A Sicilian Journey

“To have seen Italy without having seen Sicily is not to have seen Italy at all, for Sicily is the clue to everything.” Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe, after visiting the island in 1787.

Magna Grecia! Greeks feel connected with Sicily and south Italy. In both history and legend, Greece and Sicily were linked in the ancient world in commerce, trading, colonization, war, philosophy, literature. Plato visited Sicily three times to exchange ideas with philosophers. In Homer’s Odyssey, a number of Odysseas’ adventures take place in Sicily.

The Greeks left their mark on the island as did previous and subsequent invaders: Phoenicians, Romans, Carthaginians, Arabs, Normans, Spanish and French, making the influences in Sicily unique in Italy.

The road from Catania (airport) southwest to Agrigento takes you past rolling hills, cows strolling and grazing on the roadside, a house here and there, orange and lemon trees, fields of poppies, carpets of yellow and magenta flowers, and our first view of majestic Mt. Etna, that’s visible all along the east coast. Later we’ll visit the volcano.

Along the way Sofia, our knowledgeable leader, tells us a little about Sicily and its long history of invasions all leaving their mark on Sicily’s culture, architecture and food (the most delicious pasta I’ve eaten.)

This Sicily tour is popular and we’re a very large group, 2 buses of 40 each, around 80.

Agrigento or Akragas as it was called by the Greeks in the 6^th century BC, is  the largest archaeological park in the world, known as the Valley of the Temples, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997. The sun is beating down and we’re glad we have hats, tennis shoes and plenty of water. We wait for our local guide to bring us the acoustic devices so we can follow her rainbow umbrella and wander from temple to temple along the plateau.

Akragas, named for the Akragas River nearby, was one of the most important Greek colonies in Sicily, founded around 582 BC by Dorian, Cretan and Rhodian colonists.

Philosopher Empodecles wrote of the people of Agrigento, that “they party as if they’ll die tomorrow, and build as if they’ll live for ever”.

The political system was that of a tyranny, but not so much the way we know it, the “tyrants” were in fact given power by the populi.  Some rulers were fair and tolerant but others cruel and ruthless, such as the one that asked an artist to develop and design a bull with an inner mechanism for cutting up his enemies and the first to be thrown into the bull? The one who designed it of course.

Akragas was prospering but couldn’t stay immune from invaders and in 406 BC it was conquered by Carthaginians.  In turn, the Romans conquered it in 201 BC and renamed it Agrigentum.

As you walk around the ancient site, you can’t help but see the modern city of Agrigento always in the background, with its stone tower-like buildings all crammed together. Nobel prize winning playwright Luigi Pirandello was a native son of the area and there’s a sign for his casa natale, the house where he was born.

The first temple on our visit, dedicated to the god Hera, where animal sacrifices were held, is the only temple where you climb up a hill. Like all of the Agrigento temples, it has Doric columns and like all the temples built in Sicily and other parts of Italy, they are made of local stone, not marble as they are in Greece. The white you see on top of the columns in the 2nd photo is a marble dust used as a restoring material.

Along the Iera Odos or Via Sacra (Sacred Way) there are almond trees with small green almonds; the trees have bloomed already in the wintertime, as in Greece. Also olive trees, fragosyka (cactus) and jacaranda trees are blooming with their purplish-pink blossoms.

On our way we pass ruins of the ancient city walls as well as Byzantine tombs.

A new addition from 2015 is the Garden of the Righteous of the World, a memorial to martyrs who faced various forms of injustice.

It’s a moving site and I wish that I had time to read over the plaques of people being honored but we need to keep moving…

In a clearing up ahead are two exquisite marble statues in Roman type garb. Although marble was not used in temples as we’ve seen, it was sometimes used in statues. Why are they headless? Because it was easy to keep the bodies the same, our guide explained, while the  heads of the local leaders were added each time!

Now we find the temple best preserved, the Temple of harmony, the Tempio della Concordia, goddess of peace and tranquility but it’s never been found to whom the Greek temple was dedicated. It probably survived so well because it was converted into a Christian church in the 6^th c. AD when Gregory, Bishop of Agrigento, “exorcised” the pagan demons and dedicated the ancient temple to the Apostles Peter and Paul.

The temple has been used by UNESCO as its emblem.

