Bloggo Siciliano: Day 2

A bit of history: Did you know that Siracusa was once one of the most important cities in the western world? Neither did Dottore Gianni! Its location was key, on a major trade route. As early as the eighth century BC emigrants began to arrive from Corinth, having been advised by the Oracle at Delphi to seek out the Fonte Aretusa, not merely for a nice view of the setting sun, but as a place to settle. Siracusa came to the attention of Athens as well, and formed an alliance, making it an important part of what was known as Magna Graecia (greater Greece). 

Remains of the sixth c BC Temple of Apollo on Ortigia

In the following centuries Siracusa grew considerably, some of which building can still be seen today, and in the fifth century BC experienced an age parallel to, if not quite as golden as that of Athens. In that era Aeschylus came here to see (and possibly direct) at least two of his plays at the Teatro Greco; just one example of the glory that was Greece rubbing off on Sicily in general and Siracusa in particular.

Teatro Greco, Siracusa

Perhaps the height of power for Siracusa came in 413 BC, when it was attacked by a massive force of Athenians and then defeated them during the Peloponnesian Wars, the ugly civil strife between Greeks that cost Athens its position as the center of civilization. Siracusa gained great respect from this stunning defeat, and continued strong through the fourth century BC, in which century Plato served for a time as tutor to one of the rulers of Siracusa, Dionysis II. The comic playwright Plautus knew it and used it as the OTHER of two great cities (the action is set in Ephesus) for his play, The Menaechmi, which Shakespeare improved upon in The Comedy of Errors, and which Rodgers and Hart made into the musical The Boys from Syracuse. In the early third century BC however, Siracusa made a major tactical error in siding with Carthage in the Second Punic War. The rising new power, Rome, laid siege to the city and Siracusa fell to the Romans in 211 BC. So important was Siracusa at this time that the defeat shocked much of the western world, and after the city was sacked it never quite gained the respect it had formerly enjoyed. It remained a strong center of trade, and figured prominently in the rise of early Christianity, was even capital of the Byzantine empire briefly. But even on the island itself Siracusa's power was eclipsed by Palermo, and it was on that city that Arab and Norman conquests focused. This left Siracusa a beautiful but small and somewhat second-rate place. In 1693 a mighty earthquake destroyed much of eastern Sicily, including much of Siracusa, and afterwards it was re-created in the Baroque style, still very evident in places such as the elegant Piazza Duomo. 


In the early morning of my second day in Siracusa I awoke, listened to the sounds of the waves for a bit, then opened my windows and saw the sunrise. Breathtaking!

Sunrise from my tiny terrace

 I ate the excellent breakfast quickly, as I wanted to re-visit and explore in full daylight what I had only glimpsed the day bofore, and to see other places I'd missed in my haste that evening. I began by heading to the marina, in hopes that I could catch an excursion by boat around Ortigia, but alas the season seemed to have not quite begun, as the booths were locked up tight. I walked across the bridge to the mainland after that to get my bearings there as I had business and pleasure to attend to in that part of the city, but I found it not nearly as pleasant as Ortigia and hurried back to that lovely island. 


I stopped almost immediately, as I wanted to look at the Temple of Apollo (see photo above), seen almost immediately upon entering the island, a reminder of just how far back Siracusa's history takes one. Not much is left of it, though it is still impressive, but in the Museo Archeologico a model of what it probably looked like reveals a massive structure held up by sturdy Doric columns. 

Temple of Apollo as it would have looked
in its heyday

But I also wanted to ecperience the vibrant market adjacent to the temple, and I plowed my way through the usual collections of t-shirts, bags, caps and socks to the brilliantly colored vegetable stands and the booths which offered fish and crustacians of all kinds, caught that very morning. I wondered which booth represented the catch of the fishing boat I'd seen at sunrise. I have heard that you can tell a really freshly caught fish as its tale curves up -- still in rigor mortis! Many fish with turned up tails were evident this morning! 

The market in Ortigia

More of the market in Ortigia 

Still more of the market in Ortigia

After that mouth-watering experience I walked back to the bay and headed again towards the Fonte Aretusa - was I drawn there irresistably? and walked beyond it all the way down until the promenade ended at the castello. I then headed to Piazza Duomo to see beyond the Baroque exterior to the interior of the cathedral. 

Piazza Duomo, Duomo facae on right

There is a surprise in store, after having seen the west front of the building. While there are a few lovely baroque side chapels much of the interior is very simple. It was built on an ancient temple, but not merely on the site. The doric columns of the temple are clearly visible as part of the structure of the cathedral, in fact it is quite easy to imagine the shape and mass of the temple itself, while walking down the nave of the cathedral. I found this fascinating as while it is usual to build a church on a temple  it is unusual, at least in my experience, to feature the ancient pillars that might well remind one of a pantheistic age. 

Doric pillars along the nave of the cathedral

It was a tale of two worlds - a Greek temple, also a Christian Church. I loved it!


At 11 am I was able to enter the much smaller church of Santa Lucia alla Badia, at the other end of Piazza Duomo, which houses a painting by Caravaggio. 

Santa Lucia alla Badia

The work is, appropriately for the space, The Burial of St Lucy, which hangs over the altar of the church, clearly the centerpiece of the space and its focal point. Otherwise the church is a very simple affair almost undecorated  except for two painted crucifixes, one from the thirteenth century, the other from the fifteenth at the nave very close to the altar, one on the left side, the other on the right, framing artfully the altar area.


