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Sicily

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Sensational Sicily - An Overview Presented by Alessandro Sorbello http://www.alessandrosorbello Sensational Sicily http://www.sensationalsicily.com SICILY Provinces: Palermo, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zASbi4_L4rM Agrigento, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZr3PHeapSc Caltanissetta, Catania, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkG6Xq-9v00 Enna, Messina, Ragusa, Siracusa, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJ_w6m31QY8 Trapani, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ut97_ZrRp04 This is the biggest island in the Mediterranean, separated from the Italian peninsula by the strait of Messina. It has important mountain groups: Peloritani, Nebrodi, Madonie, Iblei. The coasts offers a landscape of beauty almost everywhere; groups of smaller islands are scattered round the coast (the Eolie or Lipari, Ustica, the Egadi. the isle of Pantelleria and the Pelagie). The Etna, rising in the center of a volcanic area of Sicily, is the highest active volcano in Europe (3,323 mt). The isles of Stromboli and Vulcano also are active volcanoes. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WQk-YQjl9g PALERMO Historical Palermo sits compactly around one central crossroads, the Quattro Canti, which is at the core of four distinct quarters. The Albergheria and the Capo quarter, the latter beyond the cathedral, lie roughly west of Via Maqueda; the Vucciria and old harbour of La Cala and the La Kalsa, lie to the east, closest to the water. In these areas you'll find virtually all the surviving ancient monuments and buildings of the city: the hybrid Norman-Arab-Baroque Cattedrale Sannta Maria Assunta and nearby Palazzo dei Normanni (Royal Palace), with its superb, mosaic-decorated chapel, the Cappella Palatina; the glorious Norman churches of La Martorana and San Giovanni degli Eremeti; the Baroque opulence of San Giuseppe dei Teatini. Located in the center of Palermo, near Via Libertà.and Piazza Croci, Villa Trabia is one of the few aristocratic homes open to the public. This estate, which is now owned by the City of Palermo, houses civic offices and a public library. The palace is set in a beautiful wooded park open to the public most days. Built for the Prince of Trabia (Lanza family) in the eighteenth century, Villa Trabia provides a glimpse of the lifestyle of the Palermitan aristocracy of that era. Just outside Palermo you may visit the La Favorita and La Zisa villas and the Capuchin Convent, with its catacombs. http://www.sensationalsicily.com/palermo.html Castelbuono: visit the church Matrice Vecchia and the Ventimiglia castle. Cefalù with its many beaches is an ideal place for a holiday. In town visit the Cathedral, richly decorated with mosaics, the Museum Mandralisca and the Sanctuary of Gibilmanna. Monreale: this town overlooks the "Conca d'Oro," the beautiful valley beyond Palermo and is is world-renowned for its cathedral - S.Maria la Nuova, a dazzling mixture of Arab, Byzantine and Norman artistic styles framed by traditional Romanesque architecture. The beautiful mosaics in the cathedral are said to be one of the world's largest displays of this art and take 6,340 sqm of the duomo's interior surface, covering practically every inch. The masterpiece and key representation is the domineeringly majestic Christ Pantocrator located on the central apse over the main altar. The entire image is 13 meters across and seven meters high.The splendid cloister of the Benedictine abbey alone would make Monreale famous. Located next to the cathedral, these 228 columns, some with mosaic inlay, each with a meticulously stone carved capital, enclose the gardens of the abbey and are really worth a visit. Mondello is a most renowned seaside resort, few kilometres from Palermo with crystal clear water and rich underwater vegetation and caves. Ustica: This is a solitary island (36 miles from Palermo), which has recovered its nature resources thanks to the Marine Reserve that protects its extraordinary seabeds. The under-water flora and fauna are multiplying their species and they can all be visited with guided tours. AGRIGENTO - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZr3PHeapSc Located on a plateau overlooking Sicily's southern coast, Agrigento was founded as Akragas around 582 BC by a group of colonists from Gela, who themselves were the immediate descendants of Greeks from Rhodes and Crete. Akragas was renamed Agrigentum by the Romans, and Girgenti by the Saracens, only to be christened Agrigento in 1927. At the southern limit of the ancient city, in the so-called "Valley of the Temples", the city architects erected their sacred buildings during the fifth century BC. The oldest of Akragas's temples is the Tempio di Ercole, the other ones are the Tempio della Concordia, dated to around 430 BC and perfectly preserved, Tempio di Giunone, Tempio di Giove and the so-called Tempio dei Dioscuri. The medieval city of Agrigento is not without a certain charm. High in the historical center of the city, the Romanesque Gothic cathedral, built during the fourteenth century, still displays some of its medieval character, as does the thirteenth-century Church of San Nicola. Also visit the S.Spirito Abbey and the Museo Archeologico Regionale. http://www.sensationalsicily.com/agrigento.html Canicattì: From Agrigento you may easily reach this town, famous for its grape variety Italia. Visit the church of S. Diego, the Chiesa del Purgatorio, typical of the 18th century, and the richly decorated Chiesa di S. Francesco. Amongst the many beautiful monuments in Canicattì, there is the Mother Church of S.Pancrazio, home to precious pieces of art, like a marble statue representing the Ecce Homo and a painting of the Holy Family with S. Anna and S. Gioacchino. Also the Castello Bonanno, the Torre dell'Orologio (clock tower), the Palazzo of Baron La Lomia and Palazzo Bartocelli. Palma di Montechiaro: founded in 1637 by Prince of Lampedusa Carlo Tomasi. One of his descendants, namely Giuseppe Tomasi of Lampedusa, was the author (1958) of the celebrated novel The Leopard, successively adapted into a film by director Luchino Visconti, about the decline of an aristocratic family of Palermo between 1860, year of Garibaldi's Exploit, and 1910. You can still visit the Castle of Montechiaro at the top of a rocky cliff. Porto Empedocle: in the Località Caos you may visit the home