an afternoon in Palermo

This year the city of Palermo is enjoying its status as the 'Italian City of Culture 2018'.

If you are a regular follower of my Blog you will already know that twice a year we drive between London and Sicily with our rescue dog Daisy. Part of our road trip involves taking a 20 hour ferry from Genoa to Palermo and vice versa. Friends and contacts in the Palermo area always exclaim "But why do you never stop to see us?" My answer is always; The ferry arrives late in the evening and then we have a three hour onward journey home and then when departing you really do not want to see me on the day I leave Sicily as it involves a lot of tears and sobbing, not a pretty sight.

This year we decided that instead of moping around the house on our last day with sad faces that we would leave a few hours early and have a wander around Palermo with Daisy before boarding the ferry.

Palermo is the Capital City of Sicily. It is quite impossible to summarise the extraordinary charm of this city in a few lines and even more impossible to see it all in an afternoon or even a day.

Its history is ancient and interesting but it is from the 9th Century when the Arabs, describing it as "paradise on earth", contributed greatly to its glory. Subsequently, thanks to the Norman domination, the city became a rare example of much majestic architecture and culture.

Settled by the Phoenicians in the 8th Century BC, Palermo fell first to the Romans, then the Arabs, who chose the city for their capital, making it one of the most magnificent and powerful in the world. This splendour was compounded during Norman reign. Today what remains of earlier ages coexists with modern life, with laundry billowing off balconies of 15th Century Palaces, open top tourist buses rumbling past even older buildings displaying a mixture of east and west. Buildings destroyed in Word War II are visible and have been left open to the sky.

Having the maximum of four free hours before boarding our ferry we pre planned what we wanted to see. After being invited to the press preview of the Sicily Conquest and Culture exhibition two years ago at the British Museum in London it had really given me a taste of admiration for the Arabic and Norman architecture and era in Palermo. Therefore we decided to follow an Arab-Norman tourist route.

In 1066AD the Normans were busy invading England but what is not so well known is that they were also doing the same thing in sunny Sicily. In 1061 the Norman soldier Roger de Hautville took advantage of internal Arab conflicts and invaded Sicily with a small number of crusaders. Roger was the first of five Norman kings who over the following century succeeded in turning Sicily into a well run and wealthy monarchy. At the end of their reign, in 1266, the Normans left the island endowed with splendid buildings, works of art and an exotic culture that harmoniously blended Arab and western influences.

Aside from seeing some Arab-Norman architecture we really wanted to see Palermo's opera house, the Teatro Massimo and I was desperate to experience one of the city's famous street food markets.

The French writer Guy de Maupassant once described Palermo as "the most beautiful religious jewellery dreamed by human thought". So we were ready to explore a little part of this beautiful city.

We found a parking space near the cathedral which was to be our starting point. The Cathedral of Palermo is one of the most important architectural monuments in Sicily.

Located on Corso Vittorio Emanuele the structure and beauty of Palermo's Cathedral takes your breath away. The cathedral tells a story of centuries of cultural influences and was founded by the Archbishop of Palermo in 1185 on the site of a former mosque which was built on a early Christian basilica. During the 13th and 14th centuries the cathedral was Gothicised and then after that the Spanish came along in the 15th century with their ideas, adding a dome and a Catalan style façade. Remains of the Norman structure include, on the exterior, the triple apse and the clock tower.

Drastically altered in the 1700's, all that remains of the Norman era inside are its tombs. You can view royal tombs such as those of Frederick II and his wife Constance, Henry VI and Roger II. To the right of the choir stalls you will see a chapel which holds the remains of the city's patron saint Santa Rosalia whose festival is held over several days in July. Her remains are housed in a silver casket. Inside the treasury of the cathedral, the highlight is the crown of Constance of Aragon, encrusted with gemstones and pearls crafted in the 12th Century. The crypt houses Greek and Roman sarcophagi. For a small fee it is possible to visit the roof of the cathedral giving you a spectacular view of the city.