The huge modern bronze sculpture below by Polish artist Igor Miloraj known as“Flying Icarus” has an interesting juxtapoisition with the ancient temple. Why Icarus? The myth  is that after having left Crete and after Daedalus’ son Icarus died, having flown to close to the sun and his wax wings melting, Daedalus continued his journey, ending up in Sicily and it was then Daedalus that founded Agrigento.

There are not only temples but also catacombs and gravesites of early Christians.

This villa from the 1930’s, before the site was protected, belonged to Sir Alexander Hardcastle, a British officer who loved the Valley of the Temples, and wanted to live here permanently and in fact he financed some of the excavations. His garden extended partly into a Paleochristian necropolis, and some early tombs. Today his villa is a museum.

The largest temple in the complex and least preserved, was dedicated to Zeus. Near the temple  buried in ruins for centuries is a giant 8 meter (26 feet) statue of Atlas who in mythology is doomed to bear the sky on his shoulders after being defeated by Zeus. You can see how Atlas has his arms in this position.

The plan is to raise the statue (which is a copy) up and place in front of the temple. It reminds me of the giant 8th c BC Apollonas kouros found lying on the island of Naxos, even bigger –10 meters (and the famous statue of Atlas near Rockefeller Center in Manhattan NY)

The protector of the town was Herakles (Hercules) and his temple was the earliest one built. Cicero described a huge statue in the temple, but it was never found.

And finally, the last temple ruins we saw was to the Dioscuri or to Castor and Pollux (sons of Zeus). This is actually a 19th century restoration of the temple.

After all the trekking in the sun, time for gelato! But too many have the same idea and you need to wait… The nocciola (foudouki or hazelnut) is divine. Now refreshed, we’re ready to head to Cefalu, on the north coast, facing the Tyrhennian Sea,

The landscape along the way reminds me of much of the Peloponnese in Greece, dry with mountains off in the distance.

Cefalu is a gem. The town is known for La Rocca, the huge rock, which you can climb up if you want….We prefer to save energy for walking around the medieval town later. This is the view from our hotel on a misty cloudy morning.

The building standing out in the back is the 12th century cathedral built by Norman king of Sicily Roger II.  While in a severe storm at sea, he promised God that if he were saved from the storm then he would build a church. Indeed he survived, landing at Cefalu’s beach, where he fulfilled the promise and built the cathedral.  It’s a blend of Arab and Norman styles you see in much of Sicily. A bit forbidding from the outside, like a fortress, inside it has beautiful mosaics, which are now being restored, as well as the piazza around the cathedral.

Walking along the promenade and passing cafes and restaurants along the seafront, takes you  into the medieval old town with its narrow streets and alleys.

There we found the trattoria Tinchitè, Sicilian dialect meaning abbondanza or abundance (good name for a restaurant). Along with green salad and grilled vegetables, we try two Sicilian specialties: pasta con le sarde (with sardines in a tomato sauce, finocchio, pine nuts and as the description said ‘raisins’ but I didn’t taste any. The 2nd “primo,” pasta a taianu, as it explained in a kind of menu newsletter all in Italian, is a purely Cefalu specialty, Arab in origin, “taio” in Arabic meaning the terracotta pot where the pasta dish is cooked and eaten traditionally at a feast in August. The pasta is cooked in layers with the meat, tomato, fried eggplant, pecorino and lots of fresh basil.

Fortified with wine and food, we wandered in the old town.

Cefalu is about 70  km from Palermo, our destination the next morning. The road looks a lot like the national road from Athens to Patras road, flat, along the sea.

Unfortunately the bus broke down on the way, much to the worry of our driver Giovanni, who was walking back and forth with a cigarette in one hand (his trademark), and with the other hand, talking surprisingly calmly on the phone. As we waited for another bus to come to replace the one we had, I noticed as in Greece, religious shrines mark where accidents occur along the road.

Palermo was founded by the Phoenicians in the 8^th c, BC.  The Romans called it panormus from Greek panormos meaning  “all haven” or “easy port,” referring to its natural harbor.

The Greeks also reached Sicily in the 8^th c. but were mostly interested in the south and east coasts of the island. It wasn’t until the Muslim invasion in 831 AD that Palermo became a great metropolis and continued this under the Normans. During the Roman phase, it was used as a granary. For these reasons, you can’t find classical remains the way you can in other cities.

