Apulia, Italy
In this period the festivals in Puglia are on the weekend and with some friends we went to the Sagra del Fungo Cardoncello, in the village of Minervino Murge. The city is located on a small hill and to reach the historic center where the whole festival takes place, it is necessary to travel a long uphill stretch, Via Capuccini, about 300 meters with a slope that would put even the best athletes in difficulty , until you reach Piazza Giovanni Bovio.
The festival takes place all along Corso Giacomo Matteotti, where dozens of stalls are located where local products are cooked and tasted, prepared and cooked according to tradition. Here there were several women who prepared the recipes handed down from mother to daughter over the decades, such as the famous handmade orecchiette, and they cooked tasty dishes based on sausage and mushrooms, typical especially at this particular time of the season when the mushrooms are in their most mature phase.
Minervino Murge exudes a lot of culture and there are many works of art such as the Church of San Miche Arcangelo, imposing from the outside, with its challenging staircase, especially after having already done the whole uphill route. From here you can also sit on the benches and admire, especially during the day, a fantastic view of the Murgia and its hills. Coming back, we head to the other side of the city, where the Cardoncello Mushroom Festival continues with music, food and guided tours in the historic center.
The Assunta Cathedral deserves special attention, the largest and most important church in the city, built in the 16th century, maintains a very sober tone, with three large naves, divided by two rows of columns in white stone and a huge coffered ceiling in wood. Continuing further along the tasting route we reach Piazza Aldo Moro where some musical bands alternated on stage.
Minervino is a beautiful medieval village and the beauty of the alleys is impressive, well lit and almost immaculate, with long staircases that connect the streets and the houses between them and the people always joyful and proud of their origins, happy with events like this in which is returned a little back in time, and reminds us how life was simple and very hard, but everyone was happy, even in poverty.