After leaving the cathedral we turned right and headed for Palazzo dei Normanni (Norman Palace). To reach the Norman Palace we had to walk under the Porto Nuova. This monumental gate was built to celebrate Charles V's conquest of Tunis and his visit to Palermo and the Kingdom of Sicily. After he entered the city through the original gate in 1535 the senate of the city decreed to rebuild the gate in a more sumptuous style. The new façade has a typical style of a triumphal arch with four big sculpted pillars depicting the Moors defeated by the King.

When the Normans entered Palermo in 1071, Count Roger favoured living in an Arab fortified palace on the highest point of the city. The building was re-fortified and renamed the Palazzo dei Normanni. Inside Roger ordered construction of the Palatine Chapel in 1129 and in 1140 it was dedicated to St Peter. The chapel harmoniously combines western and Arab styles. The Arab ceiling is painted with animals and greenery. A Christ Pantocrator crafted by Greek masters using gold and silver tesserae (a small block of stone used in the construction of mosaics) offers his blessing from the cupola and apse, and the nave boasts mosaics of Old Testament scenes including Latin inscriptions indicating that they are the work of Italian artists. Also in the palace is the Room of Roger which was stunningly decorated in 1140 with a fine example of secular mosaic decoration. Unfortunately due to our time restraint and that dogs are not allowed in the palace we could not on this occasion go inside to peruse all this beauty.

After admiring the outside of the palace we headed back under the Porto Nuovo and past the cathedral along Corso Vittorio Emanuele towards the Quattro Canti.

The heart of Palermo is marked by the intersection of Corso Vittorio Emanule and Via Maqueda called the Quattro Canti, the four corners that divide Palermo into quadrants known as the Albergheria, Capo, Vucciria and La Kalsa. Each corner is swathed in sculptural decoration and is one of the most memorial crossroads anywhere in the world. The Quattro Canti was built by the Spanish in the 1600's. On the bottom layer there are statues depicting the four seasons with summer carrying lots of fruit and spring with a garland of flowers. Above this are statues of the four Spanish Kings of Sicily and above them are the four Patron Saints of Sicily and above them is the sky. It is known as the theatre of the sun because at any time of the day the sun is always on one of the quarters.

Our next stop was to be Piazza Pretoria just steps away and home to the town hall. The square is more commonly known as Piazza Vergogna, the square of shame. It is said that the shameless nude statues perched around the edge of the famous elaborate fountain triggered great scandal when it was inaugurated in the 16th Century. The fountain was originally intended for a garden in Florence but was moved down south to Sicily. On the day we visited in the square we were treated to a display by dancers depicting the ballroom scene from the famous literary novel Il Gattopardo (The Leopard) by Sicilian author Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa. The book chronicles the changes in Sicilian life and society during the period when Garibaldi swept through Sicily with his forces to overthrow the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. The ballroom scene is a very iconic part of the book which was re-enacted in the movie that was made in 1963 starring Burt Lancaster. The dancers in Piazza Pretoria today performed in full costume typical to the era of the book and it was certainly a sight to behold. It was in this square that the designers Dolce and Gabbana chose to hold their Alta Moda catwalk show in 2017.

Another step away we found Piazza Bellini and the two splendid churches of San Cataldo and Santa Maria dell' Ammiraglio. The little, mid-12th Century San Cataldo has three Arabic bulbous red domes all in a row which oozes typical Arabic style but it is the Santa Maria dell' Ammiraglio next door which is a real gem. It was later renamed La Martorana after the Spanish patron who established a convent nearby. It has a Norman bell tower, now missing its red dome, circa 1140 and a dramatic Baroque façade that was added in the 16th Century. Inside there is an original mosaic decoration by Byzantine craftsmen. Just inside the door the image is of King Roger being personally crowned by Christ. I was really looking forward to seeing this piece of artwork but unfortunately a Sicilian wedding was in progress inside the church with another wedding party waiting outside for the next wedding. We were soon to discover that Palermo is a VERY popular place to get married, walking back by a now dancer free Piazza Pretoria we experienced being caught up in a wedding photoshoot with happy newlyweds and their guests.