After the Normans conquered the city in the 11^th century, the early Norman rulers, who spoke Greek and Arabic, and steeped themselves in Arab Byzantine culture, were tolerant of the Muslim subjects, So tolerant, I read, that Roger II, the same Roger who built the Cefalu cathedral, was accused of being a “crypto Muslim.”

Palermo does have a reputation for being a “dangerous” city. Sofia warned us if we were wearing any gold chains, to hide them or take them off…

From Piazza della Independenzia, we walk through Porta Nuova in its Arab-Norman style and find ourselves on the main thoroughfare, Corso Vittorio Emanuele, who many cities name their main street after, as he was the first King of united Italy.

Note the four figures above on the gate, two with their arms cut and two with arms folded in submission. A little victory boasting here — it represents a 16th century conquest on the north African coast.

Down Corso Emanuele, you’re bombarded with stands with fans, hats and Sicilian socks, as well as aprons with Marlon Brando or Homer Simpson (Il Padrino sono io),

There’s also an exhibit on Sicilian Bandits, police on horses, and an intriguing little stand offering “express poetry” with a few samples of what this express poet has written.  He was hard at work on a poem I assume, which he taps out on an Olivetti manual typewriter (I remember having one of those!)

The 11^th century Norman cathedral, built with the help of Islamic craftsmen, is a reconverted Christian church over a 9^th century mosque over a Christian basilica…. Through the years there were many changes and additions and different styles as you can see in the dome and the arches over the entrance.  

Inside the church, you can find tombs of Roger II and other Norman leaders and of Saint Rosalia, Palermo’s protector, who lived during Norman times in the 12^th century and went to live in a cave as a hermit.  Five centuries later during a plague in Palermo, she appeared in a vision to several people and was told to find her bones in the cave and take them in a procession around the city three times. This they did and the plague miraculously ceased.

This classical liceo or high school is also on the Piazza Duomo. Wherever we went, groups of schoolkids were on the march.

About Palermo being dangerous is nothing new: a geographer during Arab rule from 831 to 1072, complained that it was a “licentious place, its inhabitants were dirty and dark and their diet consisted excessively of raw onions.”

And the Mafia? Many associate Palermo, Sicily in general, with the Mafia or the “organization” as it’s known. It’s still alive and well as it was many years ago but perhaps a little more discreet. The “organization” decides where to put their money and what to restore — many buildings are very rundown; a lot of churches especially seem to be abandoned. A guidebook aptly described the look of the city as “dilapidated splendor” but you have to remember that Palermo was heavily bombed by the Allies in 1943.

Still, the city is beautiful with its palaces and Arab Norman architecture.

Sofia told us the fascinating story of the “knives” that describes how the Mafia or “organization” idea could have started:

October 1^st 1862. French Bourbon rule had ended in Sicily. A wealthy Sicilian prince, fiercely royalist, hired criminals to carry out 13 knife attacks to happen at different parts of Palermo. Some died, some were seriously wounded. The 13^th assailant was arrested and not only nailed the other 12 assailants but led the police to the prince himself, Romaldo Trigona. Why did the prince plan these attacks?  He wanted to create a climate of nostalgia for the Bourbon regime which had of course helped the status quo retain their riches and power After 3 months when the trial began, the assailants were sentenced to various punishments (including 3 to be beheaded). Nothing happened to  the prince however, who instead of being punished, was named a Senator and hailed by the pro-Royalists. 

The Mafia expanded in the 1890’s when there was a serious drought in Sicily and farmers hired criminals to protect the agriculture interests.

And to those interested, there really is a town named “Corleone” — it’s a bit south of Palermo, inland.

Our walk along Vittorio Emanuele takes us to the grandiose ‘Quattro Cani,” which mark with Baroque facades and fountains, the old four quarters of the city from the 10^th century. Here is one of the “cani.”

We continue our walk to the Piazza Pretoria also known as the Piazza di Vergogna, (Square of Shame) so named because of the 16^th century nude statues that scandalized residents in later centuries.

The walk takes you out to the Piazza Bellini (named after the opera composer) and the interesting church with its Moorish looking red domes.

The magnificent Teatro Massimo Opera house is the third largest in Europe.

We’d been meaning to taste the Sicilian fast food known as arancini, which means “little oranges,” the name due to the shape, little rice balls deep fried. with different fillings. I got the classic one with mozzarella and prosciutto, crunchy and deep fried and best eaten right after cooking.  Bellissimo!

