Month: November 2022

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Friday, November 25, 2022

We got up very early to make an 7:50 am flight out of Malta; it took about an hour to get to Rome, where we had a 1.5 hour layover, before boarding a 3.5 hour flight to Ben-Gurion Airport. That’s when the trouble started.

We had intended to take the train from the airport to Jerusalem’s Central Station. From there is was just a four minute walk to our place. The problem was the Sabbath. Apparently, everything closes in Israel starting Friday night and doesn’t open again until Saturday night. This includes the trains, buses, restaurants, grocery stores, etc, etc, etc. The only option was a very expensive cab ride. In for penny…

We settled in without issue. According to Google there were a few grocery stores open so we went out to in search of them. Then it started to rain…it didn’t really rain…it poured. It was cold and damp. So much for being in the desert.

We walked about for many miles. None of the places we sought out were open. Damn you Google. We did manage to find two Asian groceries but they had nothing that we’d consider edible. By now it was well past dinner time. Cold and wet we did the unthinkable. We went into a McDonald’s. We intended to eat dinner and then bring some things back to the apartment for Saturday. The menu was similar to what you’d find in the US. We ordered two sandwiches, one small soda, and one small fries. It cost over $25.00 and it was really bad. So much for getting food to take home. We decided to head back to our apartment and deal with it all tomorrow. It was a pretty miserable start to our Israeli adventure.

Saturday, November 26, 2022

Deborah found a blog that mentioned some restaurants that were open on Saturday. We headed out to one of them for breakfast. Food in Israel is ridiculously expensive. Two pastries, a coffee, and a tea cost us $20.00. The currency is the New Israeli Shekel (NIS) and there about 3.4 to the dollar (the New Shekel replaced the hyper-inflated Shekel in 1986 at a rate of 1,000 to 1).

After breakfast we headed into the Old City. We wanted to have a look around. We scheduled a walking tour for tomorrow but still thought it might be fun to get a start with things. Immediately upon entering the Jaffa Gate we were inundated by people trying to entice us with their wares. They were Arabs. It was completely expected. We walked through the labyrinth of the Arab Market. It was so much fun. In addition to the souvenir shops there were plenty of storefronts selling Eastern style candies, spices, and foods. Everyone wanted to be our friend.

Eventually we decided to go visit the Western Wall. When we got there Deborah and I had to split because there are separate sections for the men and the women. Off to the left side was a large cave. When I went in they were preparing for the afternoon prayers. I was invited to stay and participate but I declined. Taking pictures near The Wall is discouraged on the Sabbath. We’ll be back.

Back in the Arab Market we found a small shop that made knafeh. He proudly told us that he took the shop over from his grandfather and that he made the cheese filling himself. He showed us the uncovered version for our approval before taking it to the front of the shop where he cooked it over an open wood fire. Deborah had tea and I had Arab coffee. I was told that it was not the same as Turkish coffee and, although it seemed to be prepared and served in the same manner, it tasted different. He said that Turkish coffee is boiled but Arab coffee is cooked. In any event it was very enjoyable. It cost about $15.00.

We continued walking around the Arab Market and stumbled onto Via Doloroso. We both remarked that the name was somehow familiar and then lighting struck as soon as we saw it: The Fifth Station of the Cross. The street was famous for containing a number of the Stations of the Cross. We continued up the street and saw several more. We intend to do the entire circuit on another day.

When we went out of the market we were near The Church of Saint John the Baptist. We tried to get in but couldn’t find the entrance. One of the shop keepers told us it was closed until tomorrow. Then we headed to The Church of the Holy Sepulcher. This church dates from the 4th Century AD. It is thought to be the location of Jesus’ tomb and is thought to be the place where he was crucified.

The church was a madhouse. We wandered about and saw what was to be seen. There was a long line to enter the structure where the tomb was and we weren’t able to get upstairs where he was crucified. We’ll go back early on another day and try again – hopefully before there is a huge crowd. Note: The last several stations of the cross are within this very church.

Just outside the church a shopkeeper told Deborah that he had lovely scarves for just $2.00. Women are required to have their heads covered when they go into the Mosques and Deborah said she needed a new one. Of course, he showed her some lovely cashmere scarves that were handmade by his Bedouin family. (He asked Deborah, “Do you know who the Bedouins are? The people who live in the desert with the camels.” We found him amusing.) He wanted 400 NIS for them (about $117.00). Since Deborah already had one and had no intention of paying anywhere near that for a scarf she politely declined. He told her that he really liked her and wanted her to have it. He would sell it to her for what it cost his family to make it: 250 NIS (about $75). She asked about the other, machine made, silk scarves. He dissembled and continued to push the handmade one. He lowered his price to 200, then 150, and finally 100 NIS. At that price she just couldn’t refuse. In the end it cost less than $30. She probably overpaid 😎.

We had some dinner at a cafe nearby. We ordered a falafel plate, which came with a cabbage salad, an Israeli salad, fries, and two pita. We intended to share it. To wash it down we each had a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice. It was absolutely delicious and plenty for the two of us. It cost about $35.00. I’m not sure we can afford to spend three months in this country.

Sunday, November 27, 2022

We took the free tour this morning. We met at the Jaffa Gate and wandered around almost the entire old city. We could have gone to the Temple Mount but after three hours we decided to opt for lunch instead. We can go there another time.