On then to the Galleria Regionale di Palazzo Bellomo which was...well, regional, mostly unknown or very little-known artists, mostly Renaissance, mostly religious, snd frankly not all that interesting. In almost every room, along with the paintings, there were also other rather interesting silver pieces, intricately created ships, for example, in a special temporary exhibit. The most impressive works of art, including an Annunciation by Antonello da Messina, were saved for last. Nothing brilliant, but a nice way to pass the better part of an hour.


By this time I was getting hungry. I'd been out and about for three hours and was also ready for a rest, so I headed back in the direction of the hotel and stopped at a cafe across the street from the Temple of Apollo. I had a panino and an Italian beer, which was very tasty but which made me very sleepy, so I hurried back to the hotel for a well-deserved nap.


I headed out again at about 3 pm in search of the rail station and also to get a sense of the way to the Museo Archeologico and the Teatro Greco where I was headed the next day. I found the station without much difficulty and discovered there were only two people in the queue for tickets ahead of me - a cynch! They were in fact together, I'm guessing a father and son, and as contrary a pair as you could hope to stand behind in line. While I could understand little of what they were actually saying to the poor man behind the counter, they seemed to be taking out all sorts of anger at the rail system on him alone. It had taken me about 20 minutes to walk to the station from my hotel, but I waited nearly a half hour for these two to get whatever was on their chests off! He must have been glad to see me, as I had written my order very clearly, and it took me only two minutes to purchase my ticket for Catania. As I turned away from the window I saw the father and son team waiting behind me - they were not finished yet! I felt really sorry for the attendant, as he was probably in for another half hour of haranguing!


I had much more trouble finding my way to the street that would lead me next day to the Museo and Teatro. In fact I did NOT find it, and instead headed to the Foro Siracusano, now a large park, in the very old days the city's agora.  

Ancient columns
in the Foro Siracusano

There is little evidence of that now, except for a few columns in one section of the park. I had been walking a good bit in my fruitless search and decided I'd claim a park bench and sit for a bit, maybe eat the apple in my bag, relax for a peaceful half hour. I found a bench but gradually discovered that nearly all the other benches were taken up by derelicts and others who, like the father and son in the station, were having vehement arguments about nothing that I could understand. When I sat down they all turned and looked at me! I felt like I was in a western film, a stranger walking into a saloon, and everyone turns ominously! So I got up from my bench and left this strange scene as quickly as I had come. Then I tried for a bit longer to find the elusive street which would lead me next day to my touring destination, when I heard a woman's voice behind me, turned and saw a tough-looking, small, middle-aged Siciliana, wearing, it seemed to me, a lot of make-up.


She: (several rapid-fire phrases in Italian that I could not understand).
Me: Scusi, non parlo bene Italiano.
She AH! English!...Moglie? (that means "Are you married?")
Me: What? No, no...
She: Mangiare? (that means "Do you want to eat?")
Me: No...OH! No, no...grazie!


And off I walked quickly -- "Mangiare?!" Eat what!? I had just been proposition by a hooker! Had she been in the park, hunting for prey, and spotted me? She actually tried to catch up with me, but to quote Helena in A Midsummer Night's Dream, "my legs are longer...to run away!" And so I did!


By this time I was beginning to feel a little like Antipholus of Syracuse in Comedy of Errors, who finds all sorts of strange things happening to him in Ephesus -- here am I Dottore Gianni of Ithaca...finding all sorts of strange things happening in Siracusa! I decided to leave the somewhat grim realities of the mainland portion of the city again quickly, and scurried once more back over the bridge to the dreamy Isle of Ortigia.


And back to the Fonte Aretusa, as by now it was nearing sundown. I decided that I'd become part of the ritual watch of the setting sun. I found myself a great table outside at the Caffe Alfeo and ordered the aperitivo della casa, which as usual was served with munchies, in this case small bowls: peanuts, pistachios and olives. 

The drink was a delicious concoction, partly blood-orange juice, part booze - perfect for the occasion -it even looked like the color of the setting sun! I sipped and I watched, the people passing and sitting at cafe tables near me as well as the sinking sol, until it had set. Another beautiful clear day, another beautiful sunset. A man, even a dottore, could get used to this! Once the sun had set about 9/10 of my fellow participants in the ritual high-tailed it, but I lingered to see how the colors of sun and sea would transform themselves after the sun was down. See my reward just below. looks like a Rothko, yes?

When I chose to leave my table it was still not time for a proper supper, but I had seen a place down the promenade that advertised itself as a pizzeria as well as a ristorante, and which also advertised that its kitchen was open all day, so I thought I'd try. The waiter I spoke with was friendly and apologetic, explainig t0 me that there was no pizza today -- but that there would be tomorrow...curious.


I DID find pizza at the Vecchio Pub. I had looked at this place for lunch, mainly because it was piping Louis Armstrong out its doors to welcome people. 

The Vecchio Pub

I headed back to it, found that Louis was still doing his thing, and so I entered. The only customer! But I had a delicious pizza! I think the waiter called it a Margaritissima. It was dotted with cherry tomatoes, and perfectly done. I had a pint of beer, left at about 7:30, and was very content after a long day (which admittedly did feature a comedy of errors) to get back to my hotel and, after channel surfing I found a CSI episode, a film about a pre-historic lizard ravaging London, the star trek movie about young Captain Kirk and Mr Spock (ouch!) and another mini-series that seemes to be about Mexican independence that featured a raft of British actors (Albert Finney and Colin Firth among them, a hirsute hero and lots of action. Finally, at about 10:30 I turned off the tv and got another good night's sleep.