Today, visit thepicturesque town of Altamura, famous for its production of artisan breads, inparticular the ‘focaccia’. You will visit a bakery with an ancient wood-firedoven and get to taste the freshly baked bread. From here, drive to neighbouringBasilicata, one of the least known areas of Italy and to the fascinating cityof Matera. The city forms a sort of bowl and cut into the rocks are unique cavedwellings, known as ‘sassi’. In the 1950’s, this was one of the poorest areasof Italy and the people living in the sassi had an unbelievably squalidexistence. Their plight was highlighted by Carlo Levi in his book ‘ChristStopped in Eboli’ and the government was shamed into rehousing them to modernhousing on the outskirts of the city. Things change and in 1993 Matera was madea World Heritage Site and since then, people have started to restore the‘sassi’, turning them into hotels, guest houses and craft workshops.
