matera...

As fascinated as we were by the unique trulli settlement of Alberobello, it was as nothing to prepare us for the incredible spectacle of Matera.

An entire canyonside of cave dwellings dating back thousands of years, the inhabitants have literally been carving a life out of the bare rock of a ravine, generation upon generation.

The caves are known as sassi (sounds like "saucy"). We booked a room in a sassi somewhere below this point, and god only knows where. It took us about three days to find it, clambering with our bags up and down all the narrow twisty rocky paths.

Sasso Caveoso, Matera, Italy. November 2011.

Rolleiflex 2.8A, 80mm f/2.8 Opton Tessar, Ilford HP5.