Walking in back streets, we came upon Vucciria market near the end of the day, the site of the medieval market. Although it was closing, still some shoppers lingered, buying meat, fish, vegetables and drinking freshly squeezed orange juice.  We saw this sign on a small restaurant — note the carne di cavallo, horsemeat.

The street sign for Via Calderai, named for coppersmiths and tinkers that have lived on the street for centuries, was also in Hebrew and Arabic. A few years ago, some trilingual street signs were put up as markers in the area in a nod to the city’s rich past. 

We’ve talked about the Arabs ruling Palermo for a couple of hundred years. There was always a small Jewish population going back to the 1^st century AD, 51 communities in fact around Sicily, but when the Spanish Inquisition reached the island. the 35,000 Sicilian Jews (5,000 in Palermo) were expelled in 1492, as in Spain. Some Jews stayed, converting to Catholicism. Some — known as Marranos (again as in Spain) continued to practice Judaism in secret. In Palermo the Sicilian Institute for Jewish Studies is dedicated to recovering the island’s Jewish identity.

Palermo had energy and vibrancy. Now we were headed to see the cathedral of Monreale (Royal Mountain) in the mountains outside the city, the hunting ground of the Norman kings, notably William II, Roger’s grandson.

But first, as we saw everywhere in Sicily and especially rush hour, the traffic was horrendous. Forget public transport (which was not as good as in other areas of Italy). By the time we got up to the cathedral, the ticket window had closed, but they allowed us to go in only for a quick look at the world famous mosaics in the church.

It was William II who commissioned the Monreale Cathedral and craftsmen were recruited from Constantinople. It’s a World Heritage site, along with the Arab-Norman Cefalu Cathedral and the Palermo Cathedral. The interior of Monreale is totally amazing. Mosaics cover practically the whole surface, mosaic figures on gold tesserae (tiles).

The doors are also exquisite.

Looking for a house to buy in the village? This was for sale.

Back to Cefalu as dusk is coming on. From the other side of the rock, we walk toward the promenade right after sunset.

Next morning we leave lovely Cefalu to drive to Taormina. The autostrada takes you along the northern coast, but due to the mountains you continually enter dark tunnels.  Messina on the northeast tip is where the ferry lands from mainland Italy, from Reggio di Calabria.

Lots of myths are associated with this area from the Odyssey of Homer. This is where Scylla and Charybdis are found, Scylla a six headed monster who lived on one side of the strait of Messina and Charybdis a whirlpool on the other side. When ships passed close to Scylla’s rock to avoid Charybdis, she would seize and devour the sailors. 

Aeolus, the god of the winds, who gives Odysseas the bag of winds, is from the island of Aeolia, thought to be Lipari, one of the Aeolian islands off the coast of Messina. His sailors of course open the bag of winds and drive Odysseas way off course.

From Messina too, it’s said that you can sometimes see an optic phenomenon, showing a kind of mirage at sea of fairy castles or false land, known as the Fata Morgana. This is the Italian equivalent for Morgan le Fay, the Celtic fairy and Arthur’s sister who made the sailors see this mirage and then lure them to their deaths.

This legend inspired Greek poet Nikos Kavvadias, who used his adventures at sea for inspiration in his poetry, to write one of his famous poems, Fata Morgana, which was put to music by Thanos Mikroutsikos. 

The first version of the song by tenor Marios Frangoulis has the English lyrics.

The refrain says:

Where are you coming from? From Babylon.

Where are you going? To the eye of the cyclone.

Whom do you love? A gypsy maid.

What is her name? Fata Morgana.

I’ve also included the version by Mariza Koch, where she makes you feel the ethereal Fata Morgan. It’s sublime.

As we near Taormina, Sofia compares it to the Mykonos of Sicily (oh no!) with its upscale shops and restaurants along the main street of the town.  In the summer especially “lifestyle” visitors moor their yachts down below and stroll the town, filling the expensive shops and restaurants. Artists and performers too come to Taormina to participate in festivals going on such as the international film festival and the drama festival in the ancient theater. 

The city’s fame goes back to when the Romans took it over in 212 BC and it became a holiday resort for patricians and senators. Back then it was known as Taorminum, from the name the settlers gave to the the mountain: “tavros” because it resembled a bull.  Down below is the site of Naxos, one of the earliest island settlements, but was destroyed by the Syracusans in 403 BC, and now is the swimming resort with the name Giardini Naxos.  (Gardens of Naxos).