of Luigi Pirandello. Naro has many baroque churches and the Chiaromonte castle. Sciacca: a thermal town where you can visit the Cathedral, S.Margherita and the Steripinto, a particular building of the xv century. Caltabellotta: in this old town have a look at the churches of S.Agostino, S.Salvatore and the Chiesa Madre. Lampedusa: This small (20 km2 ) calcareous island, scorched by the hot sun all year round and characterised by its African-type landscapes and by the "dammusi" (stone houses), is surrounded by the most transparent Mediterranean waters. The main attraction of Lampedusa is the great solitude of this island and the strong contrast between the aridity of its land, covered with Indian figs, agaves, carobs and low bushy scrub on one hand, and the sharp colours of an extremely crystal-clear sea on the other. Also Linosa, another island, but of vulcanic origin, is worth a visit; its populated area is represented by a little village dominated by the typically "dammusi". Lampione - uninhabited crag with a lighthouse, it lies 20 miles from Lampedusa, can be reached only from there. CATANIA A splendid Baroque City at the slopes of the Etna, from the eighteenth century on, Catania has been considered the second most important city of Sicily. Subjected to the Etna Vulcan, this town has been damaged by lava flows and earthquakes on several occasions. The city has two Roman amphitheatres, one which was built on a pre-existent Greek one and the other which is a completely Roman structure. Visit the Ursino Castle, built on the orders of Emperor Frederick II von Hohenstaufen in the first half of the thirteenth century, and now a museum open to the public. The oldest part of the Duomo (Cathedral) dates back to 1092; it hosts the tombs of Frederick III of Aragona, who ruled from 1296-1337, and the one of Constance, wife of Frederick IV of Aragona. Most of Catania's wide streets and palazzi were built during the eighteenth century, a characteristic is the gray, volcanic stone used in the buildings. This was the period in which noble families from across eastern Sicily, used to build palazzo in Catania, beginning a subtle social and economical rivalry with Palermo. The two most famous citizens are S.Agata, the martyr patroness of the city and Vincenzo Bellini, the opera composer. Stroll through Via dei Cruciferi and visit the churches of S.Benedetto, S.Giuliano and S.Niccolò. http://www.sensationalsicily.com/catania.html Caltagirone: Once the location of a Saracen fortress, this charming mountain town is famous for its hand made, traditional ceramics. There are many cultural bodies who promote this aspect of the city like the Ceramic School and the Ceramic Museum. Since the earthquake of 1693 the night dedicated to S.Giacomo(24/25 July) has been celebrated with huge images made up of colored lights or 'luminarie' which have to illuminate a staircase. The 'Scala' itself has been used since 1785 and just like ancient times over 4000 sand weighted papers cartons 'coppi' containing terracotta lanterns and the finest of oil are used for the illumination. Acireale - The Duomo, S.Sebastiano, walk to S.Maria della Scala - a picturesque fishing village. Pantelleria: The largest of Sicily's islands and just thirty miles from the African coast. An ideal spot for your holiday, with its beautiful beaches, caves and the volcanic Lago di Venere with thermal spring water. The Montagna Grande mountain is surrounded by 24 "cuddle" (small craters that recall the volcanic origins of this islands), lava flows, residues of pumice-stone, basalts, fumaroles and thermal sources (Gadir, Nicà, Satana). There are many grottos where it is possible to take healthy steam baths; one of the most famous ones is the 'Stufa' (stove) del Bagno di Arturo near Sibà. SIRACUSA Until Roman times, this was the most powerful and magnificent city in all Sicily. Today, it is an impressive and intriguing sight, with a mixture of late Baroque architecture - vivid yet damaged by the passage of time, and the reconstruction of the city following the terrible earthquake of 1693 - and ancient classical architecture. It is situated in an exquisite landscape of sea, rocks and Mediterranean vegetation. Siracusa may be divided in several areas. The most ancient part of town is the island of Ortigia, linked to the mainland by the Ponte Nuovo. Have a stroll and look at the Fonte Aretusa, related to the myth of the goddess Diana's nymph. Don't miss the beautiful Baroque Duomo with its ornate chapels, carved Doric columns, frescoes and statues. The other Baroque buildings, on the same square, include the striking Palazzo Beneventano del Bosco whith a lovely courtyard, the Palazzo del Senato and the Church of Santa Lucia alla Badia (S.Lucy is the patron saint of this town). Visit the Linear Theatre and the churches of S. Maria delle Colonne, S.Giovanni, S.Pietro, Palazzo Mergulese-Montalto. Palazzo Bellomo hosts an Art gallery ( Entombment of St. Lucy by Caravaggio, Annunciation by Antonello da Messina), and the imposing Maniace Castle with its Swabian architecture don't has to be missed. Via della Maestranza is one of the oldest and interesting streets of Ortigia, literally stuffed with Baroque buildings: look out for Palazzo Interland Pizzuti, Palazzo Impellizzeri, Palazzo Bonanno, Palazzo Romeo Bufardeci, S.Francesco all'Immacolata. We also recommend a walk through Mastrarua, another old street, Via Mirabella and Corso Matteotti, full of shops. Also interesting: the Church of S.Spirito and the Belvedere S.Giacomo which offers a spectacular view. In the archaeological area on the mainland part of town, called Parco Archeologico della Neapolis, you may visit the Ear of Dionysius (situated in the Latomia del Paradiso, a garden with orange and palm trees), the ancient Greek theatre, the Roman amphitheatre and the Tomb of Archimedes. In the Regional Archaeological Museum Paolo Orsi you may view many interesting finds dating back to Sicilian prehistory. In the areas of Tyche and Akradina: visit the Papyrus Museum, the S.Giovanni Catacombs, the Crypt of S.Marciano, the Basilica of S.Giovanni Evangelista and S.Lucia extra moenia. Also worth: a walk to the Eurialo Castle, on the north side ot town. A favourite excursion is a boat trip starting at the Fonte Ciane, at about 8 km out of town; it will get you to the spot, where, according to Ovid, the Rape of Proserpina took place. Noto: Defined as "Stone garden", Noto was entirely built with a soft stone that, owing to the effect of sun rays, has gradually acquired a beautiful honey shade. Noto: Is the capital of the 18th century Sicilian and European baroque, and its religious and civil monuments are the most valuable examples of talented artists of the time: Gagliardi, Sinatra, Labisi along with local skilled workers. Have a tour, starting with the Cathedral, Palazzo Ducezio, the Holy Crucifix, the Monastery of "SS. Salvatore", "S. Francesco", S. Domenico, Santa Chiara. Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata has incredible grotesque sculptures; Via Nicolaci", is called the street of balconies. But Noto is not only Baroque; its whole territory offers the necropolis of "Noto Antica" and of "Castelluccio", the archaeological finds of the Greek town of Eloro, the sanctuaries of "S. Corrado Fuori le Mura" and of "S. Maria della Scala", the rupestrian and Byzantine oratories, the beautiful sea and the naturalistic reserves of "Vendicari" and "Cava Grande". RAGUSA Set on a wide limestone hill between two deep valleys it is divided into two distinct areas: Ragusa Ibla the old town with its lovely baroque architecture, and Ragusa (the upper side). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ragusa,_Italy Ragusa Ibla's best-known church is the Basilica di San Giorgio, whose entrance is reached by climbing a spacious set of elegantly decorated curving stairs. The majestic dome of the church towers above the town and dominates the Piazza del Duomo and its neat rows of palm trees beneath it. The basilica was built in 1738 by the famous architect Rosario Gagliardo and is considered Gagliardo's baroque masterpiece. The beautiful piazza before the church is surrounded by striking aristocratic buildings like Palazzo Arezzi and Palazzo Donnafugata. The splendid Villa Comunale (public gardens) is situated at the far end of Ragusa Ibla. Very well-mantained, it offers beautiful sights of the mountain ranges and down over the Irminio valley. The Church of San Giorgio il Vecchio has an amazing Gothic-Norman doorway. Chiesa di Santa Maria dell'Idria, dated 1639 has a decorated bell-tower with lovely floral panels of majolica from Caltagirone. Palazzo Cosentini is the most typical of all the 18th century buildings in town, with elegant balconies supported by ornamented corbels and sculptured animals and masks typical of the Baroque Art. Castello di Donnafugata: this castle, situated in proximity to Santa Croce Camerina, about 20km from Ragusa is a major attraction for tourists. Thanks to its scenery, it was the setting of many films. Comiso - The church of S.Francesco, the Mother Church, Palazzo Iacono-Ciarcià and the Palazzo Occhipinti, one of the most beautiful buildings in town, with its elegant baroque façade attributed to Gagliardi. Modica - The stately Cathedral of San Giorgio is one of the most important and impressing religious monuments in all Sicily. It has an impressive flight of 250 steps, that starts down from Corso Garibaldi. The façade rises through three levels to a single bell-tower; its aisles richly decorated with stuccoes and paintings. Palazzo Polara stands right of the Cathedral -a splendid baroque building also with an elegant flight of steps. Don't miss S.Pietro, the Chiesa del Carmine and Palazzo Tomasi-Rossi with an impressive stone portal and beautiful balconies at the top floor. Scicli - known as the Baroque Jewel. It boasts many lovely churches as the Madonna delle Milizie and Sant'Ignazio, both with precious stuccoes and paintings. The 15th century Chiesa di San Bartolomeo houses a wooden nativity. Palazzo Beneventano, one of the most impressive baroque monuments in the entire province. Other interesting monuments are the 1386's Monastery of the Carmelite Fathers, San Matteo and Santa Croce. The Via Mormino Penna, lined with amazing palazzi, churches and monuments, provides an unforgettable baroque atmosphere. Here stand the Palazzo Comunale (Town Hall), the Palazzo Spadaro and the churches of San Giovanni, San Michele and Santa Teresa. The Santuario della Madonna delle Milizie near the coast is also worth a visit. TRAPANI Walking in Corso Vittorio Emanuele, the old Loggia, Via Torrearsa, Via Garibaldi, you'll notice lots of historical palazzi and churches of notable artistic worth: Palazzo Cavarretta, the Cathedral, Palazzo Riccio di Morana, Palazzo San Rocco, Palazzo Riccio di San Gioacchino, Palazzo Lucatelli, the Chiesa del Collegio. In the Chiesa del Purgatorio, the sacred statues of the Misteri of Trapani are kept. The Chiesa di San Pietro treasures the precious organ built by Francesco La Grassa from Palermo. The Corso then leads into the so-called Ghetto, Via Della Giudecca and Via degli Ebrei, which was inhabited by the Jewish community up to the XV century. The Northern part of the town is characterised by the Litoranea (seafront) with the picturesque Piazza del Mercato del Pesce (Fish Market Square). Villa Margherita, the "lung" or outdoor space of the town has giant ficus trees and is ideal for a relaxing walk. EGADI ISLANDS Favignana: this island is the largest of the archipelago of the Egadi and a popular tourist destination because of its wonderful sea characterised by numerous coves. It is an island rich in history, the famous naval battle between the Romans and the Carthaginians was fought here. Favignana is also famous all over the world for its "mattanza" (slaughter of tuna fish) tradition. Levanzo - The smallest of the Egadi Islands, is an ideal place for trekking. Marettimo is the furthest from Trapani and therefore this island still is a real natural paradise, with rugged and enchanting landscape and crystal clear water. Mozia - One of the largest Phoenician centres in Sicily. The archaeological excavations have revealed precious finds such as the necropolis, a house of mosaics, and a paved road. One should not miss a visit to the Whitaker Museum that conserves archaeological finds of great importance such as the Giovane (a young man) dressed in a tunic, a statue of Greek origin from the second half of the V century BC. San Vito Lo Capo - An ideal holiday destination thanks to its deep blue sea and its fine white sandy beach. Close to the Natural Reserve Lo Zingaro. Salemi - Interesting Norman Castle and ruins of the Byzantine Basilica of San Miceli. Erice - A charming hill town which overlooks the sea. Marsala, famous for its wine and with many sandy beaches. Alcamo - Basilica of S.Maria Assunta, Castel of the Counts of Modica, Annunziata Church and the typical Baroque Sanctuary of the Madonna dei Miracoli. Selinunte and