Our Beloved Puglia

In this episode of the first seson of Dream of Italy (PBS travel series), we go to the heel of Italy – called Puglia. A local called Tonino Benincasa gives our host Kathy McCabe an intro to the Baroque city of Lecce with a classic car ride. Lecce is famous for its paper mâché and we see how nativity scene figures are crafted at Cartapesta Claudio Riso. Outside Lecce, in the town of Squinzano, Kathy meets the locals and gets a ride in a tiny Ape car to an olive mill where locals are dancing the pizzica in celebration of the harvest. A local mama teaches Kathy to make orecchiette (pasta). Alberobello is famous for its classic cone-shaped houses (trulli) and we learn the history of them. In seaside Monopoli, Kathy’s friend Antonello Losito introduces her to an old man who makes beautiful model boats.