Sicily and Sardinia
Between the Mediterranean, Ionian and Tyrrhenian seas
appears Sicily, an island invaded throughout the centuries
by Greeks, Romans, Normands, Carthaginians, Arabs and
Spanish. The capital, Palermo, is a city of contrasts.
Its monumental inheritance has more than 50 palaces and
80 churches of different styles. Nevertheless, when entering
in some of its districts the visitor found constructions
and decayed seats that need an urgent restoration.
Palermo is divided by the crossing of the streets Maqueda
and Vittorio Emanuele in four parts that can be taken
like datum point at the time of visiting it. Everywhere
it proliferates the baroque style, memory of the last
bourbon splendor of the city that has its representation
in the church of Gesú, the one of San Domenico
and the fountains of Quattro Canti.
Some parts of the cathedral and the palace of the Norman,
in whose interior we found the Palatine chapel and the
Ruggero room, remember the Norman invasion of the island.
The red cupolas of the church of San Giovanni Degli Eremini
confer an oriental aspect to it, while those of San Cataldo
and the Martorana is Norman with Arab influence. Between
the multiple museums of the city it’s outstanding
the Sicily National Gallery, in the Abatellis palace,
where gothic and Renaissance paintings and sculptures
are exhibited.
Other interesting places of Sicily are Agrigento, with
their imposing Greek ruins on the brink of the sea, and
Messina, first port of Sicily, with the churches della
Annunziata dei Catalani and Santa Caterina Valverde, without
forgetting Syracuse, with the ruins of the old Neapolis,
and Catania, where can be seen a Roman theater and a Duomo.
From the locality of Taormina can be made an excursion
to the mythical Etna volcano, one of the more impressive
natural places of the island.
In Sardinia we found a population attached to its more
traditional customs. Everywhere, we see strange stone
fortress, the Nuraghi, that was constructed in the Age
of Bronze by people probably arrived from the Balearic
Islands. The Catalan influence in the island is breathed
everywhere, not only in the architecture but also in aspects
like the language and the customs. The capital, Cagliari,
count on an interesting cathedral, in whose interior the
rest of Martin II from Aragón are kept. Other important
populations are Alghero, with a gothic-Catalan cathedral
and a medieval district, Bossa, where we can see the genoese
castle of Seravalle, and Sassari, second city of the island
with an interesting Duomo of Spanish colonial style. In
the Northeast angle of the island it appears the coast
Emerald, with his luxurious tourist resorts.
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