TRAPANI IS FARTHER FROM PALERMO than I first realized and too far from the airport for a morning flight. We shortened our Trapani AirBnB reservation by a day and booked a hotel nearer to the airport, giving us a full day to spend in Palermo. Palermo has its share of churches, a royal palace and a world-class theater. It also has horrendous traffic, aggressive drivers, special permit “forbidden zones,” and scarce parking.
Climbing the hill to Monreale Cathedral
Monreale, Mosaics wrapped in Romanesque
For a change of pace, we decided to see the best first. Monreale Cathedral is a 8 km from the centro storico but even so we hit snarly traffic with even more snarly drivers before we started up the winding roads—“Monreale” means “royal mountain.” We lucked into a free parking space and continued the climb on foot. There is nothing remarkable about the side of Monreale facing the piazza but the one overlooking the valley is very interesting, even while under renovation.
Every picture tells a story
Moorish Geometric Mosaics
Statue and Mosaic of Christ
The real treat is inside of Monreale. From wall-to-wall and from floor-to-ceiling, the Cathedral is covered in tiny mosaics—about two acres of them I heard one tour guide boast. Like most of Palermo it is an amalgam of Moorish, Byzantine and Norman styles wrapped in a Romanesque architecture. The Arab mosaics, true to Muslim beliefs, are geometric designs—no depictions of people or animals are permitted. The Christian themes run the gamut from the Creation, through Adam and Eve, Exodus, Noah’s Ark, Jesus from birth to the Crucifixion—pretty much the whole megillah.
Sunlight on Columns
Each Corinthian Capital is Unique
Monreale is still an active church
The play of light through the arched windows is wonderful, especially when it strikes the gold tesserae and the Corinthian capitals that decorate the columns, each of which is slightly different, like snowflakes. And while we marveled at the beauty, the faithful were still lighting candles and offering prayers.
Oratory of Santa Cita
Altar of Santa Cita
The rear wall is almost too much to take in
After risking life and limb to find parking in the center of Palermo and a disappointing pizza for lunch, Connie lead us through some pretty skeevy alleyways to an unpretentious building you wouldn’t notice unless you were looking for it, the Oratory of Santa Cita. Oratories were places of worship intentionally designed with a modest exterior and a splendidly ornate interior— the Oratory of Santa Cita takes “ornate” to a new level.
A touch of Gold—in 3-D
Don't Fall!
Even a heathen like me recognizes this scene
Peek-a-Boo
As we wandered back to the carpark we passed the Teatro Massimo, Quattro Canti with its four symmetrical fountains, the Cattedrale di Palermo and the bustling food market. It would have been nice to spend more time exploring but we still had to face the traffic and find our hotel!
Teatro Massimo
Cattedrale di Palermo
One of the Fountains at Quattro Canti
