From Punta Palascia, Valona is only about eighty kilometers away, a fact that, in past years, made the Strait of Otranto a kind of highway for the infamous Albanian smugglers. But the liveliness of these places has ancient roots. The role of the port in trade between Lecce and Tyre and Alexandria has deeply shaped the character and architectural profile of this small town, which has just over five thousand inhabitants, and it opens to tourists stone-paved streets, terraces overlooking the sea, glimpses of blue between white houses and flowered balconies, an impressive Aragonese castle, and a splendid Romanesque Apulian-style cathedral.
A short walk also reveals rich craftsmanship, made of bobbin lace and embroidery, decorating clothing and household linen: beautiful pieces can be found at L’Ago del Ricamo, on Corso Garibaldi 41. And original ceramic objects, like those from Art’è, in Via Lungomare Terra d’Otranto 17. When appetite calls, you can settle at Da Sergio, a landmark restaurant in the city center, whose kitchen offers fresh fish caught locally, or at Acmet Pascià, with a lovely terrace overlooking the sea, the right place to enjoy swordfish carpaccio and sea urchin bavette. Exploring the coast from north to south, one cannot miss the sequence of ancient watchtowers, evocative and dramatic buildings built so that from one to another suspicious sightings could be signaled with fire.
And then there are the beaches, bays, dream locations, such as Alimini, with freshwater and saltwater lakes, Frassanito; Porto Badisco, which is said to have witnessed Aeneas’ landing; Santa Cesarea Terme, whose architecture clearly bears Eastern influences. Castro with the limestone swirls of its cave, the Zinzulusa. Arriving thus at the “end of the earth,” at Capo di Santa Maria di Leuca. Beyond which there is only open sea, only Mediterranean, only blue.
