Places to visit - quarantacacacini.com
Transcription
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.