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Having just received the new travellers guide solely devoted to Puglia, Travellers Puglia by Zoe Ross Thomas Cook Publishing 2007, I thought a review for Puglia Uncovered would be helpful.
If you were thinking that this book would give a visitor to Puglia a full description of what this lovely region has to offer you will be disappointed. The book is compact with only 160 pages and some main events and regional features do not get a mention. For instance in the culture and events sections the famous summer music festival Martina Franca is not mentioned despite there being a couple of pages devoted to the town itself. In the food and drink section the famous Puglia antipasti served just about everywhere is absent and the more common antipasto of meat and olives served throughout Italy is described as that of the region. It makes me wonder how much eating out was done by the author, because in one of the Ostuni restaurant reviews she likens the Puglian antipasti to a Greek meze as if it were unique to that restaurant. This is a pity as the antipasti is one of the highlights of eating out in Puglia as you never know what delights are going to emerge from the kitchen. In general the where to stay and eat section is very limited but that is a common feature of travel guides of this type. Readers more familiar with the region than myself may spot a number of other omissions but, given the size of the guide and its price of £6.99, it would be unreasonable for there to be detailed descriptions of every town and event taking place.
What the guide does give the reader is a flavour of Puglia and briefly describes what is to be found in the way of culture, scenery and wildlife. Scattered throughout this very colourful and generally well laid out book are some very interesting snippets of history, descriptions of architecture and local information.
Despite its limitations, the guide does include a number of very helpful city walks in Bari, Taranto, Brindisi, Lecce, Martina Franca and Ostuni and a drive in the Gargano Peninsular. Some of the main tourist destinations such as the Zoo Safari in Fasano get a mention but there are notable absences. However, there is the usual useful directory of information at the end of the book.
For those of us who have been waiting for a definitive guidebook to Puglia this book is not it and we will have to wait a bit longer for something more detailed. It is a pocket sized and helpful volume in general and probably good for the first time visitor. Those of you who cater for visitors from the UK may find it useful to recommend this book to them.
Editors Note : I have to agree with i Gallesi, having ordered this book some time ago - I was very disappointed with it when it finally arrived. Useful for new visitors but nothing in depth.
Perhaps The Lonely Planet's Puglia and Basilicata due out next February will have more for those of us who already know Puglia basics.
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Last update : 29-07-2007 23:49
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Puglia Uncovered 
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