If you have been an English major in university, mentions of Otranto immediately bring to mind the dark, ghostly atmospheres of Horace Walpole’s Castle of Otranto. Surprisingly enough, though, this beautiful town in the region of Puglia, known also for being the eastern-most settlement in Italy, does not evoke necessarily eerie thoughts in its visitors.

Quite the contrary, in fact. With its blue and emerald waters, its white washed homes and, yes, also its gothic castle, Otranto is more of a quaint universe to discover than a scary horror movie set.