One of the first things we saw was The Church of the Holy Sepulcher. He took us inside and answered a lot of the questions we had. We’re going to revisit all of the sites we saw today and will report back in more detail.

For lunch we shared a Shawarma in a pita in the Arab Market. It was quite tasty. After that we finally got to stop into a grocery store. It was a little challenging because so many of the labels are exclusively in Hebrew, but we managed to get everything that was on our list.

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Tuesday, November 22, 2022

We took the public bus to the town of Tarxien. It’s on the other side of the Harbor and not too far from The Three Cities. Today’s objective was to see the ancient, Megalithic, Tarxien Temples, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The site, which was included in our combination ticket from the other site, includes four structures built between 3,600 and 2,500 BC. They were discovered in 1917 when farmers found something unusual when trying to plow a field. The people who built these temples probably came over from Sicily about 5,000 years ago and over the next 1,000 years built more than 30 temples in Malta.

The entire open-air site has been covered to prevent further decay. Automated stations monitor the conditions and report to a central location. The first, and oldest temple, is little more than an outline on the ground. Three other temples can easily be seen. They are outlined with large, megalithic stones. Any relics found have subsequently been moved to the museum of archeology. In fact, we saw quite a few of them days ago during our visit there.

Originally the site was probably used for rituals and animal sacrifices. By the Bronze Age it was used as a cemetery for cremated remains. During Roman times the area was used for farming.

Wednesday, November 23, 2022

It was a day off. Nothing much else happened.

Thursday, November 24, 2022

Our last day in town. We toured the mansion that was built in 1580. It has been the home of Noble families who have been members of the Order of Saint John. The present family acquired the property about 150 years when they swapped the owners for another property. You can wander about the mansion by yourself but we went on a guided tour. The cost was €9.50 per person. Credit cards are accepted.

We started off in the garden in the back waiting for the tour to begin. While waiting we enjoyed the fountain whose basin contained several large turtles. To the side was a large parrot named Kiki. He was friendly enough but didn’t have much to say. In the middle of the garden was a set of stairs that led to a World War II bomb shelter. There were open spaces at three different levels. One of the smaller spaces was exclusively for the family and the larger spaces, which were accessed through tunnels to the side of the property, were for the general public.

We toured most of the ground floor level of the house. The family still lives in the upper two floors and has been known to occasionally use the downstairs even when tours are happening. As is typical in great houses there were paintings of the family throughout many generations, there was a chapel, a very fine art collection that spanned the Renaissance to the modern, and all sorts of memorabilia.

The family is distantly related to the royal family of England. There were pictures of Princess Elizabeth from the time she lived in Malta, and there were framed invitations from the Coronation of King George VI, and Elizabeth II. The family attended both. They had commemorative stools from both occasions which apparently can be purchased for £1 for attendees.

Another room contained several family trees and the coat of arms of all of the ancestors. The guide was very well informed and knew everything about the family and the house. We learned that the present owner and his son are both Knights of the Order of Saint John. It was money well spent.

We’ve found that a week is usually enough time to fully explore a city. In this case, we had just over a week to explore an entire country. We certainly covered the highlights but given time there is a lot more to see, do, and learn about. Given that the islands have been under English rule for almost 200 years, and English is one of the official languages, it’s surprising to us that the primary language for natives is Maltese. Yes, everyone speaks and understands English but they tend to speak it somewhat haltingly, with a thick accent, and with less than perfect grammar. Certainly, the foods have been heavily influenced by the English but also by the Arabs and the Italians. It’s a very interesting place with a very colorful history.

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Sunday, November 20, 2022

We started the day by taking the water taxi across The Grand Harbor. Our plan was to visit “The Three Cities”. Taxi costs just €2.80 per person each way. Credit cards are accepted. The three cities all seem to have alternate names so things can get a little confusing. There is Cospicua which is also called Bormla, Birgu referred to as Vittoriosa, and Senglea aka Isla. The ferry landed in the city of Cospicua (maybe it was Bormla, we’ll never know for sure 😎).

We walked over to the Immaculate Conception Church and hoped that a service wouldn’t be in progress. One had just ended. It was a typical Baroque church with lovely decorations. What was somewhat unique is that there were heavy velvet drapery separating the chapels and huge crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. It made an impression. As we were walking around the lights started turning off. It was a sign that we wouldn’t have a lot of time. We took our pictures and left.

A few blocks away we stopped to see Saint Helen’s Gate. It was listed as one of those things you just have to see. Well, we saw it. It was a typical city gate with two arches for cars and one in the middle for pedestrians. It also had several large coats of arms.

Afterwards we walked over to another islet to Fort Saint Angelo in the city of Birgu. Like it’s cousin, Fort Saint Elmo, it was built by the Knights in the mid 16th Century and was instrumental in repelling the Turks during the Siege of Malta in 1565. It’s likely that there have been fortifications on this site even before recorded history. Churches have been known to exist on the site dating from the 7th Century AD.

In 1912 the British Navy assumed control and treated the fort as a stone frigate. They renamed it HMS Egmont and always had an actual ship tethered to the fort to complete the illusion. The new name angered the locals so in 1933, when it became the base for the Royal Navy in the Mediterranean, it was again renamed to HMS Saint Angelo. Today the base provides a place to get fantastic views of the harbor and of Valletta. There is also a museum telling the history of the fort with emphasis on the time of the Knights and World War II. We had purchased a combination ticket to the fort which included The Inquisitor’s Palace and the Tarxien Temple. The cost was €9.00 per person. Credit cards were accepted.