Taormina has always attracted writers and artists. D.H. Lawrence lived here for a time while he was writing “Lady Chatterley’s Lover.”  When he left the town one morning at dawn in 1921, with the train going to Palermo, he described it in his book Sea and Sardinia.

It is nearly all dark in the red light and asleep still…this is the dawn coast of Sicily…of Europe. steep like a vast cliff, dawn-forward. A red dawn with mingled curdling dark clouds and some gold…

In its dramatic views of the Ionian Sea, it’s like a balcony over the sea, which reminds me of Makrynitsa in the Pelion peninsula — see https://olivesandislands.home.blog/2023/01/22/exploring-thessaly-central-greece/,

In more modern times, 19^th century travellers, usually well-off northern Europeans and Americans on the Grand Tour, brought Taormina, and especially the the Ancient Greek theater, to international attention.

To get up to the town, you leave your car or the bus at a certain point and take a free shuttle bus. Pass through the Porta Messina to enter the main street.

Clothing stores, trattorias, piazzas, flowers, traditional painted ceramic pots, it’s delightful, a feast for the eyes.

In the middle of this display is the traditional three legged representation of Sicily. The triangular shape figured in the ancient Greek name for Sicily, Trinakria.

I enjoyed the exterior of the Cyclops restaurant with its one eyed decorated pots of the Cyclops who lived near Mt. Etna.

Not to forget the Piazza Duomo.

This porta is called “Nove Aprile” because on April 9, 1860, rumors flew that Giuseppe Garibaldi, who contributed to Italian unification, was on the island to start liberation from French Bourbon domination.

Through the gate, Mt. Etna shines in the mist.

We’re on our way to Teatro Greco. Built in 3^rd c BC, it was rebuilt by the Romans a century later. As always the ticket office is packed with school kids.

Special thanks and credit for photos of the ancient theater of Taormina goes to Agapi and Katerina, fellow travelers.

The theater in its setting has inspired visitors through the ages. Woody Allen used it in filming some scenes from his 1995 film “Mighty Aphrodite.” (But not even the Taormina setting could save the film.)

The day is nearing its end and we’ve moved to Catania where we’re staying at the Villa del Bosco outside the city. Here’s what it looks like inside and the swimming pool.

It’s like a labyrinth, you go upstairs to go down, downstairs to go up, around the corridor to the left, another corridor to the right…

Next day we’re on our way to Syracuse in the southeast. This part of Sicily is the most fertile, with its products of olive oil, almonds, tomatoes, and honey with its purple June flowers of Greek heritage.

Cicero called Syracuse the Greeks’ most beautiful city and one of the most important in the classical world. Founded in the 8^th c. BC by the Dorians, from the 5^th to 3^rd centuries it was the most powerful settlement not only in Sicily but in all of Europe.

It was the tyrant Dionysius (432 – 367 BC) who conquered cities in Sicily and southern Italy and who made Syracuse the most powerful of the Western Greek colonies. The city was surrounded by a wall of 36 kilometers. The residents were resourceful, they had plenty of subterranean passages through they which they walked secretly and managed to fool the Romans for a period of time.

Over in Athens, the Greek general Alcibiades argued that a campaign in Sicily would bring riches to the city and expand the empire, just as the Persian Wars had. In his speech Alcibiades predicted that the Athenians would be able to recruit allies in the region. This did not happen…

We started our tour of the ancient city with Italian local guide Alexandra, who pronounced Greek words with charming lilting Italian cadences and every so often appealed to our tour leaders, Sofia and Eleni, for the Greek words, ‘come si dice…?’

In the archaeological park, the first edifice you see on your left is the ‘Teatro Greco,’ largest in Sicily. Workmen  were preparing it for the theater season – since 1914, they have shown ancient comedies and tragedies. From here you can look down to the natural port below.

When Syracuse fell to the Romans, it went into a decline, just another city in the province of Sicily. Archimides, Syracuses’ most famous resident, found a bad end the day the city was captured. We all know the story of him running through the streets naked (after having just gotten out of his bathtub) yelling “Evrika” (I found it), excited at discovering the principle of buoyancy, and being able to prove that the supposed gold crown made for the king wasn’t all gold. The story goes that Archimedes was contemplating a mathematical diagram and didn’t realize the Roman siege was going on. A Roman soldier commanded him to come and meet leader Marcellus, but he declined, saying that he had to finish working on the problem… This enraged the soldier, who killed Archimedes with his sword.

