Today I left Reggio Calabria to make my way to Palermo, Sicily to begin the second part of my adventures in Italy. First by boat (traghetto) to Messina and then by high speed train to Palermo. Again, stunning views from the train ride.
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Aboard Traghetto
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View from Train
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View from Train
I had a quick dinner and a quiet night. Tomorrow I will start to explore this busy city and I join a tour the next day. I decided I wanted to have the tour company do all the work during the next 10 daysđ.
I started the morning with a walk along the pedestrian only streets to get to the Piazza Ruggero Settimo. There I saw the Opera House (Teatro Politeama Garibaldi), with one of the largest stages in Italy. The Opera House is over 7,000 square metres. On top, is a beautiful bronze statue that honours the God Apollo and Dionysus, God of Theatre.
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Teatro Politeama Garibaldi
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Teatro Politeama Garibaldi
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Stage for music in Piazza
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Piazza Ruggero Settimo
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Statue of St. Rosalia, Patron Saint of Palermo,used in processions
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Teatro Nazionale Biondo
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The Piazza is surrounded by beautiful shops and restaurants and today they even had an ice cream show. Italians take their ice cream very seriously. In fact, you have to go to school to get a special license to be able to call yourself an ice cream maker! Another thing Iâve noticed is that donuts are becoming very popular amoung the youth. However, these arenât your everyday donuts as youâll see from the photo below. They use Nutella, pistachio cream and ricotta to make them Italian.
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Cannoli Stuffed with ricotta and topped with pistachio cream
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Local Desserts
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Specialty donuts
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Artisan Kiosks at Piazza
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Traditional Head Pots
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Ice Cream Show
Throughout Sicily, youâll find ceramic heads of a woman and a man. The story behind them is that a noble Sicilian girl fell in love with an Arab but the family disapproved so, when they were discovered, the family beheaded them. Their heads were then turned into vases and hung as warnings on a balcony. Originally, you would find a white ceramic head representing the woman and a black one representing the man. However, in time, this has changed and you will find a colourful display of them in several stores. From a gruesome story, comes fabulous ceramic art!
Today was fun walking through Palermo on my own. Iâm looking forward to doing a more intensive tour tomorrow. One this is certain, this capital of Sicily is much larger than I thought and so very impressive.