On our way to The Inquisitor’s Palace we found an interesting restaurant for lunch. It had such a nice menu that we had trouble deciding. Finally we ordered ziti with smoked salmon and fish & chips. The portions were enormous. The pasta came with a white/cheese sauce. I would have said that the salmon was baked instead of smoked. In any event there was a lot of it and it was really fresh and tasty. The fish & chips were made from fresh fish and came with a Mediterranean salad and French fries. I don’t know how but we managed to eat it all.

Although there were previous forms of official punishment (also called Inquisitions) the Roman Inquisition was setup in 1542 by Pope Paul III as a bulwark against the Protestant Reformation. Emissaries were sent to just about every country to preside over these proceedings. The Inquisition officially started in Malta in 1561 with the appointment of Mgr Pietro Dusina.

The Inquisitor’s Palace here in Malta is one of the few remaining examples in Europe. It was originally built as a courthouse but was abandonned when the Knights moved the capital to Valletta. Subsequently it was offered to the The Inquisitor as his residence. A long line of Inquisitors expanded and upgraded the mansion. Many of them brought their own collections of art when they came. The upper floors resemble a typical ecclesiastic palace with a private chapel, fancy furniture, and beautiful works of art. The museum also contains quite a bit of information on people who were subjected to the Inquisition. Great lengths are taken to convey that the Maltese Inquisition was not nearly as harsh as some of the others – notably the Spanish Inquisition. It is, however, acknowledged that some people were tortured and a few were executed. Quite a few were jailed for years without convictions only to be let go without explanation.

The basement floors were for prisoners. We saw a number of small stone cells that would have held numerous people. The walls had carvings etched in them as a way to help the prisoners pass the time. Many of them produced calendars to count the days of their incarceration. Also on display was a primitive communal toilet that prisoners could use only when escorted by the jailer. There was also an interrogation room where prisoners would be questioned and possibly tortured. Torture was never used as a punishment; it was always used as an inducement to confess sins or report on others.

Our final stop of the day was at Our Lady of Victories Church in Senglea. Our path took us to The Fortifications of Senglea, a high Medieval wall that would have protected the town from invaders. When we arrived the church was closed. We took a few pictures of the outside and headed back to the ferry. We’d managed to visit all three cities.

Monday, November 21, 2022

The city of Mdina, the ancient capital of Malta, owes its roots to the 8th Century BC when it was settled by the Phoenicians. At that time it was called Maleth. When the Romans conquered the area the name was changed to Melite. Later, under the rule of the Arabs, it was given its present name – a name derived from the Arab word ‘medina’, referring to a walled city. When the Knights came in 1530 Birgu was made the administrative center. Later, when Valletta was built, it was designated at the country’s capital.

During our last trip we had a lot of fun tracking down places where Game of Thrones had been filmed. Many of those places were in Croatia. It has just come to our attention that the first season was actually filmed in Malta. We saw some of those places yesterday when we visited The Three Cities. Today we’re going to find some more.

We took the public bus to Mdina. It dropped us off just a couple of blocks from the citadel. Tickets cost €2.00 per person each way. Single tickets are normally purchased directly from the driver. According to what we read exact change is necessary because the drivers will not make change. We had a happy surprise: the busses take credit cards.

There is a narrow path that leads to the main gate and the entrance to the Medieval city. That gate was used as background in Game of Thrones. We crossed the threshold and started walking the streets. It was absolutely charming. It’s a real, live Medieval town come to life with stone streets, narrow winding alleys, and all sorts of charm. We were surprised to see that a number of buildings were private homes where people live. Imagine living in a genuine Medieval town?! Of course, many of the homes have been turned into storefronts, shops, and restaurants that cater to tourists.

We walked around for a bit and found an overlook near the far wall. There was a great view of the countryside. We ran into a shop called, “The Maltese Falcon”. Naturally we had to go in. There weren’t any falcons but there was a lot of very pretty jewelry. Then we went looking for Pjazza Mesquita. This was another place featured on GOT. It was the home of Petyr Baelish’s brothel and the place where Jaime Lannister stabbed Ned Stark in the leg. We took lots of pictures. Now, back to our regularly scheduled program: churches.

We purchased a ticket to see Saint Paul’s Cathedral. €8.00 a piece allowed us to see the Cathedral and tour the associated museum. Credit cards are accepted. We were encouraged to start with the museum.

We’ve seen bunches of church museums / treasuries so we weren’t expecting much. This one fooled us. It was rather large and had some very interesting displays. The first thing we saw was a series of 15 rather tall sculptures of saints made almost entirely out of silver. They had been produced in Rome between 1741 and 1743 for the Order. During the French invasion of 1798 they, along with many other church artifacts, were stolen with the intention of melting them down to pay the French soldiers. The church paid a large ransom to get them back.

Another display had the oldest bell in Malta. Dating from 1370 it was removed from its tower after the earthquake of 1693 (the one that destroyed Catania in Sicily). It is said that Medieval bells such as this were produced using an obsolete casting method and have a sound that is quite distinct from what we are used to. We didn’t get an opportunity to hear it.

