BARI

My hostess Tina has been having some serious pain problems with one of her feet.  So we've been out sightseeing just a couple of times this week.  Plus it was cold and rainy a couple of days.

On our second sightseeing trip this week, we toured around Bari, which is where my host Donato was born, and where Tina and Donato lived for several years after they were married.  So they know this place very well.

As with many Italian cities, there's an old city and a new city.  The tourists, of course, spend most of their time in the old cities, because that's where the history is and that's where you get a strong sense of the passage of time in this ancient civilization.  Bari isn't as much of a tourist draw as some of the other cities I've visited, but it's nice.  It's by the sea.......

This walkway is 12 kilometers long, and it's lighted all the way....quite the pretty sight at night, I'm told.  As you can see, we were there in in daylight, and it was a beautiful one.

The streets of old town in Bari weren't very busy.











And there weren't a lot of sights to see, but you can always count on a couple of churches.  

This is the Basilica di San Nicola...I guess it's pretty obvious that I didn't take this picture.  The architecture is 11th century Byzantine.

This gives you some idea of its grandeur inside.

The frescoed ceiling was beautiful...and gold always showcases things nicely.

This altar was in the basement of the church, which was a pretty amazing place.

I wish I could show you the total effect of all these beautiful arches that filled this space.

    As well as some pretty stunning art.















One church is enough for today, and San Nicola was the best of the two we saw.  After walking the streets of old town, I got a driving tour of the city, and there were times it looked like Florida.

But it isn't.