Vieste is a fishing centre and seaside resort, characterized by a 26m high monolith, called Pizzomunno or Pick of the World. The legend tells that it represents a young lover petrified by the mermaids jealous of his love for a young woman. The city origins go from the Neolithic to the Bronze Age.
Very close to it there was, with no doubt, the very ancient city of Merinum and the first name originally given to Vieste was Apeneste. The medieval village is the most fascinating side of the place, because it is crossed by narrow streets and pretty staircases, among houses built on the rock.
On the upper side of the promontory there is the Castle, built by Frederick I.
In the ancient part of the city there is the beautiful cathedral of the XI century, where it is preserved the venerated statue of S. Maria. Oriental-style bell towers rise upon the houses overlooking the sea. The old side of the village terraced towards the castle’s walls, among labyrinthine cobbled narrow streets.
Around Vieste there have been found clear signs and evidences of Christian settlements in the Necropolis of the Salata near Merinum, of S.Nicola in the Pantanello, of the Spagnola in S.Tecla.
The necropolis of the Salata is the most fascinating, the burial niches here are located following different orders, one upon the others, dug in the walls of the rock which is almost 40m high, on the ground and in every corner.
During the summer the small square and the narrow streets are full of thousands of Italian and foreign tourists, walking with curiosity among the little artisans’ shops and the typical small restaurants.