Another usual thing to see was two sets of Capodimonte figures depicting mythological scenes. In spite of being all white they were quite elegant. One of the largest rooms, which had gorgeous marble tiled floors, held a large number of Medieval paintings and polyptychs. They were in excellent condition. Lastly, there was a large collection of paintings from the 18th-20th Century including religious, mythological, and secular themes.

The last section held a collection of prints by Albrecht Durer (1471-1528). There was a series of wood block prints and a series of copperplate prints totalling about 50 works in all. They had been donated by a single individual in 1833 with the proviso that they be exhibited in a museum.

It was an impressive museum.

Of course, we saw the church next. It, too, was impressive. Designed as a Latin cross style it was decorated in the Baroque style. All of the works were documented. The floor tiles were large inlaid blocks of polychrome marble. Some had actual burials and some were just memorials. This church replaced a smaller one that was destroyed by the earthquake. The heavily carved wooden door leading to the Sacristy was one of the few pieces that survived the disaster.

We found a nice little cafe just outside of the citadel. They had something we’ve been looking for since we came to Malta: lampuki pie. We got some – and some pasta with ricotta cheese. The pasta was nothing special but the pie was unbelievably good. It’s a traditional Maltese dish made with Mahi Mahi. This one had potatoes, onions, and capers. We shared a piece of lemon mouse cake for dessert. Yum!

When we took the walking tour our guide had shown us a traditional Maltese clock. It was gorgeous. They are made of wood, have painted dials, and are embellished with 24 gold leaf. I asked her where we could buy one. She said that normally you can only buy them as antiques but that there was someone in Mdina that still made them. We found that shop.

The shop both makes new and restores old clocks. They had samples of both for us to see. We were impressed. If we’d had a house we certainly would have ordered one. Maybe we will anyway because there is an 18 month wait to get one.

We walked on for a bit and crossed in to the neighboring town of Rabat and headed for Saint Paul’s (another church with the same name). This church was built over the grotto where Saint Paul reportedly lived and preached for three months. When we got there the church was closed. We could have purchased tickets to see the grotto and catacombs but declined the opportunity.

Now we had another GOT site to find: Saint Dominic’s Priory. Several scenes were shot in a garden there. When we arrived the church was closed. Off to the right, behind a locked fence, we could see a small, overgrown garden. We snapped some pictures but wasn’t sure it was the right place. Walking back past the entrance of the church we noticed an open door by the priory. We went in. There was a desk where a greeter might have been but it was unattended. Beyond was a cloister. It looked familiar. As quickly and quietly as we could we walked the perimeter and snapped a bunch of pictures. This was the place we’d been looking for. When we were finally out the door we laughed like giddy kids. We felt like we’d gotten away with something.

Before taking the bus back we stopped off at a bakery we’d seen. We bought a couple of slices of pepperoni pizza and a bunch (I won’t tell you how many because it’s embarrassing) of pastries. We also found a stand that had homemade Maltese treats. We were offered samples of quite a few. Naturally we bought some. It was all for dinner later.

To sum up we visited two new cities, explored a genuine Medieval town, ate some great food, saw some very interesting things, had a great time at the clock shop, stalked Saint Peter some more, found three Game of Thrones sites, and brought home all sorts of interesting things for dinner. It was a great day!

Tuesday, November 22, 2022

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Friday, November 18, 2022

Malta is made up of three islands. The largest is called Malta. The smallest is named Comino. The third island is Gozo. We took a ferry from The Grand Harbor to Mgarr on Gozo. The trip took 45 minutes and cost €7.50 per person each way. Credit cards are accepted.

There’s a number of things to see and do on Gozo and the island is large enough that some sort of transportation is needed. We decided to use the Hop On/Hop Off Bus. We had considered renting a car so we could cover more ground but sitting on the right side of the car, driving on the left side of the road, shifting with your left hand, and driving on narrow, hilly, unfamiliar roads just wasn’t in the cards. We’d made what we thought was a realistic itinerary before we went but the real gating factor was the ferry. The first trip was at 10:00 am and the last one back was at 5:00 pm. Considering that we lost an hour and half for the trip itself that only left us with five and a half hours for sightseeing. That’s really not enough time even if you only want to cover the “must see” items.

We got to the harbor around 10:50 am. The bus left around 11:15 am. We got off at the first stop to see the Rotunda Church dedicated to Saint John the Baptist in the town of Xewkija. The original structure on the site was a small chapel from 1665. The parish needed something larger. In 1951 they broke ground on a huge new project sporting the world’s third highest unsupported dome. The church and its dome are so large that it can be seen from just about anywhere on the island. The church was completed in 1971. The original stone chapel was reassembled behind the main altar. It’s very pretty. There are some lovely period paintings and the floor tiles and main altar are made of Carrara marble. We paid €3.00 per person (cash only) to ride an elevator to the roof where we were able to walk all the way around the building and see every part of the island.

The bus stopped for ten minutes at The Magro Food Village in the town of Savina. The region is known for their tomatoes and the store for its fig chutney. We bought some of the chutney. (The chutney is very good.) It’s a typical tourist trap. No doubt they have an agreement with the bus operator to bring them a captive audience.

