We want to tell you some love stories that have Puglia as their setting. to explain the origins of certain places through the charm of legend.
The first story is that of Pizzomunno and Cristalda. To tell it we move to the Gargano, the mountainous promontory in the northernmost part of Puglia. Here on the beach of Vieste it rises a huge monolith, a rock which has been given the name of Pizzomunno.
Once, Pizzomunno was a charming-looking young fisherman who had fallen in love with Cristalda, an equally fascinating girl. Their love was so tender that it was not go unnoticed by the mermaids who inhabited the bay. Taken by envy, the marine creatures decided to charm Pizzomunno to snatch him from the
arms of their lover.
The attempts to seduce the handsome young man, who was indifferent to the advances of the sirens. The latter thus decided to punish him and turn him into a rock. Cristalda was also dragged into the depths of the abyss and converted into a siren.
Separated from the jealousy and wickedness of others, the two young men continued to love each other despite everything. Moved by pity, Poseidon the god of the seas bestowed a concession: that once every hundred years the two young men could meet again. Since then, this gesture of love has been repeated relentlessly, because impossible loves challenge the obstacles of time and space.
