There was expected disorder at the Catania airport as we searched for our rental car, but after directions from five or six people, we claimed the car and set off for Ragusa, a delightful city perched atop a steep hill. Ragusa, Modica and Noto were among beautiful cities we explored on Sicily’s western coast. Noto, in particular, felt like a grand stage set awaiting a massive opera. In Noto we found a small palace that put me in mind of Lampedusa’s “The Leopard.” Later, in Palermo we explored another palace of the era, which among its charms was a theater with seats for only two people.
On this brief trip we went to Agrigento to see the remarkable collection of Greek temples on a ridge looking out to sea. We also visited Segesta in the interior, which has one of the world’s best preserved (and never completed) Greek temples. A highlight was time in Trapani where our hotel was on the verge of the incandescent salt flats. Erice, above the city and reached by aerial gondola, brought to mind the travels of Aeneas.
The trip ended in Palermo where we stayed in a stylish neighborhood in the late 19th century part of the city. We visited San Cataldo, San Giovanni degli Eremeti, the Palatine Palace (with its exquisite mosaics from Norman times), the cathedral; and spent a lovely day high above the city in Monreale where we reveled once again in the spectacular mosaics of the cathedral, built by Roger’s (died 1154) son William (died 1166). Both the Capella Palatina in Palermo and the cattedrale in Monreale make one think one is inside a jewel box — the gold and mosaics are incomparable.