Next from the Quattro Canti we headed up Via Maqueda past all its boutiques, arancini shops and pastry shops to see Palermo's opera house the Teatro Massimo. Ever since I first watched The Godfather Part III I have imagined sitting on its famous steps, where the final scenes of the movie is played out. Michael Corleone's son performs the Sicilian opera Cavalleria Rusticana which thereafter the film ends in tragedy on the theatre steps. I had visions of our dog Daisy having her photo on these iconic steps.

The Teatro Massimo was built in the 1880's as a grand symbol of post unification Sicily. Although noted for its grandeur and for its superb acoustics, the theatre was allowed to fall into decline and was closed for almost a quarter of a century. After a massive renovation the doors reopened in 1997 and once again became Palermo's premier venue for classical music, ballet and opera. Unfortunately for Daisy her starring role was not to be as yet another bride and groom posed for photos on the steps prompting closure of the gates to the public.

I really wanted to visit a street food market but as it was late afternoon we knew there would not be any at their most liveliest at this part of the day, so we opted for La Vucciria which, after a busy morning market that starts at 4am when the fisherman arrive early with their catch, then comes to life again in the evening for a night market full of activity. It is one of the city's oldest markets where vendors really do put on a show. La Vucciria translates to 'voices' or 'hubbub'. It is the best place to hang out with the locals during the evening where they really turn it up a notch.

First after all our walking and exploring we decided to stop for an aperativo in a bar on Piazza Domenica in Via Roma. A warren of little streets lay in this area which is home to the Vucciria market. Bordering the market to the north in the piazza is the Church of San Domenica which hosts the burial place of notable Sicilians in history including Giovanni Falcone, the famous anti-mafia judge. Adjacent to the church is the department store Rinascente which boasts an amazing roof top bar with views across the city and the Madonie Mountains. The bar was recently voted one of the top ten rooftop bars in Europe by The Guardian newspaper in the UK.

After our aperativo we made our way into the market, we were still a little bit too early for the main "hub bub" of the evening festivities but we enjoyed walking past stalls heaving with fruit and vegetables and fish stalls amongst the sounds of voices and buzzing vespas. The market is surrounded by walls painted with creative graffiti and second world war damaged palazzi. Street vendors were busy preparing typical Sicilian street food of sfincione (a kind of Sicilian pizza topped with onions), beccafico (stuffed sardines), spring onions wrapped in bacon, mixed deep fried seafood served in paper cones, amongst many other delicacies. We even saw a guy that we recognised from the celebrity chef Rick Steins TV show 'Long Weekends' who boiled a whole octopus in a matter of seconds much to Rick's delight.

We took a few photos but had to stop because, yes you guessed it, a bride and groom were having their photos taken amongst the stalls of the market whilst savouring and feeding each other delicious street food.

It was soon time to think of heading off towards the port to board our ferry back to Genoa and as the Sicilian sun set over the city we sadly took a slow walk back to our car. Driving through the busy streets of the city with the constant honking of horns for the numerous wedding cars of the day, we headed down and past La Cala with its sailing boats bobbing in the small port which is watched over by the palaces of Palermo's aristocracy all which line the Piazza Marina.

We left Sicily knowing that we had fallen in love with Palermo and that next time there would be many more wonderful and historic sites to see and explore in this stunning Sicilian city.

I would definitely recommend a visit to Palermo on your visit to Sicily.

It is a perfect choice as a starting point for your Sicilian adventure or for a multi-centred holiday, a weekend away or a city break.

Day trips are available from Taormina which include either a stop off at Monreale with its magnificent Cathedral or Cefalu, a small fishing village now a resort thanks to its sandy beaches.

When in Palermo a Street Food Tour is a MUST do ... I would highly recommend a tour with the fun and vivacious street food expert Marco Romeo of STReaty Tours, as featured in "Rick Steins Long Weekends" and "Paul Hollywood's City Bakes". STReaty offers the chance to discover Palermo in a few steps and bites like a real local and you get a certificate at the end to prove you ate everything.

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