May 31
I think we set a new record today….5 churches in one day; two of them Cathedrals and one of those considered to be the most beautiful church in all of Sicily.
But before we get to that, let me back up just a bit with a picture from our Termini hotel balcony. There were just a few clouds that made the mountain even more beautiful than it looked earlier without the clouds.
After researching for about an hour on how to find birth certificates in Termini, he decided that searching for Grandpa’s documentation would be a big waste of time. He thought it would be cool to have it and at one time he thought about trying to get dual citizenship but given that he couldn’t find anything about how to get the birth certificate and didn’t even know if Grandpa had one, he decided not to deal with it. So, instead of spending time doing that this morning, we headed straight for Palermo.
The first part of the drive was super easy as we were on the autostrada all the way. Once we got off in Palermo, though, it was an entirely different trip. I’ve been doing all the driving since we got here as I’m more used to the crazy Sicilian drivers but even for me it was challenging. You really need about 4 pairs of eyes to watch the road as cars, bikes, motorcycles and pedestrians are coming at the car from all directions. Seriously, if someone sees a square foot of empty road, he’s heading right for it. Motorcycles weave in and out of traffic at insane speeds. It took about 25 minutes to get to Palermo and another 25 minutes going into the city center. I was very glad to park the car when we finally made it to the parking lot.
BTW. We discovered something new about our car. After one full week of trying to be a contortionist, folding myself in half to reach things in the back seat from the front seat, this morning Peter suggested that we try OPENING THE BACK DOOR instead. Seriously, we’ve had the car for a week and neither one of us knew that we even had a back door. In our defense, the handle is built into the window and not in the least bit obvious. Here’s the picture. Can you see a handle? Yeah, we didn’t either. We laughed about it for about 10 minutes, but it’s much easier to reach stuff in the back now that we know it’s there.
While we were waiting for tourist information to open in Palermo, we visited our first church of the day…Sant’Ignazio del’Olivella. It was just a couple of blocks away and was a pretty little church.
Then we headed back to Tourist Information in the Teatro Massimo. This is a beautiful building with the Tourist office well hidden inside.
Once we had our map and a plan of action, we headed down the pedestrian street. I’m using that term loosely. It was a pedestrian street if you don’t count the bicycles, motorcycles, cars and delivery vans that were on it. We walked several blocks before coming to City Hall (where I once more asked if Peter wanted to try to get Grandpa’s birth certificate…. nope) which had a beautiful fountain in the Piazza.
Our next church was on this corner as well. The Chiesa di S. Giuseppe dei Teatini. Mass was underway so we didn’t go too far into the church and didn’t stay for long. It was built in the early 17th century and is considered one of the finest examples of Sicilian Baroque style.
On our way to our next church, we stopped to take a picture of a beautiful courtyard. While there I spotted a ceramic shop and I’m so glad I did. I wanted to pick up a serving bowl and plate to go with my new dishes, but I couldn’t find anything I really liked. Most everything was mass produced and could be seen in just about every shop. When I went into Angela’s store, I found some beautiful items. She designs them all and every piece is made by hand. She told me that she has pieces in the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art. How cool is that! I found a couple of items that I love that will go perfectly with my dishes. We plan to mail a box home from the base in Sigonella, so we only have to keep the packages safe for a few more days.
Next stop was another Baroque church, this one the Church of San Salvatore. The first monastery was built in 1071 but was totally destroyed in the bombing of 1943. The current church was built in the middle of the 16th century but is only used now for special occasions.
On our walk we also found the public library…
and the Piazzi Bologni that had been the site of the original city of Palermo.
We finally made it to the Duomo, which had been our main objective. In case you’ve lost count, this is church #4. It is dedicated to the Assumption of Mary and was first built in the late 12th century but has a long history of additions and restorations until the 18th century.
After touring the Cathedral, we headed to the Royal Palace, stopping in the park for lunch.
I decided to take a pass at touring the Royal Palace. Two palaces in one week is my limit but Peter wanted to see it so I stayed in the park while he visited the inside. He only stayed about an hour and said that compared to the ones we saw at Caserta and Naples, this one was very underwhelming. So, I was even more glad I hung out in the park.
After retrieving our car, we headed 12km (just over 7 miles) to the Cathedral of Monreale. Driving through Palermo to get there took 35 minutes, but it didn’t seem as bad as the morning drive.
The Monreale Cathedral is one of the best examples of Norman architecture and was started in 1174. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site and a national monument of Italy. The highlight of this church are the 22 carat gold mosaics. Everything that looks like a paint is actually mosaic. It was amazing.
Here’s a short video I took in the Cathedral.
Before we left Monreale we stopped for our first gelato since Sunday. My blood levels of gelato were seriously low, so I needed to get them up quickly. It was so good.
We got back in the car for one more trip, this time to Mondello a beach resort where we’re spending the night, this time in a B & B. We haven’t used Airbnb at all yet because we’re making last minute decisions as to where we want to stay. I thought of this plan while Peter was touring the Palace.
Once again it was only about 20 km (12 miles) but it took another 30 minutes in Palermo traffic. The B & B is lovely and only 1km from the beach. Of course, it took us 20 minutes to walk but it was a beautiful day, so it was quite enjoyable.
After walking the beach for a while, we had panini for dinner and then tried to get a taxi back home. My ankle was quite sore from walking in the sand, and I didn’t want to put anymore strain on it. Unfortunately, it was going to take an hour for the cab to come, but just as we were about to leave for the hike back, one of the guys in the sandwich shop offered to drive us home. We were very appreciative of the lift.
And Peter just had to test the water.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_e8RU0-8aU4
Tomorrow we’re heading southwest to spend a couple of nights in Trapani. We’re hoping we can find a place where we can just relax on the beach for a while. Keep you posted.