Super Sicily
Jan Migenda
— 0 people follow the author
In 2017, my university in Germany did a study tour to Sicily ... I will give you lots of history and photos from this intercultural place!
-
![Italy]()
Scylla
Driving by bus, our view was always nice: Wide landscapes like this bay opened up before us in the sunshine! Passing by a village, we saw the beach ... ... and we arrived at the castle (again of Norman origin). Now for the main attraction: In the sea around this...
-
![Italy]()
Tindari
Tinadri greeted us with this colourful mural ... Italians know their country and their arts! The famous cathedral looks very modern and fake with its shiny facade ... indeed, it was rebuilt, yet I think it's still beautiful! Inside, they keep a black Madonna statue on...
-
![Italy]()
Messina: Castello Milazzo
Messina has a long history which is basically the same as the rest of Sicily's: Early Greek colonisation, Carthaginian and Roman assaults, Goths and Byzantines, Arab and Norman conquests, Swabians, Aragonese, Habsburg, Bourbons, Garibaldi and lots of destruction in...
-
![Italy]()
Patti
As we were driving along the shore, we saw these craggy cliffs ... they reminded me of Ireland. Marina di Patti is the wonderful beach of the village Patti ... look at all the tourists besides the historical buildings! We passed another ruin on a small peninsula ......
-
![Italy]()
Cefalù
Moving on under clear blue sky, we saw castles built on hills ... and castles built into the sea (this one reminded me of Ireland) ... and a nice view from below an olive tree ... Finally, we arrived at Cefalù (Kephaloidion). Again, the cathedral had Norman...
-
![Italy]()
Himera
The next day, Himera awaited us with this sign near the parking lot where our bus stopped. Looks like the mafia is still active in some regions ... The museum showed us the true colours of ancient temples: Yellow, blue and red among the white of the marble stone. Only...
-
![Italy]()
Iaitas 2
From the hills, we could see the whole valley including the highway ... The patches of land were dried out in the summer heat ... The theatre of Iaitas remains as a cultural site in a destroyed city. Down below, we could see a modern village, built in a strictly...
-
![Italy]()
Iaitas
Coming from the highway, we went on to see Iaitas, a city which was a centre of Muslim resistance to emperor Frederic II in the 13th century and was destroyed by him in 1246. On the plain, you could see smoke rising up in many places ... intentional fires to burn...
-
![Italy]()
Solunt 2
Under the blue sky, we had a great view over the whole lagoon! In the ancient city site, there were some remains of colourfully painted walls! The best surviving artwork was this elaborate floor mosaic with Greek patterns! Again, a temple played an important role in...
-
![Italy]()
Solunt
Solunt was our next stop, a former Phoenician-Greek city: The place was up high, and a small peninsula with a cross made for a nice shot. The ancient city ruins comprised apartments and a cistern (see below). The cistern was huge, which was necessary for a town in...
-
![Italy]()
Segesta
Segesta is an archaic settlement that became important in classical antiquity. Verres was in office here and spoiled the town of many artworks, as Cicero found out. The Temple to Hera (Zeus' wife) remains as one of the most important and massive structures in the area....
-
![Italy]()
Erice Castle 2
The ascension to the castle was difficult as it was very steep and they had used winding paths to hinder enemies in reachign the castle. Meanwhile, the main tower throned over us. Looking down the slopes, you could see some monasteries and watchtowers (?). The view...
-
![Italy]()
Erice Castle
The history of Erice includes the Phoenician Hamilcar (father of Hannibal), the Trojan hero Aeneas whose heirs should found Rome later on, a temple to the oriental goddess Astarte and a later one to the goddess of love Venus. However, the castle is the main attraction...
-
![Italy]()
Erice
Our next trip by bus lead us through high and arid mountains. In the valley, white houses were crammed together ... The mall gave us a nice perspective with the clear sky in the background! Having arrived at the sea, two rows of palm trees gave me the opportunity of...
-
![Italy]()
Castellammare del Golfo
The next day, we travelled by bus to the west of Sicily to see Castellammare del Golfo. During the trip, we saw green pastures and white mountains under a blue sky ... a picturesque scene! Almost arriving, we could oversee the whole lagoon where we would be later on! ...
-
![Palermo]()
Mondello Beach
In the afternoon, we said goodbye to Monreale and went to Mondello Beach by bus. The club house looked kind of inviting, but we went to the beach first! Look at the colourful houses near the lagoon! In a bit, we would have sunset. After that, we had dinner (mostly...
-
![Palermo]()
Monreale Cathedral
Around Monreale, we could see the craggy hills while in the city, palm trees were frequent. The mighty bronze gate of the cathedral shows Biblical scenes and is decorated with some round and pointy arches and one roof-like arch ... very differentiated! Inside the...
-
![Palermo]()
Monreale
The next day, we saw world-famous Monreale. The cathedral was built in the years leading up to 1185, and again you can see a mixture of styles. It counts as one of the most powerful iconic buildings in sicily ... wait until you see the inside! The courtyard inside was...
-
![Palermo]()
Castles and Nature
Near the sea lies Castellammare, an old castle with defensive structures; on the site, there are also remains of a mosque and a Muslim cemetery. A short glance at the port showed us the local lifestyle: Lots of boats, wherever you looked! Palazzo Chiaramonte was...
-
![Palermo]()
Languages and Places
The Cappella Palatina was decorated with lots of gold in Byzantine style with Christ as the ruler over everything (pantokrator). The meeting of Latin, Greek and Arabic on this inscription is unique! After seeing the chapel, we visited some catacombs with 8,000 mummies...
