Matera

In 1950, Italy's Prime Minister Alcide De Gasperi visited a city in the deep south and called it "a national disgrace." Families of up to 20 people lived in caves with their animals, sharing space without running water, electricity, or sewage. By 2019, that same city was named European Capital of Culture.

Matera's transformation is one of the most dramatic comeback stories in Europe.

The Sassi, Matera's famous cave neighborhoods, have been inhabited for over 9,000 years. That makes the city one of the oldest continuously occupied settlements on Earth, rivaling only Aleppo and Jericho. People carved homes directly into the soft limestone cliffs, stacking dwellings on top of each other in a maze that looks like something from another planet.

For centuries, the cave system worked. Families developed ingenious water collection systems and built over 150 rock-cut churches. Then overcrowding turned the Sassi into slums.

Carlo Levi's 1945 book "Christ Stopped at Eboli" exposed the misery to the world. In 1952, the government passed a law forcing 15,000 residents to abandon their ancestral homes. The Sassi sat empty and crumbling for decades.

Then the turnaround began. UNESCO declared the Sassi a World Heritage Site in 1993. Architects and artists moved in. Hotels opened in restored caves. Mel Gibson's 2004 film "The Passion of the Christ" was shot here because Matera looks exactly like ancient Jerusalem.

Today the once-abandoned caves house boutique hotels, restaurants, and museums. You can sleep in a room carved from rock 9,000 years ago, now fitted with modern plumbing and WiFi. The caves stay naturally cool in summer and warm in winter, just like they did for the original inhabitants.

Wander through the Sassi Caveoso and Sassi Barisano neighborhoods, climbing stone staircases that connect layers of cave dwellings. Duck into cave churches still decorated with Byzantine frescoes. Visit Casa Noha for a multimedia tour of the city's wild history. Cross the ravine to the Murgia plateau for the best panoramic views of the ancient city.

Order Pane di Matera, the region's famous crusty bread made from durum wheat semolina. The loaves are massive, with a thick golden crust and soft, honeycomb interior. Pair it with local sheep's cheese and a glass of Aglianico wine at sunset, watching the Sassi glow golden as the light fades.