Our next stop was Victoria, the capital of Gozo. From Neolithic times the town was called Rabat but it was changed in 1887 to honor the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria. The main attractions there are the citadel which features the magnificent Cathedral of the Assumption. Entry into the citadel is free but we paid €4.00 per person (cash only) to see the church and the associated museum.

The church is a beauty. Based on the Latin cross design it was constructed in 1697 and it was dedicated just a few years later in 1716. All of the many works of art were throughly and clearly labeled. We only wish more churches adhered to this practice. One of the more celebrated features is the Trompe-l’œil painted dome. It is, in fact, rather flat but it has the appearance of being many stories high.

The museum was divided into several sections. One was on the church’s high ranking clergy, including a specially made chair for the Pope’s visit in 1990. Another section was the typical treasury which was laden with silver altar pieces and candlesticks. Their prized possession was a gilt-brass Medieval Pyx from 13th or 14th Century AD. The last section was a portrait gallery including paintings with religious themes, local church and elected officials.

There are a number of other things to see within the citadel. They are mostly minor and mainly intended to separate tourists from their money. After visiting the museum we walked around the perimeter walls of the citadel. It’s the highest point on the landscape for many miles. We could see most of the island from our vantage point.

Back on the bus we made a number of stops before coming back to the harbor. We stopped at a number of beaches that, even in November, seemed quite popular. Outside of one town, high on an isolated hill, we saw their version of Rio’s, “Christ the Redeemer”. It was visible from miles away. One of the beaches was Marsalforn – one of the many places where Saint Paul landed on his way from North Africa to Rome as a prisoner. We were told that there was nothing there to commemorate his stopover.

We had wanted to stop at a few other places but instead went back to the port. We wanted to make sure we wouldn’t miss the last ferry. We got there with 90 minutes to spare. One of the “must see” places there is The Church of the Madonna of Lourdes. It’s high up on a cliff overlooking the harbor and appears to be situated just like its namesake in Lourdes, France. There’s even a statue of Mary embedded into the mountain face. We climbed up there to see it. When we got there it was closed. A local woman told us that it was only open on weekends. We peered inside through a grating and snapped a few pictures. It’s a local, bright chapel built in the late 1800s.

Back at a cafe in the harbor we ordered a drink called Kinnie. It’s a local soda with a unique taste. It most resembles Aperol but contains no alcohol. It’s not sweet so it will quench your thirst. It’s exactly what we needed after our climb. By the time the ferry got back to Valletta the sun had been down for a while. We hung out at the waterfront gardens for a while and enjoyed the lights across the harbor before eating falafel for dinner at a Lebanese restaurant.

Saturday, November 19, 2022

We went back to the Upper Barrakka Gardens for our tour of the Lascaris War Rooms, named for a famous Knight of the 16th Century. This tour was in the same place as the H.Q. Tunnel Tour and used some of the same tunnels, but its rooms were even further below ground.

Part of the tour was about the coordination of the island’s defenses in World War II. We saw some new rooms but otherwise it wasn’t much different than what we’d seen previously. The other part of the tour centered on the planning and implementation of Operation Husky, the invasion of Sicily in July, 1943. The overarching plans for the invasion were agreed upon in Algeria but the details were worked out in Malta. It seems that Eisenhower himself spent many weeks in these rooms working with the generals to come up with a comprehensive plan. Apparently, there is a 1953 movie called, “The Malta Story“, that is a realistic depiction of the siege of Malta in World War II. We’re going to rent it tonight.

After lunch at a sandwich shop we went to the art museum. We didn’t expect much – and we were pleasantly surprised. The museum was on three levels. It started with mostly Maltese artists from the last 100 years. From there it went back to the late Medieval and early Renaissance periods with paintings depicting religious themes, and Grandmasters from the Order. There was a nice work by Caravaggio, a Reni, and an atypical painting from Rubens among them. The last bunch of works were paintings, drawings, and sculpture from the British period. There was a set of busts depicting (then) Prince Charles as a boy, and young versions of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip. Ironically, the only work of note that we knew about beforehand was a painting by Turner. We looked for it but never found it.

We had dinner at home. For dessert we ate some pastries we obtained in the supermarket. One was Imqaret, the date filled pastry which we’d had before. (Imqaret in Maltese is pronounced im-ar-et with the accent on the ar. The Q is silent.) The other was a traditional Maltese Honey Ring. They are only available during the Christmas Season. They are similar to a chewy chocolate brownie and are flavored with molasses, anise, cinnamon, and clove. They are quite good. Rather bizarrely, the ingredients don’t list honey at all!

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Wednesday, November 16, 2022

The day started with a trip to Saint Paul’s. A service was in progress so we decided to walk around the neighborhood a bit. We found Saint Paul’s Anglican Cathedral. It’s a small but very pretty church built by the dowager Queen Adelaide, wife of King William V, in 1839. Of note is the painting over the main altar which was done by Alfred Chalong, one of Queen Victoria’s official portrait painters.

Next we walked around the seaside until we came to Fort Saint Elmo. It’s one of the largest defensive structures that guards the Grand Harbor. It was originally constructed by the Knights in the 1550s and is best known for its role in the Great Siege of 1565 where the Knights with a force of 6,500 defeated 40,000 invading Ottoman Turks. We bought a combination ticket that allowed us access to the fort, the museum, the archeological museum, and the art museum for €25.00 per person. Credit cards are accepted.

