Historic Center - Via Amente, 2

Further along Via Amente, the street widens a bit, not because it was designed that way, but because in the 1960s an entire building fell down from lack of upkeep. At that time, Molfetta Vecchia was determined to be an unsafe place to live and the majority of the inhabitants were moved out and settled elsewhere in public housing. That just increased the situation of neglect and many more buildings fell down, or imploded (see photo above) over the years.

An interest in gentrification began to grow in the 1990s. My husband and I lived in a renovated home on Via Sant'Orsola (see yesterday's map - go to the end of Via Piazza and turn right) for 11 years. We were the first family to renovate and move into that part of the old town. Now there are many renovated homes and even shops and coffee bars throughout Molfetta Vecchia. It's not touristy, but at least it's not as abandoned as it used to be.

Today's photo shows a row of homes in the open area halfway down Via Amente. Looking from left to right you see an empty building, an inhabited building, an imploded building and an inhabited one (you can tell it's inhabited by the satellite dish on the roof!).

Historic Center - Via Amente

Molfetta Vecchia (or Old Molfetta, as the original city center is called) was an island. Its layout was designed in the shape of a fish spine, with one central street down the middle, Via Piazza (see map below) and other streets shooting off perpendicularly to the left and the right. It was walled by virtue of the buildings all being attached to one another all the way around, and was surrounded by the sea on all sides. The only entry at that time was through the main arch (see yesterday's post) so that when invaders arrived (which they often did) the main door could be closed to keep them out. If they did get in, all of the side streets were closed off so that the pirates or Normans or whomever were blocked on Via Piazza and could be attacked more easily by the citizens. The Molfettans would throw rocks at them or pour down boiling water or oil.

Today's photo was taken at the corner of Via Piazza, looking down Via Amente, the first street to the right. It is a bit dark, but that's the way it always is there. The houses are built so close together that not much sun gets down to street level.

Today is my 100th post...wow! ;-)

Historic Center

I haven't shown much of Molfetta's historical center yet, and it is definitely worth seeing. The old town was originally a round island. It has since been annexed to the "mainland" by landfill. The view above is from inside the main entry arch looking out. The area where the cars are parked was once water, from what I understand. In Medieval days there was a giant wooden door that was closed at sunset and opened each morning. A defensive measure used in most walled cities in that period to keep the bad guys out.

p.s. For all of those kind people who sent me good wishes for my son who was not well, I just want to let you know that he is doing much better. The doctors scared us silly with all kinds of dreadful possibilities, but all tests were negative! Thanks so very much for your concern!

Fruit and Vegetables, 2

Anther place you can buy your fresh produce is from a street vendor. The reasons for prefering a vendor to a supermarket are basically price and convenience.

Prices are usually lower at a street vendor. This was actually an issue of contention discussed during the local mayoral campaign last spring. It is believed...one doesn't want to accuse...that perhaps some, and I'm not saying all, and I'm certainly not saying this guy here...but some of these vendors might not actually have a sales license... And if you don't have to pay all those taxes, why not pass the savings on to the consumer? Every good businessman knows that lower prices pull in customers.

As for convenience, if you live in the town center and you happen to live near one of these vendors, or pass by on your way home for lunch...well, there he is, waiting for you right there on the corner. No line to weigh things, no line at the checkout counter, no waiting for a sales receipt, he won't ask you to pay for your plastic bag...

I don't think that freshness or quality are an issue here. Sometimes these guys have produce that is locally grown, but no more or less than the supermarkets. You can see the bananas in the photo, and I can guarantee you that there are no banana plantations anywhere around here!

Just for your information, the building behind the vendor on the left is my older son's junior high. I shot this photo while waiting to pick him up after school. Every moment of the day offers a potential photo opportunity! :-)

Fruit and Vegetables

There are a few different ways you can come by your fruit and vegetables in Molfetta.

The first is to go to the supermarket. Some local supermarkets have gotten into the habit of pre-packaging set quantities of each food, so as to skip the step of you having to pick each piece of produce individually, have it weighed and priced. Personally, I'm not fond of that method unless I'm in a big hurry (which does happen to be the case more often than I'd like!).

I prefer to choose my produce by myself.

For environmental reasons, I like to see produce that is free of plastic or styrofoam packaging. I think packaging is one of the great evils of our age!

And aesthetically, I like the way the produce looks lying there in its bin, all fresh and shiny!

Tomorrow I'll show you another produce shopping option...

Madonna of the Martyrs Church

Yesterday's statue stands just across from this church which is home to the venerated statue of the Madonna of the Martyrs that I showed you during the festival of Saint Conrad in early September.

The first written documents that refer to this church date back to 1162 where it is mentioned as a chapel annexed to the hospital for pilgrims enroute or returning from the Holy Land (i.e., crusaders). In the photo you can see a stone wall with two flags, the hospital lies behind that wall, you can still visit it today. It is believed that there was a previous chapel on the same site and a pagan worshipping place previous to that.

The church we see today is Neogothic in style. Besides housing the statue of the Madonna which is said to be named Glikophylousa and to have been carried back from the "Orient" at the end of the 12th century by crusaders, the church complex also hosts a community of monks. It is possible to lodge with them when visiting Molfetta. For information, consult the following site.

This video is rather poor in quality, but it shows the church from a different angle and yesterday's statue is also visible.

Madonna and Child

This statue is located in front of the Madonna dei Martiri church at the north end of town. I don't know the name of the sculpture or year of installation, or anything, unfortunately...I forgot to take notes when I shot the photo! Currently I am not getting out of the house much as my younger son is having some health problems and is confined to bed. But I promise to find out more about this statue and let you know as soon as possible!

I wanted to post the photo even without all the details because one of my readers, Lagrasta, whose family comes from Molfetta, although he lives in the USA, mentioned that he loved this statue. At least, I believe this is the one he had in mind! (Let me know if this is not the right one, Lagrasta!)

Today I received the Blogging Friends Forever Award from Petrea of Pasadena Daily Photo (and other!) fame. I am so thrilled to receive this award because I admire Petrea and her blog for her thought-provoking photos and writing. I think it's especially nice that it's an award for "friends." I'm honored to be a friend of Petrea! We need all the friends we can get, I say!

Now, I get to give the award in turn to five bloggers, according to the following rules:
1. Only five people are allowed.
2. Four have to be dedicated followers of your blog.
3. One has to be someone new or recently new to your blog and live in another part of the world.
4. You must link back to whoever gave you the award.

My award recipients are:

Hilda of My Manila, who is perhaps my most faithful comment-leaver. I am always thrilled to hear what she has to say about my photos!

Michelle of Bleeding Espresso, who, whether she knows it or not, was one of my very first blogging inspirations!

Fabrizio of Torino Daily Photo, who has offered me kind support from the very beginning!

Kimy of Mouse Medicine and Lakewood Daily Snap, whose work is inspiring and moving. I thank her for her comments and support which have meant a lot to me!

My new friend is Nobu of Funabashi Daily Cell Phone Photo whose photos take me back to my days in Japan and whose haiku are truly lovely!

Take a moment to visit my friends at their blogs, I think you'll enjoy them!