All about Salento

The Salento is an Italian territory, which extends throughout the southern region of Puglia region, and is surrounded mostly by sea, the Adriatic to the east and the Ionian Sea to the west. Fully occupies the province of Lecce, a large part of that of Taranto and almost entirely that of Brindisi. It 's the "" heel, "" of the "" boot "" of the Italian peninsula. Salento is the name of etymological origins not well defined. According to Strabo, a greek geographer and historian born in 63 BC to Amasea, a town now in northern Turkey, Salento took its name from the soaring, Cretan colonists who settled in that territory. Other historians, then, they supported this hypothesis, adding that the name derives from Salenzia, city of origin of the Cretan settlers, or the name of their captain: Salento for some, for others Sale. in greek salt it is also synonymous with the sea, so the Salento name may have originated even from the sea (land surrounded by the sea). The most beautiful beaches of Salento are Marina di Pescoluse, renamed Maldives of Salento for its beauty, Punta Prosciutto, Torre dell'Orso, Porto Selvaggio, Porto Cesareo and the Caribbean Punta della suina, located in the bay of Gallipoli, town become somewhere year the Queen of Salento. Andrew Tower is famous instead for the stacks and for the "" Cave of the "" love. To find out all about Salento, however, do not just visit the coastal area, with its beaches and clear blue sea. It must be the hinterland, where will welcome ancient olive groves bounded by stone walls, ancient farmhouses converted into comfortable tourist facilities, ancient megalithic monuments dating from the late Neolithic period, the Dolmen and Menhir. Or visit Lecce, with churches, baroque palaces and the Roman amphitheater, located right in the city center, and Brindisi with its two castles, the Aragon sea fort that stands for the red color of its stones, and Swabian castle built by Frederick II and then the villages with their historic towns. Salento is also folklore festivals, village festivals, and the Notte della Taranta, popular festival held in late August in Melpignano village, a few kilometers from Lecce, and each year attracts thousands of people. Definitely worth trying is the Salento cuisine, which is among the best in Italy, and an integral part of the so-called Mediterranean diet, recognized in 2010 by UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. It characterizes vegetables and legumes, bread and pasta. Who does not know the famous orecchiette with turnip tops? It also includes the wild onions (small wild onions), the "" cardoncelli "" mushrooms, snails. The most famous sweet is the "" pasticciotto "", short pastry with custard filling. the wines produced in this area also deserve a taste. Among the most famous Negroamaro, Primitivo di Manduria and Malvasia.