Segesta, two famous ancient greek towns where you can still walk through the temples and old theatre. MESSINA Two great earthquakes hit this city, in 1783 and 1908, and during WWII it was heavily bombed. Visit the Museo Regionale with Byzantine and Norman works as well as works by Messina's famous artists, Antonello da Messina and Girolamo Aliprandi. Also interesting the Mannerist building - Monte di Pietà and the church Santissima Annunziata dei Catalani. A short way from the Duomo, this church was built in the 12th century during the Norman rule and remodelled later on by the Catalans. The apse is a fine specimen of the Norman composite style, that combines Roman, Moorish and Byzantine features. The Duomo has been rebuilt in Norman style, after the earthquake of 1908. From the inside you may access the Treasury, which displays a fine collection of religious objects and vestments, reliquaries, candlesticks, chalices and a fine 1600's monstrance, containing a host. The astronomical clock on the bell-tower to the left of the cathedral has a mechanism dating from 1933.Don't miss a look at it on midday! It consists of several layers, each with a different display endowed with a separate movement. At the bottom, a two-horse chariot sets the day of the week; above, the central figure of Death looks at the four ages of man that pass before him. At the third stage, the Sanctuary of Montalto sets the scene for a group of figures which, according to the time of year, represent the Nativity, Epiphany, Resurrection and Pentecost. At the top, the tableau enacts a scene relating to a local legend whereby the Madonna delivers a letter to the ambassodors of Messina in which she thanks and agrees to protect the inhabitants of the town who were converted to Christianity by St. Paul the Apostle. The female bell-strikers are the local heroines Dina and Clarenza, during the period of resistance against the Angevins (1282).. The southern side of the bell-tower shows a perpetual calendar, the astronomical cycle marked by the signs of the zodiac, and the different phases of the moon. When the clock strikes midday, all the mechanical figures come to life. On the Piazza del Duomo you may admire the Fontana di Orione with allegoric statues of four rivers. For excursions in the area: Ganzirri and Torre Faro, two characteristic, pictoresque fishing villages full of life. Or the medieval hill village of Savoca which boasts interesting churches like the Convento dei Capuccini, the 15th century Chiesa di San Michele with fine Gothic-Renaissance portals, and the Chiesa Madre. From Casalvecchio you'll have a panoramic view over the Ionian coastline and may visit the Chiesa Madre, decorated with Taormina marble. Tindari: Piazzale Belvedere, Greek theatre and Basilica at the archaeological site. AEOLIAN ISLANDS A volcanic archipelago on Sicily's North-Eastern Tyrrhenian coast with the islands of Lipari ( the largest one), Salina (a green island with many wineyards), Filicudi, Alicudi, Stromboli (with an active volcano), Panarea (a jet-set island) and Vulcano (famous for its fango baths). The Greeks who colonized the islands around 580BC named them after the god of the winds Aeolus. These beautiful spots offer an enchanting landscape, great beaches with white sand, castles, thermal resorts and medieval structures and are a main tourist resort in Summer. On Lipari the volcanic phenomenon can be observed in the island's thermal springs (up to 600), in its solfataras and in its 12 volcanic systems converging towards the 602 metres of Monte Chirica. This elevated and craggy island has spectacular beaches and breathtaking ragged coasts. Panarea - The main village, Contrada San Pietro, consists of a group of white houses clustered along the eastern side of the island. The built-up area is crowned with olive trees and protected by huge walls. The other two villages north and south of San Pietro are Dittella and Drauto.We recommend a boat tour to the nearby small islands of Basiluzzo, Dattilo and Lisca Bianca, to the Scoglio Bottaro (with its underwater "fumaroles"). Salina - More than 400 different types of plants grow here. It is also the island with the highest peaks such as the three volcanoes that originated e.g Monte Fossa delle Felci (962 m), which is partially covered by one of the most beautiful strawberry tree woods of the entire Mediterranean. Vulcano - famous for the baths in the warm waters of its submarine springs. This 21 km2, 500 metre high (Monte Aria) isle is the Aeolian island closest to the Sicilian coast. Its name is a clear description of its geography: a land of lava and fumarole, yellow sulphur rocks and black sands all worth a visit. Stromboli - This 924 metre high lava mountain (Serra Vancori) which drops abruptly down to 2000 metres below sea-level is Europe's biggest active volcano after Etna. During the night, the glittering "sciara" of fire (the red-hot flow descending towards the sea) can be seen from the boats and from Panarea. During the day, the smoke of the peak joins the steam raising up from the water that cools down the red-hot lava detritus which have plunged into the water after sliding down the slope of the coast. The white houses of the little village create a unique contrast with the black lava background dotted with dark-green bushes. http://www.sensationalsicily.com/aeolianislands.html TAORMINA A 19th century haunt of the English aristocracy, it has long been Sicily's most famous resort town and it was here that D.H. Lawrence was inspired to write Lady Chatterly's Lover. Taormina has endlessly winding medieval streets and tiny passages. The most famous view you can get on your strolls is the one overlooking the Greco-Roman amphitheatre, one of Sicily's largest, with Mount Etna and the sea in the background. The Teatro Greco was founded by Greeks in the third century BC but the visible remains are almost entirely Roman. Between July and August the theatre hosts an international arts festival including film, theatre and music. CALTANISSETTA Located in the very heart of Sicily: It boasts a baroque Cathedral with frescoes by the Flemish artist Guglielmo Borremans, 17th century Palazzo Moncada, the remnants of the Saracen Pietrarossa Castle, the church of S.Sebastiano as well as many other Baroque churches. A little out of town you'll reach the Romanesque Abbey of S. Spirito -- founded by Roger I in the 11th century. It hosts a beautiful wooden crucifix of the 15th century. Gela: Regional Archaeological Museum, the Greek Acropolis and