Siracusa, Sicily, Italy
The bells of the cathedral and parish churches were ringing as the National Geographic Explorer slipped into its berth adjacent to the island of Ortigia, the perfect location from which to launch our visit to the former bastions of Greek culture in Sicily. Founded in 734 BC by settlers from Greek city-state of Corinth, Siracusa grew into the richest and most powerful Greek colony in Sicily. While the city was the hometown of Archimedes, the court of the Tyrants of Sircausa hosted all the great Greek scholars and playwrights, including Aristotle, Pindar, and Sophocles.
The archeological park on the hill at the northern edge of modern town was the focus of our morning excursion. We sat in the same Greek theater that Aeschylus debuted his tragedy The Persians some 2,500 years ago, and which now hosts a two-month theatrical festival of Greek dramas. We listened to one of our guides sing an Italian aria at the entrance to the largest cave in the latomia (quarry) known Ear of Dionysius and then walked around the edge of the flower-encrusted Roman amphitheater (Figure A). The spectacular monuments in the park survived largely as they were literally carved into the limestone outcrop that is such a prominent feature of this quarter of the old city.
After a wonderful Italian repast aboard, we set off in the afternoon on a walking tour of the old city of Ortigia visiting first the Temple of Apollo with its single monolithic column, Piazza Archimede, and then on to elliptical shaped Piazza del Duomo, which is dominated by the cathedral that was formerly the 5th century BC Temple of Athena. This building encapsulates the history of the island in a single structure. The colonnades of Doric columns that made up the sides of the former Greek temple form the walls of the church. While one of the end chapels from the early Romano-Christian period survives, little remains from the period when the building was used as a mosque during the 300 years when the island was under Moorish rule.
Most of the numerous side chapels are lavishly decorated with variegated marble altars and statues in the manner of the Italian Renaissance and later Spanish Baroque (Figure B). Flanked by white marble statues of St. Peter and St. Paul, the 18th century façade is a Baroque masterpiece that culminates with little angels soaring through its central pediment. Whether viewed by day, or under the floodlights at night, this incredible building can hold anyone spellbound.
No visit to this magnificent city would be complete without sampling a gelato or a pizza and many of us indulged!
