Bari

Italy, like Bari, is located at the center of the Mediterranean. Italy’s destiny is defined by its setting. It is a peninsula between two seas and has always, far more than is usually thought, divided itself in two- westward and eastward. When many ask themselves if Bari lives up to this description, surrounded by the Adriatic seas to the east, and inland to the west by the Puglia region with its fertile countryside, sunny plains and steep valleys. From the east and to the south, Hellenic culture spread westwards and northwards, crossing the waves to generate skills enterprises and means of producing wealth in the new world.

My eye is caught by the loop of the small jetty, dotted with boats, in contrast to the strip of land with the “Barion” complex reaching out into the sea. My gaze goes on to where the long docks of the “big port” trace a sort of abstract paintings like the works of Paul Klee or Piet Mondrian. The “big port” is encirc

Chronicles and anecdotes show that Bari is born to this alliance. One story in particular tells us a lot about the character and the creativity of the people of Bari. The story goes that on the eve of the arrival in Bari of Pope Urban II for the consecration of the crypt, it was found that one of the columns was still missing. The abbot Elia did not lose heart however, and ordered that any old pillar be ut in its space. The night before the guest was due to arrive, the bells of the basilica and all the other churches began to ring crazy. The people ran out into the street and saw that the doors of the crypt were wide open and the church was filled with light. Those who entered saw St. Nicholas busy at work replacing the pillar with the missing column, with the skill of a master builder. With a final tap of his trowel, St. Nicholas the builder disappeared, leaving the onlookers to celebrate the miracle. The infirm, the blind an the paralytic were healed as soon as they touched the column. Later, some pilgrims recognized the column from the temple in Myra. In fact, it was said that St. Nicholas, on a pilgrimage to Rome, had been given the column by a matron. The saint simply entrusted it to the Tiber and the river carried it to the sea, after which the waves miraculously brought it to Myra where it was placed on the tomb. Some of the

led by the two promontories that define it- to the north, the one where the old lighthouse stands, next to the area occupied by the Fiera del Levante exhibition complex; and to the east, “Old Bari” with its maze of narrow, winding alleys where the roofs of the houses are all jumbled together in a continuous sequence only interrupted by th broad white

Bari has everything it takes to be the capitol of Italy, but which is not. It has always aspired to the role of moral capital of the South, as revealed by the saying: “If Paris were on the sea, it would be a little Bari”. Midway between Europe and the Mediterranean, opposite the new world of the Balkans, Bari has always been closer to Milan than to Rome, the sign of an industry that recoils from the fetters of politics and red tape. It is the largest city on the Adriatic and also its biggest passenger port, where thousands set off on cruises every week. It boasts the fourth largest university in Italy and the only Polytechnic in the South. Its Fiera del Levante exhibition complex has always been the forerunner of all relations with the East and the South of the world. St. Nicholas is an ecumenical example of communication between religions, all the more important in these times of epoch-making clashes between different faiths. Bari’s small and medium sized industry has avoided the collapse of the great plants subsidized by the Southern Italy Development Fund. Its agriculture is rich and technologically advanced. It is home to a great publishing house, Lateza, which stands out as a cultural bulwark. Bari is like a motley crew of champions who have everything it takes to succeed but who are not yet a team. Yet the afore-mentioned humming can be heard, the sound of an engine that is still running and is capable of anything, just like the people of Bari.

meters below floor level, the remains of a previous cathedral have recently come to light and especially an extensive floor mosaic decorated with geometrical, plant and animal patterns.

Some topics in this essay:
St Nicholas, Viale Europa, San Nicola, Mediterranean Italy’s, San Benedetto, Development Fund, Nicola Baroque, St Francis, Donato Dedalo, Whilst Genoese, san nicola, st nicholas, basilica san nicola, basilica san, people bari, 20th century, fiera del levante, del levante, fiera del, urban plan, nicola cathedral, bari city, san nicola cathedral, divided nave aisles, levante exhibition complex,