Initially we strolled around the outside of the fort. There are magnificent views of the harbor and “The Three Towns” on the opposite shore. Informational signs were hung in the gun emplacements telling the story of the fort from the time of the Knights through to the present day. Since it was built, the fort has been an integral part of many battles throughout the history of the island. There was also a nice display of cannons from the centuries.

This outer part of the fort was built in later times. A gate led us to the original part of the fortress that had been constructed by the Knights. The first building we came to was the Chapel of Saint Anne. It already existed as far back as 1488 and was incorporated into the fort complex. Saint Anne was the patron saint of the order’s navy.

We followed a path that then took us through the fort into and out of seven different buildings that now house the museum. It starts in Malta’s pre-history but quickly moves to, and spends a lot of time on the many battles that ensued during the 1500 and 1600s. Throughout, three timelines were presented together that detailed the the history of the Knights, events in Malta, and happenings in other parts of the world.

The British occupation and World War II is also taken up in detail. Roosevelt and Churchill met in Malta to come up with a strategy before meeting Stalin in Yalta. Later Malta was admitted to Nato until they decided to pursue neutrality in 1971. George Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev met in Malta in 1989 as the Cold War came to an end and in 2004 Malta became part of the European Union.

For lunch we walked back into the business district and decided to sample some traditional dishes. I had broiled lampuki aka Dorado aka Mahi Mahi aka Dolphinfish. Deborah ordered pan fried rabbit. Our dishes came with a large bowl of vegetables roasted with fennel. The fish was fresh and flavorful. It is also traditionally served in pie form. The rabbit was really stewed, which is also the traditional treatment. Shockingly, it strongly resembled chicken 😊.

At 4:00 pm we went to the Upper Barrakka Gardens to witness the ceremonial firing of the cannons. They do this just about every day at noon and again at 4:00 pm. No shell is actually fired but the cannon makes an awfully loud sound. The gardens are just along the waterfront. Built in the 1500s as part of the harbor defenses they now feature trees, beautiful arches, magnificent views, and memorial plaques. It’s a great place to sit and have a coffee.

Before going home for the night we stopped into see the Church of Saint Francis of Assisi, which had not previously been open. It’s another small but elegantly decorated church from 1598. The paintings were all done by Mattia Preti, a well known Baroque artist who worked extensively in Malta.

Thursday, November 17, 2022

Another day, another museum. This time it was the archeological museum. The museum had a large display on the Megalithic Temples of Malta, prehistoric sites dating from around 3,600 BC – almost a thousand years older than the Great Pyramid of Giza. There are several and they are all UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

The temples were primarily large, multi-level funeral sites. Pottery, sculptures, and architectural elements were on display. Another floor had exhibits on the Phoenicians, who traveled to and traded with the island during the Bronze Age.

Recently underwater archeology has become active in the area. Ancient shipwrecks seem to be just about everywhere. Pottery from a recent find were on display.

The last room contained a large collection of coins. The first on display were Carthaginian from the 5th Century BC, followed by Greek, Roman, and Byzantine coins. There was a huge collection of coins that the Knights had minted extending from the mid 1500s until 1798. The last set were coins of the British Empire including many medals. It was an impressive display.

Nearby we took some pictures with “Blue”, the Velociraptor from Jurassic World, which was partly filmed in Malta and then headed off to get some lunch. Today’s menu was traditional street food. We got a “Woody Roll” and a “Pastizzi”. Woody Rolls are sausages infused with cheese that have been wrapped in a flaky dough. The Pastizzi has flaky dough normally filled with either peas or cheese. We got the cheese version. Both were absolutely delicious and together, with two sodas, cost €5.25. A cheap, filling and scrumptious meal.

One of the typical crafts here are items made out of sterling silver filagree. They are gorgeous. They make jewelry, figurines, plates, napkin holders, and all sorts of lovely items. They are fairly inexpensive too. Many of the shops also make versions that are covered in 24k gold. With my encouragement Deborah bought a pair of earrings. They may look flimsy but they are actually pretty rugged.

Back at the Upper Barrakka Gardens we bought tickets to another set of museums. This time it was for guided tours of The H.Q. Tunnels and Lascaris War Rooms. We started with the tunnels.

The tunnels had originally been build in the 1560s by the Knights. They were a place to shield their horses, store their gunpowder, and provide themselves with a protected way of getting from one part of their fortifications to another. It was easy to see the markings on the walls where they had been dug by hand centuries ago.

In 1940 the British, anticipating war with Italy, expanded the tunnel system. They weren’t able to complete the project before the bombs started falling. Their tunnels branched off from the original ones and went much deeper into the ground. They built barracks and several large rooms where the island’s defenses could be coordinated. The rooms had large maps and many telephones which relayed information on enemy ships and aircraft and deployed artillery, aircraft, and anti-aircraft batteries. It looked just like what we’d seen many times before in movies. Later, more and larger rooms were added. These were used to coordinate NATO forces during the Cold War. It was a great tour and a lot of fun. We’ll go back on another day to see the War Rooms.

Our first day in town we’d spotted a bunch of food stands near the Triton Fountain. It’s a great place to find traditional Maltese street foods. We were so enamored with our lunch that we went over there and bought a bunch of similar things for dinner. Our enthusiasm got the best of us. We sat on the edge of the fountain and ate most of what we bought before we even got home. One of the more interesting things we got was Imqaret: it’s date paste mixed with citrus that’s wedged between pieces of crispy, fried dough. Yum!

