Antica Farmacia Provenzano

In Gallipoli is a type of museum-shop, the old pharmacy Provenzano. What was a true compounding pharmacy up until a few years ago is still preserved as it was, with the wood and glass entrance, the array of medicine jars and tincture vases on display, with its lovely details and old time atmosphere. It's worth walking inside just to learn about the real nature of pharmacies as they developed. There are explanations, and the staff will offer more insight if you ask.

But you can also have a sensory experience because now its a "spezeria" (spice shop). The owner is also a pharmacist but one who has focused not on medicine and drugs but on curing the skin. He has a Puglia-based company that produces creams and products for spas, and has branched into natural profumes, too. You can sample and buy the products in this lovely pharmacy shop. The profumes are made in Puglia with locally grown products - plant and essential oils that reflect the region's geography and culture, such as lemon, cedar, bergamot, spices and fruits, all from the Salento.

Stop in and enjoy the atmosphere, and you just might find a unique souvenir to take home that is "Made in Salento"!