Italy

Alberobello

  Our next stop was the town of Alberobello, famous for its trulli dwellings, ancient roundhouses with their distinctive conical stone roofs.  These drystone buildings were originally built in the sixteenth century and, because they were built using no mortar, they attracted no feudal taxes.   We saw hundreds dotted around the countryside, many totally dilapidated and others revamped into chic modern residences, rather like the oast houses in Kent.  In the town they were a huge tourist attraction with the cobbled streets lined with gift shops, restaurants and all the paraphernalia you would expect from these places – we were reminded of Clovelly in Devon.