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Monday, November 14, 2022

We took the 10:30 am train from Syracuse to Pozzallo in order to catch the ferry to Malta. The Syracuse train station has an odd feature. It has two sets of tracks and both are numbered one through three. One set of tracks goes East and the other West. In our experience that’s rather unusual – especially since we were going South! The ticket office told us our train would be on track one West. With five minutes to go before our departure the train on track one was still completely quiescent. There was some activity over on track three so we investigated. That was our train. It was no big deal.

The trip took just 65 minutes. We took another taxi for the 1.6 mile route to the ferry terminal. It would have been nice to have stretched our legs but our luggage is just too damn heavy to walk that far.

We waited about ten minutes for the gate to open and then started the embarkation process. The ship was a beauty. She was large, clean, elegant, and almost brand spanking new. It was the latest ship in the fleet according the signage. Since we were just about the first ones on board we had our pick of seats. We walked up to the bow where there were rows of leather reclining seats. The first row had tables in front of them; we took one of those. The ship had floor to ceiling windows as far as you could see which gave a magnificent view of the harbor and the voyage ahead. We bought some sandwiches at the snack bar and actually enjoyed the two hour wait until the ship departed.

When the ship started moving large flat screens starting play an animated movie called Ferdinand from 2017. When we got closer to Malta we could see the outline of the three islands. As we approached the harbor I snapped a bunch of pictures. It was a little hazy and the sun was almost directly in front of us so they didn’t come out as well as I would have liked. It’s an incredibly picturesque city. I’m sure there will be better opportunities.

The boat arrived on time. After an hour and forty-five minute sail we were docked. We tried to contact our hosts to let them know we were on time but our phones were not getting any service. We were connected to GO Mobile but couldn’t connect to anything. I restarted my phone but it didn’t help. There was a guy outside the terminal shunting passengers to gypsy cabs. He wanted €20.00 for the trip. That seemed high. I tried to bargain with him. His response, “You can take the bus”. I grabbed the next taxi that appeared and we were off. He charged us €15.00.

We had coordinated our time of arrival. Our host was supposed to be waiting for us at the apartment. When we got there we knocked on the doors and windows but no one answered. Finally, I walked down the street and got public WiFi at a nearby cafe. We connected. He was late because of traffic. About 20 minutes later someone arrived and let us in. I was pretty ticked off at the time but calmed down when I saw how nice the apartment was.

We settled in and went looking for some dinner. It was already dark and the city’s lights were on. It was gorgeous. We checked out a bunch of restaurants. Prices were much higher than in Sicily. We finally chose a place where they make their own sauces and pastas and allowed you to pick and choose which you wanted. Ironically we both choose different pastas that were “finished” for the day. Deborah got the carbonara and I got the bolognese. Both were very good. Sometime during dinner we were hit with the irony that we’d come to Malta but were still eating Italian. The foods here are a broad mix of Maltese, Arab, French, Spanish, and English. We’re going to have fun with this.

After dinner we strolled around the town to get our bearings, saw some interesting things, and then went grocery shopping. Prices in the store were also much higher than Sicily and might be considered a little pricey.

Our brains are a little confused. Several times during the evening we addressed people in Italian. Since we’re in a foreign country we feel like we shouldn’t be speaking English but the official languages here are Maltese and English – and we certainly don’t speak Maltese. It’s going to take a few days to get readjusted.

Tuesday, November 15, 2022

Our first challenge of the day was to make coffee. This apartment only has a French Press. We’ve never used one of the those. Fortunately, there are videos online showing the basics of how to use them. Our first attempt came out fine albeit a little strong.

I can’t delay this any longer. It’s important to get this out there. You’ve probably read or seen “The Maltese Falcon” by Dashiell Hammett. The basic plot of the story is absolutely true! In 1530 Emperor Charles V, King of Spain and ruler of Sicily granted The Order of Saint John of Jerusalem (one of the organizations that came out of the famed Knights Templar) the rights to Tripoli, Gozo, and Malta. In return an annual tribute of one falcon was to be paid. Researchers have found vague references in the archives in Malta that imply that a golden, jewel encrusted bird may have been produced for this purpose. No one knows for sure. In any event it’s a great story and lots of fun to think about.

This morning we went on the free walking tour. We didn’t actually cover a lot of ground but we did hear a lot of interesting stories. The history of Malta is long and varied and quite fascinating. The island sits in the middle of the Mediterranean and is strategically placed between North Africa, the Middle East, Italy, Greece, and Turkey. In 1799 Malta asked the British for help overthrowing the French and in 1800 became a voluntary part of the British Empire as a protectorate. Malta gained its independence from Britain in 1964. Today they drive on the left side of the road and use British style electrical outlets.

The capital is referred to simply as, “The City”, or Belt in Maltese. It is called Valletta. It didn’t exist until the Knights came to Malta in 1530. The capital at that time was in the town of Mdina. The Knights built the city from scratch in just a few short years. It was heavily fortified to help protect against an expected invasion by the Arabs.

After the tour we sought out some lunch. Our guide had recommended a particular street with a bunch of cafes. We found a sandwich shop with some unusual choices. We got a chicken and fig with brie and a roast beef with cheese. The meats were freshly roasted and the breads were baked that day. They were absolutely delicious.

