Experience Sicily

Tag: UNESCO

  • The Outstanding Leadership Of Sicily’s Roger II

    More than ever, I’m seeking a dinner date with Roger II (1095-1154) … An outstanding leader, Roger II incorporated and encouraged inclusion of all of the various cultures, religions, and races that shared Sicily–native Sicilian, Norman, Arab, Byzantine, Greek, Jewish, English, German, and more–into his government. As a result, Sicily thrived, and it became the…

  • Pantalica Pleases With History And Natural Beauty

    The Pantalica nature reserve in southeastern Sicily protects a white canyon of limestone that has been cut over centuries by the the Anapo and Calcinara rivers. Featuring lush, green vegetation, waterfalls, fresh water pools, and the river bed, it is recognized as a UNESCO site because of the approximately 5,000 tombs dating back as far…

  • Noto Infiorata Online

    Although it’s not taking place as usual, the Infiorata di Noto *will* happen this weekend, yet online. Follow the events on the Facebook Page of il Comune di Noto (https://www.facebook.com/comunedinoto), where there are videos and photos of the vibrant “carpets” created with flowers and other natural elements in recognition of spring, and more significantly, life…

  • Noto’s Baroque Cathedral

    Noto’s cathedral (La Chiesa Madre di San Nicolò) was completed in 1776 when the city was rebuilt following the devastating earthquakes of 1693. The Sicilian Baroque church sits at the center of a theatrical urban plan that is known as a “stone garden” for its use of local white rock and its elegant symmetry.

  • Magnificent Monreale Cathedral, Sicily

    The cloisters of Sicily’s Monreale Cathedral were built in the Arab Norman style in the early 13th century by Venetian artisans. Part of the Palermo area UNESCO site that features nine Arab Norman monuments, the cloister boasts 128 columns, all possessing different mosaic designs and many with capitols that illustrate biblical stories and episodes in…

  • A Bell Tower In Cefalù, Sicily

    One of the bell towers of the 12th century, Arab-Norman style Cathedral of Cefalù, Sicily from the duomo’s other bell tower

  • Piazza Bellini, Palermo, Sicily

    View of Palermo’s Piazza Bellini from the roof of the Church of Santa Caterina d’Alessandria … La Martorana Church on the left, San Cataldo on the right, dome of Casa Professa or the Church of the Gesù, upper-right background.

  • Sicily Shook On January 11, 1693

    After a magnitude (hypothetical) 6.2 foreshock on January 9, 1693, at 9PM on January 11, 1693 the earth shook in southeastern Sicily for what historians say was four minutes. Etna erupted, and a tsunami struck the Ionian coasts of eastern Sicily and the Strait of Messina. We don’t know the exact scope of the earthquake’s…

  • Be Awe-Inspired By Harmony In Agrigento, Sicily

    The Temple of Concordia is one of seven ancient Greek houses of worship you can discover at Valley of the Temples in Agrigento. It was named for a Latin inscription that was found on a dedication marker unearthed in the vicinity of the archaeological site–i.e., a marker not associated with the temple; however, spirited archaeologists…