Otranto is a small city in the province of Lecce along the eastern coast of the Salento peninsula and is
situated at Italy's easternmost landpoint that juts into the 82 kilometer wide Channel of Otranto that
separates Italy and Albania. The old city is encircled by walls and dominated by brightly colored houses;
the modern part lies between the colle [hill] della Minerva and
Monte Carlo Magno overlooking the Channel of
Otranto, between Capo d'Otranto and Capo Linguetta.
Many civilizations have left traces in this area: there are the Grotte dei Cervi
from the Paleolithic period,
tombs and pottery furnaces of the Messapi, monolithic marble columns, Greek tombs and capitals, and a Roman
necropolis. However, the strongest traces are Byzantine, for example the church of
San Pietro and the monastery of
San Nicola di Casole, where the Basilian monks had established what
was at the time the largest library in the west, as well as the first
boarding school in history (in 1160), that took in students from
all over Europe.
The historic city center is well preserved, and presents very attractive views of arches and baroque style
balconies and inviting little stone streets that snake along between the houses. There are many interesting
monuments, such as the Castello [castle] Aragonese, the little church
dedicated to the Vergine degli Abissi,
and the Cathedral of Otranto (note the precious mosaic floor) that
houses the remains of the 800 martyrs killed
by the Turks during the siege of 1480. In fact, today the large doorways of many of the city's
palazzi are
flanked by the stone balls used by the bombarding Turks.
Other sites of interest are the church of Santa Maria dei Martiri, Casa Arcella,
Porto Badisco, and the main
city Port which has always been important for commerce with the East.
The crystalline clear sea and the proximity
of the Alimini Lakes (a particular attraction in the nearby countryside)
contribute to making Otranto an
enchanting little city, one of the loveliest in Italy.
