Walking tour of Palermo

We have walked our sox off today. And it was quite warm too - 34 deg C apparently.

(HEADLINE NEWS: as I write this in the early hours of Tuesday morning, news has just come through that Malcolm Turnbull is new PM - stuff always happens when we are away!)

We started by walking along the main drag, via Roma, and we were drawn by the sight of what looked like a huge temple up a side alley. This turned out to be the Teatro Massimo. But on the way to getting there, we had a delightful stroll along via Bara dell’Olivella, a narrow street famous for its craft shops and its puppet theatre. In Piazza Olivella, all was quiet at this time of day, showing little hint that it is one of Palermo’s nightlife centres with the bars and restaurants all closed. Here also is the imposing Baroque church of Sant’Ignazio which we had a quick look at and the Regional Archaeological Museum which was closed, it being too early.

And so we reached Teatro Massimo which is right on the border between the old Palermo town centre and the more modern, more commercial part of Palermo. When it was built in 1897 (after years of stuffing around) it was then the second largest opera house in Europe. That year, a very young Caruso, in only his second professional role, sang; and for many years after so did many of the opera world’s most famous stars including Gigli, Di Stefano, Maria Callas and Pavarotti.

Further walking along via Maqueda, we strolled off via a labyrinth of side streets to reach the imposing Chiesa di San Domenico, built in 1640 but closed today. 

But what I was very keen to see was the famous Vucciria outdoor market. Even though it is a shadow of its former vitality, I nevertheless wanted to see it for myself - even if it was only to reflect on its past glory. I had read so much about it: its colour and energy reflected in the famous painting by Guttuso.

From here, we walked to the Quattro Canti which is THE junction in Palermo. It certainly is impressive. We were lucky: despite it being now mid-morning, it was still quiet and we were able to have a good look at the sculptures on each corner which depict the four seasons, four Spanish kings and the four patron saints of the old town areas.

Just beyond this intersection is Piazza Pretoria with a large fountain of nude statues of nymphs, humans, mermaids and satyrs - and requiring some TLC; and also the City Hall. The fountain, known for generations as the "Fountain of Shame", was originally built in 1555 for a Tuscan villa but it was thought to be a little too risqué and was sold to the City of Palermo who erected it where it now stands.

Behind the City Hall, we walked into a very large sun-drenched plaza, Piazza Bellini with 2 churches: the Church of Santa Maria dell’Ammiraglio (aka La Martorana) and the Church of San Cataldo, dramatic with its trio of red domes on top.

La Martorana was originally Greek Orthodox but this changed in the 13th century when it became part of the Catholic Church. It is a mix of wonderful mosaics and Baroque frescoes. The shards of sunlight cutting diagonally across the chapel added to the mystical beauty.

Standing next to La Martorana is the tiny Church of San Cataldo, characterised by its three red domes. It was built in 1154 and has a simple unadorned rectangular interior decoration, apart from the lovely mosaic floor - a real contrast to La Martorana.

Nearby is the university area where we took a breather and enjoyed a granita pistacchio and a Genovese something-or-other and a not so brilliant coffee; we sat in the shade amongst the students' motor scooters parked deeply and the traffic which squeezed its way through the narrow street.


The sun was hot now, but the beauty of the maze of narrow streets is that there is always some shade which we zig-zagged in and out of enroute to the main Cathedral complex.

This suddenly erupts before you as you walk along via Vittorio Emanuele past all the book shops. It is another of those buildings with a bizzare mix of architectural styles although the glory of this is the imposing size. It was built as a Christian church originally in 1164 and then became an Arab mosque before being restored by the Normans and then a few more flourishes were added between the 14th and 16th centuries followed by more major changes in the 18th. So it is a hotpotch of mullioned windows, Muslim inscriptions, crennalations and Gothic arches. However, the interior was underwhelming.

Next port of call was the San Giovanni degli Eremiti (St John of the Hermits) which we reached via a lovely walk through the tropical gardens of Villa Bonanno. San Giovanni was built in 1136 as a monastery then converted into a mosque. The Arab influences, particularly the lovely cool garden, provided an oasis out of the hot midday sun; there was a lovely Benedictine cloister plus a tall bell tower with views out over Palermo.

We eventually arrived at the Palazzo Reale (the Royal Palace). We were getting a bit tired by now but this really was the highlight of the day. Quite breathtaking.

And a bonus was that there was a Botero exhibtion being held as part of the price of admission; we DO love his work. He has such a quirky 'take' on things, in this case a religious expo on the life of Christ. Wonderful!

The Palatine Chapel was built in 1130, the same year in which King Roger II acceded to the throne of the Norman kingdom. The Cappella Palatina is hidden away inside the Royal Palace and is characterised by a fusion of different architectural styles: the Byzantine mosaics and the wooden Arabic honeycombed ceiling are just wondrous. Being a Monday, the Royal apartments above the chapel were also open which was a nice bonus.

So endeth our walking tour and we wended our way back "home", stopping at a bar opposite the Teatro Massimo for a welcome drink - and received a plate of complimentary pizza-like snacks! Very nice.

Dinner at a restaurant on my 'list' was 'so-so': my pasta con le sarde (a local specialty of sardines, wild fennel, onions, currants and pine nuts) which I had been looking forward to trying, was very underwhelming and I ate little of it.