-14T22:00:00","slug":"castellana-grotte-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.trullionline.com\/en\/castellana-grotte-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Castellana Grotte"},"content":{"rendered":"

Castellana Grotte<\/strong> is one of the must-visit attractions in Puglia<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The first time I ever set foot there, on a street corner of the old town<\/strong> I bumped right into a young lady: it was then that I noticed she had a guide dog with her and I was embarrassed for not realizing sooner. I tried to make up for it by offering to help her, but she refused and when she realized how confused I was suggested I go for an espresso.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you keep going down this road and then turn right, you\u2019ll get to a bar, tell them princess <\/em>sent you \u2013 have the espresso on me.\u201d Taken aback by her generosity, I asked if she\u2019d like to come along with me.<\/p>\n

As we stroll through the streets, she tells me that Castellana Grotte<\/strong> is a member of the Intermunicipal Tourism Consortium<\/strong> known as \u201ctrulli, grotte, mare\u201d (trulloes, caves and sea), along with Noci, Conversano, Polignano<\/strong> and others.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can have a holiday<\/strong> here at any time of year, because we\u2019ve got countryside<\/strong>, sea<\/strong>, a rich artistic heritage <\/strong>and excellent food and wine<\/strong>. We\u2019ve got everything\u201d, she tells me, following carefully along where her dog leads her.<\/p>\n

Her description is so vivid, it sounds as if she could actually see it. I\u2019m bowled over.\u00a0\u00a0 She tells me that the world-famous Castellana Caves<\/strong> lie about a mile from the village, a vast system of caves<\/strong> created by the Apulian karst <\/strong>phenomenon, etched out by the unceasing action of rainwater on the limestone, and that they were discovered in 1938<\/strong>. They formed in the Upper Cretaceous<\/strong>, about a hundred million years ago.<\/p>\n

Visitors can walk past fossils<\/strong>, stalactites<\/strong> and stalagmites<\/strong> that make the scenery almost surreal, rocks<\/strong> in incredible colours and bizarre shapes. The path begins with at the so-called Grave<\/em><\/strong>, a cavern with a large natural skylight<\/strong>, which is what led to its original discovery.<\/p>\n

I find out that even people with disabilities can visit the caves, that you can hike<\/strong> through the caves during speleonight<\/strong>, with just the light on your safety helmets, so you can wonder at the nocturnal beauty of these karst environments<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The Grave<\/strong> also forms the stage for Hell in the Cave<\/strong>, an outstanding show that embraces the natural environment of the caves as its backdrop, combining dance, poetry and light shows, leading the audience on an extraordinary adventure tour of Dante’s Inferno<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

After coffee, we carry on walking through the streets of the village. She points out the Church of Purgatory<\/strong> and the one dedicated to St. Francis of Assisi<\/strong> with its many valuable sculptural decorations<\/strong>. She gives me precise instructions on how to get to the Mother Church<\/strong>, the oldest holy building, and the Baroque<\/strong>-style Caroseno Church<\/strong>. She takes me to the entrance of the Town Hall<\/strong> and tells me all about the 18th- and 19th-century buildings along the main streets.<\/p>\n

She tells me that just outside the town are the Madonna della Grotta<\/strong> underground church<\/strong> and the Santuario Maria Santissima della Vetrana<\/strong>, a sanctuary surrounded by typical beautiful Murgia<\/strong> landscapes, full of olive trees<\/strong> and Mediterranean plants.<\/p>\n

After such a pleasant chat, the princess <\/em>and her Margot say goodbye and I realize I\u2019ve been enjoying the hospitality of the Pugliesi<\/strong>, and understand that we really ought to be travelling through life with our hearts rather than just with our eyes.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Castellana Grotte is one of the must-visit attractions in Puglia. 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