A UNESCO World Heritage Site, Alberobello, Italy is the home of the Trulli house. They’ve been in existence since at least 1400, and were built of limestone and without mortar, the keystone at the top keeping them intact. When the Kingdom of Naples imposed a tax on urban settlements the people of Alberobello who chose to avoid paying would keep a lookout for the tax collector. When they knew of his pending arrival they would remove the keystone and the house would fall into a pile of rubble.

Trulli houses starting in 1797 could build with mortar and exist to this day. A Trullaro is a master trulli builder, and the keystone at the top is the signature of the Trullaro. The paintings on the roofs have a religious or astrological meaning. Symbols may include planetary signs, the malocchi (evil eye), the cross, a heart, a star, and a few others.

There is only one trullo that is a church, the Church of Saint Anthony, or Parrocchia Sant’Antonio da Padova. It was opened to the public on the 13th of June 1927. Dedicated to Saint Anthony, the Patron Saint of Padua, this special church combines the architectural style and building techniques of a modernized trullo with the Romanesque-Pugliese church architecture, featuring characteristic rounded arch windows and a rose window above the entrance on the façade. Then, rising above the main body of the church are four domes circling a larger central dome, all of which are topped by the distinctive cone-shaped corbelled roofs of trulli. Further trulli roofs top the flanking tower and other structures that make up the church complex. Inside the building, the walls are white-washed and the décor is simple, with the only real flash of color visible in the 20th century fresco of the Tree of Life and Crucifix signed by the artist Adolfo Rollo that is located above the high altar. I was particularly taken by the bronze sculpture making up the lectern.

In the modern part of the city there is a street that changes its décor every month. They have light strings crossing the street, back and forth, for about a block. In October they hung straw hats from the lights. Our guide said he was always surprised and has seen dolls hanging from the strings of lights, holiday decorations, and whatever else the neighborhood comes up with. Clever!

Our tour ended with a “snack” and wine at Masseria Gelso Antico, a trulli farm and restaurant. A lovely spot that hosts weddings and events, it has beautiful domed rooms and a garden for alfresco dining. And a hedge of scarlet firethorn!

And, as happened most every evening, we were treated to a gorgeous sunset on the ship.

Deborah