Adventures in Palermo...

We arrived in Palermo on Thursday afternoon, and settled in at B&B Palazzo Pantaleo.  It is second time we have stayed there.  It is centrally located and within walking distance to all of the major sights in the city.  On Thursday evening we met our friends Carmelo and Rosaria, with their son Sergio, at Osteria Lo Bianco for dinner.  After dinner Carmelo took us in his car on a late night tour of some of the ancient districts of Palermo.  Most of the places he showed us are impossible to drive through during the day, due to traffic, markets, etc. 

Carmelo took the day off work on Friday and met us at our B&B at 10 am, for a walking tour of Teatro Massimo, the Palatine Chapel, and other historic sights.  Teatro Massimo is the largest opera house in Italy and the third largest in all of Europe.  We arrived at the theater just as a tour was beginning.






The stage crew was setting up for a production of  the opera Fra Diavolo, which was scheduled to open in two days. 



Teatro Massimo features a dome with twelve decorated panels that can be opened in warmer weather to provide a kind of air conditioning.  The theater is spectacular inside...



Our tour continued along via Maqueda, through the famous intersection called Quattro Canti, then down Corso Vittorio Emanuele toward Porta Nuova, the "New Entrance" to the city, built in the 16th Century!  Some sights along the way....




Pedestrian only Via Maqueda...beautiful!



Quattro Canti intersection is amazing, with four curved buildings decorated with statues depicting the four seasons, and previous kings of Sicily. 




 Our tour continued past the Cathedral of Palermo through Porta Nuova...






...to the Palatine Chapel, which is inside the Palazzo Reale, ancient residence of the Kings of Sicily.  The Chapel, completed in 1145, was the private church for the Kings, and was not seen by outsiders for centuries.  Now that it is open to the public, it is worth a trip half-way around the world just to see it.  Words and photos cannot tell the story of its beauty.  It is decorated almost completely in mosaics and 24 caret gold, in Arab-Norman-Byzantine style.


In true Sicilian fashion, the sign for this beautiful chapel needs some attention...

Courtyard of Palazzo Reale...

A royal coach in a glass case...

Inside the Palatine Chapel...

The Chapel is decorated in mosaics...


Incredible wooden ceiling...


After this breathtaking tour, we stopped for lunch at Antica Focacceria San Francesco, a popular local restaurant.  We had a long conversation about language during lunch.  Carmelo wrote the conjugation of the verb "to be" for us, upside down on our paper placemats, in four different languages!


Carmelo the language professor!

There was a little light rain after lunch...
After a long and fascinating day of sightseeing with Carmelo, we returned to our B&B for some R&R, before going to Carmelo and Rosaria's new home for dinner that night!

Touch any photo to enlarge....

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Castle on a Hill, with a Famous Resident.....

Image
While staying at the Baglio San Nicola, we took a short 20-minute drive to Naro to visit the one famous site there... the 12th century Chiaramonte castle.  The castle is at the very top of the village, and to get there you wind your way up narrow streets barely wide enough for one car.  Driving to the castle is not for the timid, but arrive there we did.  There was a great heart-shaped "Welcome to Naro" sign made out of stone visible from the parking area.  We didn't know what to expect, since there was not a lot of information available about the castle, but the big front door was open, so we walked in.....   Welcome to Naro... The castle was built in the 12th century... A very nice man met us and asked if we would like a tour, and of course we said yes.  He asked if we knew about Naro's famous resident, and of course we didn't.  Well.... we were told that Naro is the home of Piero Barone, one of the three young men who make up ...
Read more

Pienza, Montepulciano, and the Amazing Mr. Mazzetti....

Image
Our first day trip took us to the beautiful village of Pienza, just a few miles from Monticchiello.  Pienza is on the tourist map, but for good reason, it is so charming.  The old part of the village is pedestrian only, and the main street - Corso il Rossellino - is lined with exclusive stores.  These include several cheese shops, selling the famous pecorino di Pienza. View of Pienza approaching from Monticchiello.... The main Corso.... You can almost smell the cheese.... The via del Amore.... After Pienza we drove on to Montepulciano, about 10 miles away.  We wandered up the winding streets, heading toward the highest part of town.  Along the way we happened to see an open copper shop.  The proprietor, Mr. Mazzetti, invited us in, and what an experience that turned out to be!  What a lovely man.  He is quite famous for his copper work....among many other great achievements, he created the orb and cross that is on top of ...
Read more

Marsala... the Salt Flats and the Island of Mozia...

Image
The Marsala salt flats are quite a sight to see.... shallow salt water inlets with ancient windmills, and mounds of sea salt covered with terra cotta tiles.  A long time ago the windmills powered pumps that pushed the water out to sea so the salt could be harvested.  Now, the pumping is done by machine, but the area looks the same as it did a century ago.... Sea salt mound covered with terra cotta tiles... In the lagoon beyond the salt flats lies the Island of Mozia.  The island was settled in the 8th century B.C. by the Phoenicians as a trading post.  It was a fully developed city, surrounded by a stone wall.  Now, it has a museum and many archaeological sites, and is a great place for a nature walk. Boats to the island run every half hour.... Boat to the Island of Mozia... On the boat...  We walked the perimeter of the island on a beautiful, warm day, cooled by sea breezes.  Some things we saw on the island... ...
Read more