Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
erected in the 12th century and rebuilt in the 18th. The elegant Via Pretoria, flanked by a
boutique or two, makes a pleasant traffic-free stroll, especially during the
passeggiata
.
In central Potenza,
Al Convento
( 097 12 55 91;
www.alconventopotenza.com
;
Largo San
Michele Arcangelo 21; s/d €40/60; )
is a great accommodation choice housing a mix of
polished antiques and design classics.
Grassani
( 0835 72 14 43)
has buses to Matera (€5.50, 1½ hours, four daily).
SITA
(
0971 50 68 11;
www.sitabus.it
)
has daily buses to Melfi, Venosa and Maratea. Buses leave from
Via Appia 185 and also stop near the Scalo Inferiore Trenitalia train station.
Liscio
(
097
15 46 73;
www.autolineeliscio.it
)
buses serve various cities including Rome (€24, 4½ hours,
three daily).
There are regular train services from Potenza to Foggia (from €6, 2¼ hours), Salerno
(from €6, two hours) and Taranto (from €8.50, two hours). For Bari (from €14, three to
four hours, three daily), take the
Ferrovie Appulo-Lucane
(
0971 41 15 61; ferrovieappulolu-
cane.it)
train at Potenza Superiore station.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Appennino Lucano
The Appenino Lucano (Lucanian Apennines) bite Basilicata in half like a row of jagged
teeth. Sharply rearing up south of Potenza, they protect the lush Tyrrhenian coast and
leave the Ionian shores gasping in the semiarid heat. Careering along its hair-raising roads
through the broken spine of mountains can be arduous, but if you're looking for drama,
the drive could be the highlight of your trip.
Aliano
The fascists exiled writer and political activist Carlo Levi to this isolated region in 1935.
He lived, and is buried, in the tiny hilltop town of Aliano. Remarkably little seems to have
changed since he wrote his dazzling
Christ Stopped at Eboli
, which laid bare the bore-
dom, poverty and hypocrisy of village life. The
Pinacoteca Carlo Levi
( 0835 56 83 15; ad-
mission €3; 10am-1pm & 4-7.30pm summer, 10am-12.30pm & 3.30-6.30pm Thu-Tue winter)
also
houses the
Museo Storico di Carlo Levi
, featuring his papers, documents and paintings. Ad-
mission to the pinacoteca (art gallery) includes a tour of Levi's house and entry to the mu-
seum.
