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Understand

Gargano area

View of Vieste

In the province of Foggia, in the Southern Italian region of Apulia, the wonderful town of Vieste is worth a visit. It is in the Gargano territory, a subregion that owes its name to a great promontory around which this area extends.

This city has been populated since the Palaeolithic era, as archaeological studies demonstrated. The Archaeological Museum of Vieste (Museo Archeologico di Vieste "Michele Petrone") is plenty of evidence of such research in prehistoric flint mines in carried out this territory, including the oldest one in Europe, called “Defensola” mine.

In this area there are many archaeological remains that testify the settlement of the ancient Greeks and Latins, but the urban development of the town started with the Norman and Swabian dynasties, with the castle, the Romanesque cathedral and the medieval citadel being built in this period (11th century).

Nowadays, Vieste is a popular destination in Italy especially for its breathtaking views and its amazing beaches. For this it was awarded the “Blue Flag” (Bandiera Blu), a certification by Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) for the purity of its waters, in several occasions.

Vieste Lighthouse

One of the typical Alleys in Vieste

Pizzomunno monolith in Vieste

Many people all around the world love spending summer holidays here: there are many amazing places such as the harbour, the lighthouse tower, the small alleys that characterize the city and so on, and you can enjoy a superb view in many parts of the town.

One of the symbols which best represents Vieste is “Pizzomunno” (from the local dialect “pezzo del mondo”, “piece of the world”), a 25-meter/82-foot white limestone monolith towering above Castle Beach. A proper must-see in the town, it is a popular attraction due to the incredible and fascinating folkloristic legend hidden beyond this monument: the story of Cristalda e Pizzomunno. Once upon a time, two lovers lived in Vieste: Pizzomunno, a fisherman, and Cristalda, a young girl with long blonde hair. Pizzomunno used to sail the sea for fishing, but he often met some mermaids who tried to enchant him whit their melody, to make him stay with them in exchange for immortality. Pizzomunno never fell into their trap. A night, the two lovers were on the beach, but the sirens caught Cristalda and dragged her into the sea, disappearing forever. The pain for losing his beloved was so much crushing so that Pizzomunno turned into a stone on that beach (the white monolith that is named after him). The legend also tells that Cristalda comes back every hundred years to visit her man just for one night, sealing their never-ending love.