"It's best to arrive at midday," our hotel owner informs us. Bari is a perfect starting point to discover the Apulia and Basilicata regions, which are in the "heel" of boot-shaped Italy. Even though over two million people pass through the city's ferry port, Bari remains very much untouched by tourism and still adheres to the southern Italian rhythm of daily life. At midday the city belongs to visitors. Occasionally a cat will languidly gaze out from of a doorway, and once in a while you might spot a tourist or even two.

Mostly though you will be on your own in the winding alleyways, which at first glance look rather more like a northern African Kasbah than a small town in Italy. The Madonna figurines behind colorful curtains in the recesses of the white washed walls however let you know where you are.  And the St. Nicolas Basilica which towers over the old town center. San Nicola, holy St. Nicolas, is the  patron saint of Bari.