We continued on to the latomia, the infamous quarries, where in the Athenian defeat with Syracuse, in 413 BC, 7000 of the original 40,000 men were taken here where so many died.

This was a very interesting part of the Archaeological Park.  Suddenly it filled with lush greenery and trees that have been planted over the centuries and known as “paradiso” but back then it was nine covered quarries from which there was no escape.

To break the stones, the slaves placed wood and water. The ancient Greeks, we learned, used two shapes for the stones, triangular and rectangular while it was the Etruscans that used a circle.

In the 17^th century, our guide told us, the painter Caravaggio, after being jailed for a murder in Malta, came to Syracuse and imagined he heard Dionysos the tyrant calling out inside this artificial cave, known as the Ear of Dionysos, with its echo inside.

During the major earthquake of 1693, 8.3 magnitude, many of the columns were destroyed in the quarry, but for others, the nitric acid, as shown by the pink color, kept the top strong not to fall

At a nearby site are the remains of a Roman amphitheater, used by gladiators.

Leaving the archeological park, now we’re on our way to Ortigia (from Greek ortiki meaning “quail”) On the way we pass strip after strip of ugly outlets, discount markets, crumbling warehouses with palm trees, abandoned buildings, a LIDL supermarket, gas station, Renault and Fiat service places, tiny apartments right on the road, wash hanging. Much of modern Syracuse, it turns out, was built on top of antiquities.

The bus takes us to the little bridge where we cross over to beautiful Oritigia, the ancient city that later became medieval and baroque. It’s a small city, only 1 km by 500 meters, but with 2,500 years of civilization.

When you cross over to the island, one of the first structures you see is the remains of the oldest temple, to Apollo, that the ancient Greeks made to give thanks for landing safely.

By the water a lovely statue represents Aretousa, the nymph of Ortigia, and river god Alephus. Aretousa was bathing in the Alfeios river in Arcadia when Alpheus saw her and fell in love. She wished to remain chaste, following Artemis (Diana), the huntress. Artemis turned her into a cloud to protect her but she perspired from fear, turned into a stream and fled underwater to Syracuse where she turned into a freshwater spring. Alpheus still didn’t give up, he dug a channel under the Mediterranean, resurfaced near her and mixed his water with hers…

Aretousa isn’t the only one perspiring. By the time we reach the Piazza Duomo, we’re eighty sweaty tired hungry bodies. Time to break away and find our own place to sit down and have lunch. We found Pescomare, in a shaded alleyway.

We try another classic Sicilian pasta, penne alla norma, and also spaghetti alle vongole with delicious dry white wine. The Norma has fresh tomato, eggplant and salted ricotta.

We end with tira misu, light with a perfect blend of coffee, mascarpone and cream. Mmmm…

After lingering for a while in the shade, it’s time to see the rest of the town. The Duomo, with its magnificent Baroque facade, is built on the site of the ancient Temple of Athena.

We wander around the streets nearby and another fountain of Aretousa on Piazza Archimides (but there’s no mention of him).

A little further south of Syracuse lies the Baroque city of Noto. A world heritage site, it’s almost like a stage or film set with a Baroque background. After the devastating earthquake of 1693, Noto, like other cities in the region was flattened and Sicilian architects started from scratch to rebuild. Sicilian Baroque, not as “heavy” a style as Baroque in much of Europe, used sandstone or limestone, in an ochre color, golden in the setting sun, the time we were there in Notos.

As in many towns, most of the Baroque buildings lie on one main street going through town. A set of majestic steps leads you to enter the Duomo or Cattedrale di San Nicolo.

Inside is something you don’t see in every church, part of a wooden sunken ship that had African immigrants, shipwrecks sadly being an all too frequent event off the coasts of Sicily and Greece. Note the wood in the shape of a cross.

Here the Pope expressed his sorrow: “Chi piangera per questi morti” (Who will cry for these dead)

It’s early evening, time for gelato or coffee and the passeggiata along the one main street. There’s a strict division going on: the steps of the Duomo are full of teens talking, playing music and dancing.  In the parks or tables on the street, sit elderly men, while the women are opening the doors and entering churches. 

