Matera

Anyone arriving in Matera for the first time cannot fail to be enchanted by its intricate tangle of houses dug out of caves, rupestrian churches and baroque palaces, all piled one on top of the other and surrounded by an almost lunar landscape. It is no coincidence that this city in Basilicata, located in the center south of Italy, in 1993 was included in the UNESCO World Heritage Site for its "cultural landscape". In order to understand this definition, it is necessary to retrace the history of the city, whose first settlements, in cave dwellings excavated in the limestone of the ravine, date back to the Bronze Age. Here man has integrated with nature and territory without violating them, studying innovative urban solutions. Among these, a complex system of water canalization, whose best example, still open to visitors, is the Palombaro Lungo, a huge cistern dating back to the nineteenth century.

"In that narrow space between the facades and the slope pass the streets, and are together floors for those who come out of the houses above and roofs for those below," so the writer Carlo Levi described the incredible urban fabric of Matera, where past and present intersect without stopping. To get your bearings, keep in mind that the two main settlements developed on two natural amphitheaters, Sasso Caveoso and Sasso Barisano, divided by a spur called Civita, the oldest part of the town. Here stands the Duomo, a splendid example of Romanesque architecture, built around the middle of 1200.

The historic center can be visited only on foot: wear comfortable shoes, because its steps and its narrow streets eroded by centuries are very slippery. The suggestion is to enjoy Matera without hurrying, getting lost in the alleys and steps, letting yourself be dazzled by the incredible views of the town and the surrounding landscape that suddenly appear in front of you. Being in front of one of the many viewpoints of the city at sunset, when the first lights come on and the white stones of the sassi are colored pink and orange, as in a huge crib, is a unique experience.