This time last week I was packing my bags in Agrigento and heading to Palermo. On March 17, wearing green earrings, I returned from Sicily having been there for two weeks.
The Palermo Cathedral was erected in 1185
I knew something was a foot (pace Sherlock) on my first day back in NYC at the Y pool. Our water exercise instructor showed up with luscious locks and wearing lipstick. Katie Couric was in the building! We were going to be filmed. We started stripping off shower caps that some wear in lieu of bathing caps. We practiced smiling. First, the advance person got into several huddles with our instructor. We, like kindergarten children, had been told to do a particular exercise to keep us busy. Then four men arrived. One was holding a sound instrument, another a pad, another a camera and, finally, one to give directions. Our instructor sprang into action. Exhorting us in a jolly way through a series of exercises while the Couric staff recorded this seemingly impromptu session.They weren’t required to take off their street shoes, unlike the rest of us.
It sure wasn’t Sicily. Going back to Italy is stepping into a time warp. I lived there for eight years and have gone back and forth for years, dragging physical and mental baggage with me.
On March 3, four of us coming from different parts of the States, beat the predicted snow storm and arrived in Palermo. Our hotel had a cage like elevator with swinging doors that had to be adjusted just so before it chugged its way to our bed and board, run by a charming man who started the pensione because he couldn’t find work.This was a light motif of our trip: Sicily’s high unemployment.
We four had skills that dovetailed: one person who drove well and loved driving in Sicily, one who managed the finances fairly and efficiently and read maps well, one who kept us abreast of the historical significance of the sights and kept an eye on the wild flowers and one who spoke Italian.
We went to the Norman Byzantine twelfth century Cathedral of Monreale, outside of Palermo. In addition to the wonderful mosaics, it’’s possible to climb to the roof and look down at the cloister.
Monreale Cathedral is packed with wonderful mosaics
Catania was our next stop. The Roman amphitheater was one of the highlights. We drove to nearby Etna, covered in snow.
Etna covered in snow. No smoke in sight
On to Enna, the navel of Sicily, which we stayed in to visit the Villa Romana del Casale, a hunting lodge built in 4 AD. The mosaics are evocative of a time long gone: charioteers, figures crowned with laurel, girls doing exercises, hunting scenes.
Aerobics, 4 A. D. at Villa Romana Del Casale
The Ortygia island is part of Syracuse. This is where we stayed, surrounded by water and history.
Out our hotel window in Syracuse on the Ortygia island
Remains of the temple of Castor and Pollux, Agrigento
Agrigento was our last stop before heading back to Palermo and the States.
