Torre Fiumicelli
When talking about the Salento, often more than one tends to follow that cliché according to which the most beautiful beaches are on the Ionian coast while the Adriatic coast is mostly characterized by high cliffs and a hardly practicable coastline; well, all this means knowing little about the territory and simplifying it according to an unreal scheme. The Alimini are proof of a perfect testimony of soft, golden beaches and sandy dunes overlooking the Adriatic Sea, and in fact clear the field of simplistic and untrue theses. We are just a few kilometers from Otranto, in the province of Lecce, and this area is a mix of unspoiled nature, expanses of soft sand and a clear blue sea; as we travel along this beautiful coastline our view is interrupted by Torre Fiumicelli, a 16th-century coastal tower that was part of that watchtower system erected during the 16th century to defend against the constant raids of Saracen pirates. Torre Fiumicelli communicated to the south with Torre Santo Stefano and to the north with Torre Sant"Andrea, a tower among others that has completely disappeared. The marvelous aspect of Torre Fiumicelli is represented by the fact that it rises directly on the beach, completely engulfed by the green Mediterranean scrub mingling with the sand dunes, and partly bathed by the perennial wave motion of the waters. This tower, now reduced to a ruin, conveys a sense of wonder and amazement at the same time, the emotions one feels go beyond the simple historical fact as one immediately notices how the construction has now become one with nature to the point of merging with the surrounding landscape so as to maintain its memory over time. The beach has some black veins at times, characteristic of the area due to the presence of iron minerals while the seabed so clear that it can be mirrored, maintains for long stretches an all in all shallow depth, ideal therefore for families with children. As soon as we enter the water we are as if captured by this wonderful crystal-clear sea, so that bathing while contemplating the view of the tower multiplies the sensations to the point of transforming a simple day at the beach into a jubilation of emotions... this is Salento, on the side of the beautiful Adriatic coast... have a good summer.
Francesco Nestola