excursion to the Castle of Falconara. Licata: worth a visit, offering many 18th century buildings, the Church of S.Domenico with a beautiful cloister and the Carmine Church. ENNA Also called "Belvedere della Sicilia", as it occupies a magnificent position on a plateau 948m above sea level. It's rather unknown as a touristic destination, yet it hosts many interesting churches and museums. Duomo: although largely rebuilt in the Baroque style in the 16th and 17th centuries, the cathedral with its coffered ceilinghas maintained its Gothic apses. Alessi Museum: houses the collections of Canon Alessi.17th and 18th century sacred vestments embroidered with gold thread and coral; selection of paintings, Greek, Roman and Byzantine coins; an assortment of archaeological finds ranging from prehistoric times to the Late Middle Ages. Lombardia Castle which looks out over the valley; S.Michele Arcangelo, S.Marco, erected on the site of an old synagogue. Don't miss a stroll in the Quartiere Fundrisi with its typical single-storey houses. Tags: palermo sicilia taormina catania aeolian islands siracusa noto monreale trapani

Benützer: newrealm06

Sensational Sicily Sicily is directly adjacent to the region of Calabria via the Strait of Messina to the east. The early Roman name for Sicily was Trinacria, alluding to its triangular shape. The Sensational Sicily Project http://www.SensationalSicily.com is a collaboration with the Region of Sicily, The Italian Chamber of Commerce, Alessandro Sorbello Productions http://www.alessandrosorbello.com and New Realm Media http://www.newrealm.com.au The volcano Etna, situated close to Catania, is 3,320 m (10,900 ft) high, making it the tallest active volcano in Europe. It is also one of the world's most active volcanoes. The Aeolian islands to the north are administratively a part of Sicily, as are the Aegadian Islands and Pantelleria Island to the west, Ustica Island to the north-west, and the Pelagian Islands to the south-west. Sicily has been noted for two millennia as a grain-producing territory. Oranges, lemons, olives, olive oil, almonds, and wine are among its other agricultural products. The mines of the Enna and Caltanissetta district became a leading sulfur-producing area in the 19th century but have declined since the 1950s. http://youtube.com/watch?v=NJAalPqBuFo&mode=related&search= Sicily is divided into nine provinces: Agrigento, Caltanissetta, Catania, Enna, Messina, Palermo, Ragusa, Syracuse (Siracusa), Trapani History The original inhabitants of Sicily, long absorbed into the population, were tribes known to Greek writers as the Elymians, the Sicani and the Siculi or Sicels. Of these, the last were clearly the latest to arrive on this land and were related to other Italic peoples of southern Italy, such as the Italoi of Calabria, the Oenotrians, Chones, and Leuterni (or Leutarni), the Opicans, and the Ausones. It's possible, however, that the Sicani were originally an Iberian tribe. The Elymi, too, may have distant origins outside of Italy, in the Aegean Sea area. Phoenicians/Carthaginians, Greeks & Romans Sicily was colonized by Phoenicians, Punic settlers from Carthage, and by Greeks, starting in the 8th Century BC. The most important colony was established at Syracuse in 734 BC. Other important Greek colonies were Gela, Acragas, Selinunte, Himera, and Zancle or Messene (modern-day Messina, not to be confused with the ancient city of Messene in Messenia, Greece). These city states were an important part of classical Greek civilization, which included Sicily as part of Magna Graecia - both Empedocles and Archimedes were from Sicily. Sicilian politics was intertwined with politics in Greece itself, leading Athens, for example, to mount the disastrous Sicilian Expedition during the Peloponnesian War. The Greeks came into conflict with the Punic trading communities with ties to Carthage, which was on the African mainland, not far from the southwest corner of the region, and had its own colonies on Sicily. Palermo was a Carthaginian city, founded in the 8th century BC, named Zis or Sis ("Panormos" to the Greeks). Hundreds of Phoenician and Carthaginian grave sites have been found in necropoli over a large area of Palermo, now built over, south of the Norman palace, where the Norman kings had a vast park. In the far west, Lilybaeum (now Marsala) never was thoroughly Hellenized. In the First and Second Sicilian Wars, Carthage was in control of all but the eastern part of Sicily, which was dominated by Syracuse. In 415 BC, Syracuse became an object of Athenian imperialism as exemplified in the disastrous events of the Sicilian Expedition, which reignited the cooling Peloponnesian War. In the 3rd century BC the Messanan Crisis motivated the intervention of the Roman Republic into Sicilian affairs, and led to the First Punic War between Rome and Carthage. By the end of war (242 BC) all Sicily was in Roman hands, becoming Rome's first province outside of the Italian peninsula. The initial success of the Carthaginians during the Second Punic War encouraged many of the Sicilian cities to revolt against Roman rule. Rome sent troops to put down the rebellions (it was during the siege of Syracuse that Archimedes was killed). Carthage briefly took control of parts of Sicily, but in the end was driven off. Many Carthaginian sympathizers were killed— in 210 BC the Roman consul M. Valerian told the Roman Senate that "no Carthaginian remains in Sicily". For the next 6 centuries, Sicily was a province of the Roman Empire. It was something of a rural backwater, important chiefly for its grainfields, which were a mainstay of the food supply of the city of Rome. The empire did not make much effort to Romanize the region, which remained largely Greek. The most notable event of this period was the notorious misgovernment of Verres, as recorded by Cicero in 70 BC, in his oration, In Verrem. Byzantines In 440 AD Sicily fell to the Vandal king Geiseric. A few decades later, it came into Ostrogothic hands, where it remained until it was conquered by the Byzantine general Belisarius in 535. But a new Ostrogothic king, Totila, drove down the Italian peninsula and then plundered and conquered Sicily in 550. Totila, in turn, was defeated and killed by the Byzantine general, Narses, in 552. For a brief period (662-668), during Byzantine rule, Syracuse was the imperial capital, until Constans II was assassinated. Sicily was then ruled by the Byzantine Empire until the Arab conquest of 827-902. It is reported in contemporary