Taranto, Naval base in Apulia, Italy
Taranto is a port city and naval base in Apulia, southern Italy, spread across an island and two mainland peninsulas. The old center sits on the narrow island between the two bodies of water and connects to the newer districts through two rotating bridges.
Spartan settlers founded the city in the eighth century before Christ as a colony, which rapidly rose to become a powerful port in the Greater Greek region. During the Middle Ages, Normans, Byzantines, and Aragonese exchanged control before it became part of unified Italy in the nineteenth century.
The name derives from the Greek Taras, a figure from the founding legend who remains present in local awareness today. Fishermen sell their fresh catch in the narrow alleys of the old town each morning, while mussel farms operate visibly along the shores of the smaller sea.
The rotating bridges open several times daily to allow ships to pass, which creates short waiting periods for pedestrians and vehicles. The old town is best explored on foot, as the alleys are narrow and parking sits outside the center.
The Ponte Girevole, one of the two rotating bridges, was built in the late nineteenth century and still operates with its original mechanical system. When it opens, the roadway splits into two halves that swing upright to clear passage for large vessels.
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