In the last 15 years living outside of Italy, temporarily calling many countries ‘home’, from the US to Australia, I have been often asked the question “Where do you come from?”.
My response goes usually along the lines of “I come from the very South of Italy, from an area called Salento in the region of Puglia (en: Apulia): the heel of the Italian boot“.
Although the area of Salento is a very popular and well know destination amongst Italians (thanks to its magnificent beaches, great food, full-bodied red wines and amazing monuments), the area is not quite recognised in other parts of the world.
You are surely aware of Rome, Florence, Venice or Milan, perhaps you have even been there, however you may not know where cities like Lecce or Otranto are. If you are kind of a curious person, maybe you may have heard of the Thinking Tree in Puglia (an ancient olive tree in Apulia), but that may be it.
I’m here to tell you that the places in Salento are as beautiful as Rome & Co!
What makes them even more appealing is that particular atmosphere that you can only experience in the South of the Italian peninsula: that romanticism, mixed to melancholy and Beauty, that many spots in the Southern Mediterranean are impregnated of.
What is Salento?
Now to the main question: how can you possibly explain Salento to a “foreigner”, to somebody who was not born there and never visited?
Let me take you on a journey.
In Salento, you wake up early. As you step out of your home, the sun is shining. Always. It doesn’t matter what the calendar says: whether summer or winter, that hot, yellow disc is nice and bright up there in the blue sky.
Is this such a big deal?
Yes.
Because the sun warms you up. It warms your soul up. It makes you smile, even when you don’t really feel like smiling.
You walk down the street, and you bump into the friendly guy selling fruit and vegetables. No, not at his shop, but out of the back of an Ape Piaggio. He’s selling peaches, fennels, watermelons “that you can try first”. Everything has a fantastic smell. That makes you even fuller with joy.
A few meters away, a bunch of kids are being noisy. They are playing football (or soccer, you may say), not in a stadium but in the middle of the street. Sometimes sh*t happens: the ball hits a lady who is just walking by serendipitously, or it ends up stuck under a car, right in between asphalt and exhausting pipe. Those boys have been naughty – you think – but, in reality, they are just enjoying life in this amazing corner of the Earth.
You keep strolling around. You cross the street and you see the sea. The Mediterranean Sea. Of course, you grew up hearing the gentle harmony of the waves, it sounds like a familiar lullaby to you.
You look at the sea, and you fall in love with it. Again and again. Could you even live without it?
You step into the local coffeeshop (we call it “bar”): pasticciotti, rustici, pitta di patate, calzoni, ciambelle, bocche di dama… All this amazing patisserie and savory food is there to tempt you: aren’t you hungry yet? After all, if you hang around this blog, chances are you love Italian food!
All your friends at the bar are fighting to pay for your coffee. A real Italian espresso, you know, most probably from Quarta Caffè, the only coffee you would drink if you are from Lecce! “Come here, get whatever you want” – as if you are going to buy the whole building! If your friends aren’t quick enough in winning the race of handling the coins to the bartender, they end up sad.
In Salento, if we are not going to see each other for longer than 24 hours, we say goodbye with two kisses.
In Salento, everything is slower. Life goes on slower. And that’s by design, my friend. Why would you want to go faster when you’re living your best life? Why wouldn’t you want to savor the moment? Chances are, it’s a great moment indeed – remember: you’ve been smiling since the very second you woke up!
Yes, perhaps we lack something, some things. But who cares. Really, we have much more than what we can make use for.
“Salentu: lu sule, lu mare, lu ientu”. In the local dialect that reads “The sun, the sea, the wind”. Do you need anything more than Beauty?
I think I finally got it.
If you want to possibly explain Salento to a “foreigner”, the only sensible thing to do is to advice them to visit it.
Tell them to take that trip, jump on that plane, spend that time to explore a new land.
If you’re lucky, you may not just lose yourself in pristine beaches, walk through History, eat phenomenal Southern Italian food, drink strong and flavorsome red wine. You will discover a new way of living.
That’s where I come from.
© Italian Food Boss