accounts that Sicilians spoke Greek or Italo-Greek dialects until at least the 10th century, and in some regions for several more centuries. First Arab invasion of Sicily In 535, Emperor Justinian I made Sicily a Byzantine province, and for the second time in Sicilian history, the Greek language became a familiar sound across the island. As the power of the Byzantine Empire waned, Sicily was invaded by the Arabs in 652 AD. However, this was a short lived invasion and the Arabs left soon after. Arab control from Tunisia and Egypt In around 700, the island of Pantelleria was captured by the Arabs, and it was only discord among the Arabs that prevented Sicily being next. Instead, trading arrangements were agreed and Arab merchants established themselves in Sicilian ports. Then, in 827 a failed Sicilian coup against an unpopular Byzantine governor. Euphemius, a wealthy landowner, who overcame the imperial garrison in Siracusa, declared himself Emperor and invited the Aghlabid Emir of Tunisia to help him. The response was a fleet of 100 ships and 10,000 troops under the command of Asad ibn al-Furat, which consisted largely of Arab Berbers from North Africa and Spain. After resistance at Siracusa, the Arabs gained a foothold in Mazara del Vallo. Palermo fell after a long siege in 831, but Siracusa held out until 878. From 842 to 859 the Arabs captured Messina, Modica, Ragusa and Enna. In 902 Taormina, the last Byzantine stronghold also fell to Arabs and by 965 all of Sicily was under Arab control and Palermo became one of the largest cities in the world. Emirate of Sicily Sicily was ruled by the Sunni Aghlabid dynasty in Tunisia and the Shiite Fatimids in Egypt. The Byzantines took advantage of temporary discord to occupy the eastern end of the island for several years. After suppressing a revolt the Fatimid caliph appointed Hassan al-Kalbi (948-964) as Emir of Sicily. He successfully managed to control the Byzantines and founded the Kalbid dynasty. Raids into southern Italy continued under the Kalbids into the 11th century, and in 982 a German army under Otto II was defeated near Crotone in Calabria. With Emir Yusuf al-Kalbi (990-998) a period of steady decline began. Under al-Akhal (1017-1037) the dynastic conflict intensified, with factions within the ruling family allying themselves variously with Byzantium and the Zirids. By the time of Emir Hasan as-Samsam (1040-1053) the island had fragmented into several small fiefdoms. As a virtually an independent emirate, Sicily played a privileged role as bridge between Africa and Europe. Trade flourished and taxes were low. The tolerant regime allowed subjects to abide by their own laws. Despite freedom of worship, Christians freely converted to Islam and there were soon hundreds of mosques in Palermo alone. The Arabs initiated land reforms which in turn, increased productivity and encouraged the growth of smallholdings, a dent to the dominance of the landed estates. The Arabs further improved irrigation systems. A description of Palermo was given by Ibn Hawqual, a Baghdad merchant who visited Sicily in 950. A walled suburb called the Kasr (the palace) is the center of Palermo until today, with the great Friday mosque on the site of the later Roman cathedral. The suburb of Al-Khalisa (Kalsa) contained the Sultan's palace, baths, a mosque, government offices and a private prison. Ibn Hawqual reckoned 7,000 individual butchers trading in 150 shops. The Cathedral of Palermo.In addition to Andalusian Arabs and other Arabs, there were Berbers, Persians, Greeks, Jews, Slavs and Lombards. Western Sicily particularly prospered with Berbers settling in the Agrigento area coupled with Bedouin, Syrians and Egyptian Arabs in Palermo. Muslim rule in Sicily slowly came to an end following an invitation by the Emirs of Catania and Siracusa for a Norman invasion. The Normans, under Count Roger de Hauteville (Altavilla) attacked Sicily in 1061, beginning a thirty year struggle against the Arabs. In 1068, Roger and his men defeated the Arabs at Misilmeri but the most crucial battle was the siege of Palermo in 1072, and the conquest of Sicily was completed by 1091 with the defeat of the last Emir in Noto. Arab-Norman period (1091-1224) Following the Norman conquest, Arab influence continued to persist creating a hybrid culture on the island that has contributed much to the character of modern Sicily. The cultural diversity and religious tolerance of the period of Muslim rule under the Kalbid dynasty made Palermo the capital city of the Emirate of Sicily. This continued under the Normans who conquered Sicily in 1060-1090 (raising its status to that of a kingdom in 1130). During this period, Sicily became one of the wealthiest states in Europe, and according to historian John Julius Norwich, Palermo under the Normans became wealthier than the England of its day. After only a century, however, the Norman Hauteville dynasty died out and the south German (Swabian) Hohenstaufen dynasty ruled starting in 1194, adopting Palermo as its principal seat from 1220. But local Christian-Muslim conflicts fueled by the Crusades were escalating during this later period, and in 1224, Frederick II, grandson of Roger II, expelled the last remaining Muslims from Sicily, temporarily relocating many to a colony in Lucera on the southern mainland, while the rest fled to North Africa. Conflict between the Hohenstaufen house and the Papacy led in 1266 to Sicily's conquest by Charles I, duke of Anjou: opposition to French officialdom and taxation led in 1282 to insurrection (the Sicilian Vespers) and successful invasion by king Peter III of Aragón. The resulting War of the Sicilian Vespers lasted until the peace of Caltabellotta in 1302. Sicily was ruled as an independent kingdom by relatives of the kings of Aragon until 1409 and then as part of the Crown of Aragon. Spanish control Ruled from 1479 by the kings of Spain, Sicily suffered a ferocious outbreak of plague (1656), followed by a damaging earthquake in the east of the region (1693). Sicily was frequently attacked by Barbary pirates from North Africa. Bad periods of rule by the crown of Savoy (1713-1720) and then the Austrian Habsburgs gave way to union (1734) with the Bourbon-ruled kingdom of Naples, first as independent kingdom under personal union, then (1816) as part of the kingdom of the Two Sicilies. Sicily was the scene of major revolutionary movements in 1820 and 1848 against Bourbon denial of constitutional government, even though the main request was recognition of an