Places to visit - quarantacacacini.com

The key to Everything
(J.W.Goethe, “Viaggio in
Italia”, 1817)
«Without Sicily, Italy creates no image in the soul:
here is the key to everything.»
«If one has never seen oneself completely
surrounded by the sea, one has no idea of the world
and one’s own relationship with the world. As an
artist drawing landscapes, that great simple line has
given me completely new ideas.»
«Do you know the land where lemon blossom grows?
Amid dark leaves the golden orange glows. A gentle
breeze drifts down from the blue sky, still stands the
myrtle, and the laurel high. Might you know it? There,
there would I with you, oh my beloved, go.»
«I don’t have words to express how she [Sicily] has
welcomed us: with fresh green mulberry trees,
evergreen oleanders, lemon hedgerows etc. In a public
garden there are broad beds of buttercups and
anemones. The air is mild, warm and aromatic, the
wind balmy.»
«The location of the temple is strange: at the
highest point of a broad and long valley, on an
isolated hill, but not surrounded by steep cliffs, it
overlooks the land into far distance, but only a tiny
corner of the sea. The landscape rests in
melancholy fertility, everything is cultivated but
there are hardly any dwellings. Blossoming thistles
are frequented by countless butterflies. Wild
fennel stood to a height of eight or nine feet, all
withered from the previous year, but in such
quantity and seeming order that it looked like the
arrangement in a plant nursery. The wind was
whistling between the columns like in a forest and
birds of prey were floating and screeching high
above the architrave.»
«Such a splendid springtime view as today’s at sunrise we’ve never had in our whole lives. On the site of the old
and ancient citadel lies modern Girgenti, of a size large enough to hold a considerable population. From our
windows we viewed the long and broad, mild slope of the ancient city, entirely covered in gardens and vineyards,
so that one would hardly expect to find the traces of formerly large and populated city quarters underneath the
greenery. Only towards the southern end of this green and blossoming terrain does one spot the Temple of
Concordia rising above it, as well as to the east the scant remains of the Temple of Juno. From above, the eye does
not spot the other remains of sacred buildings, lying in a straight line with those just mentioned, instead, the gaze
hurries on southwards to the beach…»
«The Temple of Concordia has resisted so many centuries; its slender architecture is approaching our own scales of
what is beautiful and pleasant, it compares with those [the temples] at Paestum like a statue of a god with that of a
giant.»
From Villa QuarantaCacacini our
guest can easily reach Scopello (the
Tonnara, Guidaloca beach),
Castellammare del Golfo, the
beautiful Riserva Naturale dello
Zingaro, San Vito Lo Capo.
Not far there is Segesta.
It looks as if it were built yesterday.
Segesta's ancient Greek temple can
make a valid claim to being the best
preserved in the world, and its
amphitheatre boasts a hilltop position
on Mount Barbaro second to none. The
archeological site, about seventy
kilometers southwest of Palermo,
reflects the presence of several ancient
civilizations, beginning with the elusive
Elymians. While the magnificent Doric
temple, though (strictly speaking) never
completed - as the roof was never
added and the pillars never fluted - is
impressive, it is just the highlight of a
large archeological park.
For its remote rural setting, Segesta in
springtime is a magical place, nothing
like Agrigento, which lies at the edge of
a modern city.
Erice is located on top of Mount
Erice, at around 750 metres
(2,460 ft) above sea level,
overlooking the city of Trapani, the
low western coast towards Marsala,
the dramatic Punta del Saraceno and
Capo San Vito to the north-east, and
the Aegadian Islands on Sicily's
north-western coast, providing
spectacular views.
Few minutes drive from Villa QuarantaCacacini and you can reach Trapani. This city is the main gateway to the
nearby mentioned Aegadian Islands (isole Egadi).
Here below you see a couple of pictures of Favignana (the major of these islands) and Levanzo. Such photos do not
need to be commented.
And what about Palermo? The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an
important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old. Palermo is located in the northwest of
the island of Sicily, right by the Gulf of Palermo in the Tyrrhenian Sea.
Palermo is Sicily's cultural, economic and touristic capital. It is a city rich in history, culture, art, music and food.
Numerous tourists are attracted to the city for its good Mediterranean weather, its renowned gastronomy and
restaurants, its Romanesque, Gothic and Baroque churches, palaces and buildings, and its nightlife and music.
Palermo is the main Sicilian industrial and commercial center: the main industrial sectors include tourism, services,
commerce and agriculture. Palermo currently has an
international airport, and a significant underground
economy. In fact, for cultural, artistic and economic
reasons, Palermo is one of the largest cities in the
Mediterranean and is now among the top tourist
destinations in both Italy and Europe.
It’s impossible to describe Palermo in few words: its
cathedral, the theatres, the old streets, … everything
must be visited. Goethe wrote: «In the garden near
the port, I spent all by myself some wonderful hours.
It is the most beautiful place in the world [...] (Monte
Pellegrino) the most beautiful promontory of the
world».
Monreale is a characteristic town in
Palermo. His cathedral, with is famous
Christ mosaic (the existing biggest
mosaic in the world) are splendid.
On the slope of Monte Caputo,
overlooking the very fertile valley
called "La Conca d'oro" (the Golden
Shell), Monreale is also famed for its
orange, olive and almond trees, the
produce of which is exported in large
quantities.
Cefalu’ is another village on the coast
that are most visited. Cefalu’ is
characterized by a youthful atmosphere
and a lively nightlife.
One place which is unique is the
‘Stair of the Turks’ (‘Scala dei
Turchi’). It is a rocky cliff on the
coast of Realmonte, near Porto
Empedocle. It has become a
tourist attraction due to its
unusual white color. The Scala is
formed by marl, a sedimentary
rock with a characteristic white
color. It lies between two sandy
beaches, and is accessed
through a limestone rock
formation in the shape of a
staircase, hence the name.
The latter part of the name
derives from the frequent raids
carried on by Moores.
In August 2007, the municipality of Realmonte applied for the inclusion of the Scala dei Turchi (together with the
nearby Roman Villa Aurea) in the UNESCO Heritage List.