According to Wikipedia, Baroque is defined as "a period of artistic style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, architecture, literature, dance, theater, and music." Palermo is a city intrinsically baroque in the sense that the daily life is intense, where the days seem to last longer than 24 hours. Often neglected by the tourists which prefer more tourist-friendly coastal cities like Syracuse or Taormina, Palermo is the capital of Sicily and sometimes even feels like the capital of an independent country.
You can do many things in Palermo but there are two which probably will occupy much of your time: visiting churches and eating ice cream. Palermo has many churches to visit, if you walk randomly it is very likely that you will see a few of them after 10 minutes walk. The question is which ones deserve a longer detour. I can only suggest you my favorites but I strongly recommend you to explore as well.
In my viewpoint, the most jaw-dropping church in Palermo is the Chiesa del Gesù. From outside, the church is deceiving but the inside is a magnificent baroque interior. La Chiesa del Gesù has also a small museum and an upper-level chapel open to the public. The next stop should be San Giusseppe dei Teatini in Quattro Canti the most famous street intersection in Palermo. The entrance of the church is in Via Vittorio Emanuele. From outside you cannot guess what are you going to see inside. The church can be described as "over the top baroque", the profusion of ornaments is overwhelming. In every church you visit, do not forget to look at the ceilings!
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| Chiessa de Gesú (When you are in the church don't forget to look at the ceilings) |
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| Ceiling of San Giuseppe dei Teateni |
Continuing with the baroque theme, do not forget to visit the "oratoriums" on my last trip to Palermo, I visited the Oratorio di San Lorenzo. The staff members usually provide information to the visitors. One of the highlights of the Oratorium is that it used to have a Caravaggio which was stolen long time ago. The authorities have made a replica of the stolen work of art.
If you need a break from the Baroque style, Norman Palermo is waiting for you. Sicily was conquered by the Normans in the XI century after 250 years of Arab occupation. They ruled the island for sixty years and left their marks with several monuments. Palermo has the jewels of Norman Sicily; The Duomo di Monreale and the Palazzo di Normanni UNESCO world heritage site.
In addition to religious architecture, Palermo has interesting museums and beautiful palaces to visit. I strongly recommend visiting the two museums that are on the same street (Via Alloro /Via Sant'Anna). These are the Palazzo Abatellis and the Galleria d'Arte Moderna. The Palazzo Abatellis is a beautiful palace that has a fantastic collection of religious Art from the Middle Ages until the Renaissance. The museum masterpiece is "The Triumph of the Death" an allegorical painting depicting the triumph of humanity over the Black Death. It has been suggested that this painting was the inspiration of the Guernica of Pablo Picasso.
A couple blocks from the Palace Abatellis you will find the Galleria d'Arte Moderna which is situated in a former convent. The museum is specialized in "Modern art" and when I write modern, I mean Art of the late XIX century until the beginning of the XX century. After visiting the museums, you can spend the rest of the day in the neighborhood of Kalsa, an area that has a huge potential of gentrification. There are hidden gems everywhere and nice places where you can do the "aperitivo".
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| The Triumph of Death |
Going to the outdoor markets is a must while in Palermo. There are several markets each located in different sections of the city and with their own schedules. By far, the most impressive is the Ballaro market, which is precisely behind the Chiesa de Gésu. I admit that it could be intimidating, it is large and chaotic. If you use common sense, you could find real jewels here and eat wonderfully. Do not forget to haggle and to look other stands before you made your final purchase.
The food in Sicily is astonishingly good. Sicily has developed its own culinary tradition separate from Italy. Be adventurous and try new things. On the contrary to Rome, the probability of picking randomly a good restaurant is Palermo is quite high and the price /quality ratio is definitively in your favor. The ice cream in Palermo is to die for and you could have it for breakfast (granita) or in a brioche. Some of the dishes that you should try are arancine (all the flavors but int particular those with meat inside), pasta alla norma, caponata (a kind of ratatouille), panelle (chickpea crepe similar to Socca), cannoli, cassata and of course pizza! I give you two addresses: Makeda (best pizza in Italy so far) and Arte e Traditione (huge portions of good food)
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| Table of cheese, Arte e Tradizione |
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| This is breakfast |
Palermo has so much to offer, that I am sure locals will be disappointed I did not cover many things in my short review. For instance, I did not have time to visit Palazzo Mirto or tried Pasta with sardines and this fine. Palermo is a city that should be revisited several times, an alternative to other major destinations in Italy. A place that can be your base for discovery Sicily.