independent status from Naples. The 1848 revolution resulted in a sixteen month period of independence from the Bourbons before its armed forces took back control of the island on 15 May 1849. In late 1852, Prince Emanuele Realmuto had set up power in North Central Sicily. Highly educated, the prince established a political system set to bring Sicily's economy to the highest levels in all of Italy. The Prince's life however was shortened by an assassination in 1857. To this day some of his work is still present in the Italian parliament. Italian unification Sicily was joined with the other Italian regions in 1860 following the invasion of irregular troops led by Giuseppe Garibaldi and the resultant so-called Risorgimento. http://www.greatitalians.com/garibaldi.htm The new Italian state was a strongly centralized nation, and it did not take long before, in 1866, Palermo revolted against Italy. The city was soon bombed by the Italian navy, which disembarked on September 22 under the command of Raffaele Cadorna. Italian soldiers summarily executed the civilian insurgents, and took possession once again of the island. A long extensive guerrilla campaign against the unionists (1861-1871) took place throughout southern Italy, and in Sicily, inducing the Italian governments to a ferocious military repression. Ruled under martial law for many years Sicily (and southern Italy) was ravaged by the Italian army that summarily executed thousands of people, made tens of thousands prisoners, destroyed villages, and deported people. The Sicilian economy collapsed, leading to an unprecedented wave of emigration. In 1894 labour agitation through the radical Fasci Siciliani led again to the imposition of martial law. Map of the Allied landings in Sicily on 10 July 1943.The organised crime networks commonly known as the mafia extended their influence in the late 19th century (and many of its operatives also emigrated to other countries, particularly the United States); partly suppressed under the Fascist regime beginning in the 1920s, they recovered as a side effect of the massive World War II Allied invasion of Sicily on the night of July 10, 1943 when an allied armada of 2,590 vessels freed the then-Fascist Sicily. Mafia was the only organization present in Sicily to be a proved enemy of the Fascist regime and able to offer the Allied occupants a steady grip on the island. The invasion of Sicily was one of the causes of the July 25 crisis. An autonomous region from 1946, Sicily benefited to some extent from the partial Italian land reform of 1950-1962 and special funding from the Cassa per il Mezzogiorno, the Italian government's indemnification Fund for the South (1950-1984). Sicily returned to the headlines in 1992, however, when the assassination of two anti-mafia magistrates, Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino triggered a general upheaval in Italian political life. Transport Main article: Transport in Sicily Automobile Most of Sicily's motorways (autostrade) run through the northern portion of the island. The most important ones are A19 Palermo-Catania, A20 Palermo-Messina, A29 Palermo-Mazara del Vallo and the toll road A18 Messina-Catania. Much of the motorway network is elevated by columns due to the mountainous terrain. http://youtube.com/watch?v=RcI8fadvwaY The road network in the south of the country consists largely of well-maintained secondary roads. Railways Sicily is connected to the Italian peninsula by the national railway company, Trenitalia, though trains are loaded onto ferries for the crossing from the mainland. Officially, the Stretto di Messina, S.p. A. was scheduled to commence construction of the world's longest suspension bridge, the Strait of Messina Bridge, in the second half of 2006. When completed, it would have marked the first time in human history that Sicily was connected by a land link to Italy. In October of 2006 the Italian Parliament scrapped the plan due to lack of popular support, particularly amongst Sicilians.[2]. Air Sicily is served by national and international flights, mostly to European locations, to and from Palermo International Airport and the substantially busier Catania-Fontanarossa Airport. There are also minor national airports in Trapani and on the small islands of Pantelleria and Lampedusa. Metro The city of Palermo has an urban metropolitan service, handled by Trenitalia, with eleven stations, including an airport stop. Catania also has an underground rail system, which completes the circuit on the circumetnea narrow gauge railway. Towns and cities Sicily's principal cities include the regional capital Palermo, together with the other provincial capitals Catania, Messina, Syracuse (Siracusa in Italian), Trapani, Enna, Caltanissetta, Agrigento, Ragusa. Other Sicilian towns include Acireale, Taormina, Giardini Naxos, Piazza Armerina, Bagheria, Partinico, Carini, Alcamo, Vittoria, Caltagirone, Cefalù, Bronte, Adrano, Marsala, Corleone, Castellammare del Golfo, Calatafimi, Gela, Termini Imerese, Francavilla di Sicilia, Ferla, Sciacca, and Abacaenum (now Tripi). The regional flag of Sicily, recognized since January 2000[3], is also the historical one of the island since 1282. It is divided diagonally yellow over red, with the trinacria symbol in the center. "Trinacria" literally means "3 points" and it most probably is a solar symbol even though lately, it has been considered representative of the three points of the island. The head shown on the Sicilian trinacria is the face of Medusa. The trinacria symbol is used also by other regions like the Isle of Man. Arts Palermo is the regional capital of Sicily. Landscape with temple ruins on Sicily, Jacob Philipp Hackert, 1778Sicily is well known as a region of art: many poets and writers were born here, starting from the Sicilian School in the early 13th century, which inspired much subsequent Italian poetry and created the first Italian standard. The most famous, however, are Luigi Pirandello, Giovanni Verga, Salvatore Quasimodo, Gesualdo Bufalino. Other Sicilian artists include the composers Sigismondo d'India, Girolamo Arrigo, Salvatore Sciarrino, Giovanni Sollima (from Palermo), Alessandro Scarlatti (from Trapani or Palermo), Vincenzo Bellini, Giovanni Pacini, Francesco Paolo Frontini, Alfredo Sangiorgi, Aldo Clementi, Roberto Carnevale (from Catania). Noto, Ragusa and particularly Acireale contain some of Italy's best examples of Baroque architecture, carved in the local red sandstone. Caltagirone is renowned for its decorative