The lanes where the women make orecchiette outside their homes
On a small peninsula between the old and new ports of Bari, Bari Vecchia, the old town, is a maze of narrow white lanes, arches, courtyards and tiny squares, with over forty churches and more than a hundred street shrines. Once considered dangerous, it has been revived in recent decades and is today one of the most authentic historic centres of southern Italy, where daily life still goes on in the street.
Its most famous corner is Arco Basso, the lane where, in front of their front doors, the women of the district, the "signore delle orecchiette", sit at wooden tables and make orecchiette by hand, the "little ears" of durum wheat pasta typical of Puglia, dragging a piece of dough with a knife and turning it over the thumb at astonishing speed, then laying them out to dry on wooden frames and selling them to passers-by. The old town is enclosed by the Muraglia, the old sea walls, a panoramic walk, and is dominated by the Norman-Swabian Castle, rebuilt by Frederick II. Nearby are the Basilica of San Nicola and the Romanesque Cathedral of San Sabino.
Tip: try street food such as sgagliozze (fried polenta), popizze (fried dough balls) and focaccia barese; in the evening, the Lungomare and Piazza Mercantile come alive.
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