Our Taranto

I'm starting to feel at home in Taranto.  This was my 5th visit to the city of 250,000, and it's becoming familiar.  This is good and bad.  Good, because it's always good to feel at home in your spouse's hometown. Bad, because now I'm starting to notice and understand the reasons why he left.

Since we only spend a few weeks in Taranto every year or two, I usually focus on the good and enjoy what is unique about the city.  This time was no different.

Oh Taranto (aka: Sappy Italians), how cliche your graffiti:

The main shopping drag is our favorite place to hang out and eat gelato!

The old town is two-fold for me; Fascinating/Creepy.  Let's just say that you won't find the finest of Taranto's population there.  It is cool that Fabio's dad was born and raised here, in the same house as the famous musician, Giovanni Paisiello.  Consider that this musician was born in 1740, and Fabio's dad lived in the same house!  (Fabio's dad's house is the third picture down from here.)

The fishing harbor is in the old town.  Fabio's grandpa was a fisherman here.

Like I said in a previous post, I'm a sucker for old churches.  These two are in the old town and from Medieval Times.

Looking out over the harbor is a mixed bag.  The water is a stunning crystal clear blue, but it is littered with a view of cargo ships and a steel plant.

The promenade and open plaza (adjacent to a building that has a facing balcony where Mussolini once delivered a speech) are a fun place to walk and enjoy the view of the sea.

Along the Promenade is Matteo's favorite: La Fontonella!  We spent a lot of time staring at this fountain.

  At the beginning (or end) of the Promenade is the Araganese Castle, built during the Byzantine Dominion in the 1500s...

...And a large statue I know nothing about, but it must look pretty cool from a ship as you come into the harbor.

 The beaches south of Taranto are to die for.  We want to rent a beach house next time we visit.

There is a national archaeological museum with all kinds of Greek and Roman artifacts found throughout the city.  On the descriptions they wrote where each artifact was found and some were found on Fabio's mom's street!  We especially loved the Roman military armor:

There is a lot more to this town that I didn't capture with my camera on this trip.  Taranto was founded as a Greek colony in the 8th century BC and there are some remnants of Greek architecture (think temple pillars and relief remnants on cinder block columns in random locations throughout the city).

Lest you be wooed into thinking that Taranto is all beautiful sea and fascinating history, there is more to it than that.  It's a chaotic city where no one pays attention to traffic rules and pedestrians are moving targets.  Citizens don't regard trash cans as relevant and everything is closed from 1-5pm, but it's a place we can appreciate for a few weeks out of the year!