ceramics. Palermo is also a major center of Italian opera. Its Teatro Massimo is the largest opera house in Italy and the third largest in the world, seating 1,400. Sicily is also home to two prominent folk art traditions, both of which draw heavily on the island's Norman influence. A Sicilian wood cart, or Carretto Siciliano, is painted with intricate decorations of scenes from the Norman romantic poems, such as The Song of Roland. The same tales are told in traditional puppet theatres which feature hand-made wooden marionettes, especially in Acireale, the capital of Sicilian puppets. Sicily is the setting for many classic Italian films such as Visconti's La Terra Trema (1948)and Il Gattopardo (1963), Rosi's Salvatore Giuliano(1962) and Antonioni's L'avventura (1960). The 1988 movie Nuovo Cinema Paradiso, was about life in a Sicilian town following the Second World War. It is also the setting for Michael Radford's Il Postino (1994) starring Massimo Troisi. People The position of Sicily as a stepping stone of sorts in the center of the Mediterranean Basin has lent it strategic importance throughout history, resulting in an endless procession of settlers and conquerors. Modern methods of genetic testing enable us to see which have had the greatest demographic impact. Several studies show strong ties between Sicily, mainland southern Italy and Greece, suggesting that the Siculi, Elymi and Greek colonizations were the most important. It has been proposed that a genetic boundary divides Sicily into two regions, reflecting the distribution of Siculi and Greek settlements in the east, and Sicani/Elymi, Phoenician/Arab and Norman settlements in the west.[10][11][12] However, other research has failed to detect any such division.[13][7] No data exists on the contribution of Normans, but a number of studies hint that North African and Middle Eastern gene flow was limited by the physical barrier of the Mediterranean Sea and resulting cultural differentiation.[6][14][15][16][17][18] Sicily's population is approximately 5 million, and there are an additional 10 million people of Sicilian descent around the world, mostly in the United States, Argentina, Canada, Australia and the EU countries. The island today, like all of western Europe, is home to growing communities of immigrants, including Tunisians, Moroccans, Nigerians, Indians, Romanians, Russians, Chinese and Gypsies from the Balkans. Language Main article: Sicilian language,. Many Sicilians are bilingual in both Italian and Sicilian, a separate Romance language, with Greek, Arabic, Catalan and Spanish influence. It is important to note that Sicilian is not a derivative of Italian. Although thought by some to be a dialect, Sicilianu is a distinct language, with a rich history and a sizeable vocabulary (at least 250,000 words), due to the influence of the different conquerors of, and settlers to, this land. The Sicilian language was an early influence in the development of the first Italian standard, although its use remained confined to an intellectual élite. This was a literary language in Sicily created under the auspices of Frederick II and his court of notaries, or Magna Curia, which, headed by Giacomo da Lentini also gave birth to the Scuola Siciliana, widely inspired by troubadour literature. Its linguistic and poetic heritage was later assimilated into the Florentine by Dante Alighieri, the father of modern Italian who, in his De Vulgari Eloquentia (DVE claims that "In effect this vernacular seems to deserve a higher praise than the others, since all the poetry written by Italians can be called Sicilian" (DVE, I, xii). It is in this language that appeared the first sonnet, whose invention is attributed to Giacomo da Lentini himself. Sicilian dialects are also spoken in the southern and central sections of the Italian regions Calabria (Calabrese) and Puglia (Salentino); and had a significant influence on the Maltese Language. Malta was a part of the Kingdom of Sicily (in its various forms) until the late 18th century. With the predominance of Italian in Italian schools, the media, etc., Sicilian is no longer the first language of many Sicilians. Indeed, in urban centers in particular, one is more likely to hear standard Italian spoken rather than Sicilian, especially among the young. Sicilian generally uses the word ending [u] for singular masculine nouns and adjectives, and [a] for feminine. The plural is usually [i] for both masculine and feminine. By contrast, in Italian masculine nouns and adjectives that end in [o] in the singular pass to [i] in the plural, while the feminine counterparts pass from [a] to [e]. The "-LL-" sound (in words of Latin origin, for example) manifests itself in Sicilian as a voiced retroflex plosive with the tip of the tongue curled up and back, a sound which is not part of Standard Italian. In Sicilian, this sound is written simply as "-dd-" although the sound itself is not [d] but rather [ɖ]. For example, the Italian word bello is beddu in Sicilian. In numerous villages, the Arbëreshë dialect of the Albanian language has been spoken since a wave of refugees settled there in the 15th century. While it is spoken within the household, Italian is the official language and modern Greek is chanted in the local Byzantine liturgy. There are also several areas where dialects of the Lombard language of the Gallo-Italic family are spoken. Much of this population is also tri-lingual, being able to also speak one of the Sicilian dialects as well. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sicily Tags: Tourism sicily taormina siracusa castelmola catania messina

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PINO DANIELE SICILY Sicily Un posto ci sarà per questa solitudine perché mi sento così inutile davanti alla realtà Un posto ci sarà fatto di lava e sole dove la gente sa che è ora di cambiare Un posto ci sarà dove puoi alzarti presto il giorno finisce per dispetto e haje voglia di alluccà Che un posto ci sarà dove si pesca ancora e il mare porterà una storia nuova io son pazzo di te 'e chesta furtuna Sicily terra e nisciuno Un posto ci sarà per essere felici cantare a squarciagola e dici tutt' chell' ca vuo' tu Un posto ci sarà dove si spera ancora la gente porterà una storia nova io son pazzo di te 'e chesta furtuna Sicily terra 'e nisciuno LIVE 1993 antonio annona alle tastiere Tags: PREMIO TENCO 1993

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Siracusa in Sicily Array Tags:

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