Back to Catania to end our day with tasty thin crust Italian pizza…

Next day, time to visit Etna! In Greek mythology, it was the home of Iphaistou (Hephastus), the god of fire (Roman god Vulcan) who used the flames and lava, to fix lightning for Zeus. His helpers were the Cyclops.

Legend has it that the ancient philosopher Empedocles died by throwing himself into Mount Etna during an eruption, to prove to his disciples that he was immortal; he believed he would come back as a god after being consumed by the fire.

The last eruption was in 2022, so it’ll probably be awhile now… on the list showing dates of eruptions, it seems to happen every 300 years or so. When it erupted in 476 BC, lyric poet Pindar was there to see it and described the fire and smoke of the crater. 

On our ascent we pass the town of Nikolosi, which in winter is a thriving ski resort. The area is bleak with its black soil and black stones, with lakes of ice and snow every so often, with  trees thinning out until just shrubs, with clouds hanging low over the main crater.  On the other side, the lava makes rich soil, as in Santorini, and many vineyards are planted. As it was a Sunday a lot of families were walking and jumping  around the craters in this lunar landscape.

It’s actually a strange place, a few hotels, a teleferique, stores and souvenirs, selling little products made of lava, stands selling Etna honey, and places advertising motorbike tours and excursions up to the main volcano, which was quite a climb. The buildings look like part of a Wild West set that had been put up quickly overnight. 

And maybe they had, for if the volcano erupts, all might be destroyed.  However, since 1960 or so now they have built wells to collect the lava and prevent it from rolling down and destroying the city of Catania, as has happened in the past.

The city of Catania, as Sofia mentioned, has traditionally been a city of suffering. Hundreds of thousands have been lost to earthquakes and volcanoes throughout its history, not to mention the city being flattened in the 1693 earthquake mentioned above that destroyed the old city of Noto. 

The second largest city in Sicilia, Catania too is built in a Baroque style, from its magnificent Duomo to other gorgeous Baroque facades along the main street, Via Etna. The Duomo is dedicated to its patron saint Agata, a 3rd century virgin martyr.

Inside is the tomb of Catania’s native son, Vincenzo Bellini.

He also has a statue dedicated to him. What a loss, he died suddenly at the age of 33!

It was fun just to stroll along Via Etna and people-watch and look into shops.This bookstore caught our eye with the tilted book display.

Off of Via Etna at the Piazza di Stesicoro (named for Stesichorus, Greek lyric poet and musician who lived in Catania), are ruins of a Roman amphitheater from the 1^st to 2^nd century AD. It fell into disuse in the 5^th c. but seven centuries later, as was often done, a part of it was used in the building of the Cathedral.

You can take a little train all around, which we decided finally not to do, but it looked like a good way to see all the sights. We found refuge for a while in the Via Bellini Gardens, a shaded oasis from the heat of midday.

After resting our weary feet we were ready for our final Sicilian dishes at Trattoria delle Cavaliere, a well known place for locals. In contrast to the quiet places we had eaten before, this was continual movement, with workers carrying stacks of heavy plates back and forth, others coming in and out of the kitchen with the dishes, shouting at each other, another with the wine, another silverware. Once again we ate marvelously, with penne al pistacchio, and a heavenly linguine del chef, with shrimp, little pieces of eggplant, green oil.

We’ll see if we can try to make the pistachio sauce at home – according to a recipe from Catania, it also has brandy and cream.

It was fun on the trip practicing my Italian phrases (I wasn’t bad at ordering food, asking directions and talking about the weather.) But Greek speakers seem to be naturals at getting the accent.

Back to Piazza Duomo along Via Etna, now full of people walking, to get our bus to the airport. A very full journey and great thanks to Sofia and driver Giovanni.

So much to assimilate in our visit, the unique influences that make Sicily the place it is, with its architectural mix of ancient, medieval (Arab-Norman) and Baroque, with the dishes we had (though we’ve brushed our teeth many times since we returned, we can still taste the delicious pasta!)

To complete the Magna Grecia experience, we need to return to south Italy, to Napoli and to the villages in Apulia and Calabria. For now, arrivederci Sicilia!

I’ll give Mark Twain the last word. From a store window in Ortigia:

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Sherri Moshman Paganos is a writer and former educator, inspired by her life in Athens, where she and her husband are happily retired and enjoying their travels in Greece and abroad. You can check out her writing — fiction, non-fiction, poetry and articles here.