Next we went to the Post Office. As is our custom every time we visit a new country we buy a stamp. It’s an inexpensive souvenir that’s easy to cart around. We’re going to have a heck of a display at some point. Then we visited the first church that the Knights built in 1566.

The church is called Our Lady of Victory Church in honor of the Knight’s victory over the Turks. It’s a small but beautifully decorated church with barrel vaulted ceilings covered in frescos. We were only permitted to see the church from the back. For €4.00 each we could have walked around the Nave, and toured the Sacristy, and Crypt.

On our way to the our next church, Saint John’s Co-Cathedral, we happened upon a cafe with some interesting looking pastries. We ordered a piece of flourless chocolate cake. The cake was rich and chocolatey. It came with some butter icing on the side that was just fantastic. We asked if we could buy some to take home but they said they don’t sell it.

Saint John’s Co-Cathedral is the largest and most elegant church in Valletta. It was built by the Knights to honor Saint John the Baptist, the saint their order is named for. It is referred to as the “Co-Cathedral” because it is not the Archbishop’s home. Entry cost €15.00 per person, which includes a detailed audio guide. Credit cards are accepted.

The outside of the church is fairly plain. It was designed to be so in order to project the vow of poverty that the Knights are required to take. The inside is opulent, massively gilded, and decorated in the high Baroque style. The church is divided into chapels sponsored by each of the six Langues – groups of powerful Knights from different lands.

The floor of the church is a series of polychrome marble slabs underneath which hundreds of Knights are buried. Grandmasters are interred in the chapels with the first six resting in the crypt below. There are lovely paintings in all of the chapels but the real gems are the white marble sculptures. They are exquisitely executed.

Off to the side in the back of the church is the Oratory. There is a large work hanging over the altar. It was painted by Caravaggio in 1608 entitled the The Beheading of Saint John the Baptist. Off in another nearby room is another Caravaggio entitled Saint Jerome Writing. This painting was was originally commissioned for a private house but was subsequently donated to the church. Like Caravaggio himself, it has a very interesting history.

The short version of the story: The painter known as Caravaggio was born in Milan under the name Michelangelo Merisi. The family moved to the town of Caravaggio when he was just a lad to escape the plague. He initially trained in Milan but was forced to flee to Rome after quarreling with and wounding a police officer. In Rome he gained notoriety as a painter and as a hot tempered man. After killing a man in a brawl he escaped a death sentence by fleeing to Naples. The Grand Master of Malta learned of his troubles and invited him to the island where Caravaggio was given commissions and eventually was inducted as a Knight. He was sent to prison for mortally wounding a powerful Knight in a dispute. Instead of standing trial he escaped to Sicily causing him to be stripped of his Knighthood. He worked in Sicily for a while and then went back to Naples. Eventually he ventured back to Rome in the hopes of obtaining a pardon. He died along the way and was buried in Porto Ercole. A recent autopsy suggests that he died of an infection from wounds obtained in scuffles complicated by lead poising, which was common at the time for artists who mixed their own paints.

In 1984, Saint Jerome Writing was cut out of its frame and stolen from Saint John’s Co-Cathedral. Attempts were made to sell it but to no avail; it was too famous for anyone to touch. Eventually, it was offered back to the Cathedral. During a long and complicated negotiation a sting operation found and recovered it. It was taken to Rome to be restored before being placed back on display in the same Cathedral. PBS did a very interesting episode of Secrets of the Dead in 2021 which featured this event. It’s worth watching.

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Friday, November 11, 2022

We decided to take a little trip to the town of Noto. It took about 35 minutes to get there on the train. The old town is renown for its Baroque architecture and its Baroque churches.

The train left us off in the new part of town. We had to walk uphill for almost a mile to get to the heart of the old town. When we got there the Noto Cathedral was right in front of us. It had a large, Baroque facade. It looked very imposing because it was perched high up on top of a steep three tier staircase. For €10.00 we could have climbed the bell tower and toured the sacristy but we decided to just wander around the church.

Most of the walls of the church were just plain white and most of the decorations were relatively modern. It wasn’t what we were expecting. The frescos above the main altar and in the dome above were likely early 20th Century Art Nouveau. The chapels displayed older paintings with more traditional marble altars. Perhaps the most impressive pieces were the stations of the cross. The paintings were certainly 20th Century but rendered in the Renaissance style.

The town is replete with Baroque era churches. In total we visited five. They all had Baroque facades but the interiors were fairly plain. We had been expecting High Baroque. Still, they were fun to see with many great pieces of art on display.

The town is definitely setup to cater to the tourist trade. We’d never heard of Noto until a few days before but it is obviously a popular destination. Besides many churches the main street has quite a few restaurants and shops. Groups of them are tied together by large Baroque edifices. In fact, the entire old town has a distinctly Baroque character.

We looked around at a number of restaurants for lunch but the prices were a bit outrageous. I guess tourists make easy targets. We decided to eat at a salumeria that made several types of fresh bread and specialized in making salads and sandwiches. We figured it would be a good choice because we noticed a bunch of locals eating there.

Deborah had a Caprese sandwich and I had a Bresaola (made like prosciutto but with beef instead of pork). The sandwiches were dressed with rocket, cheese, and good olive oil. For our bread we asked for ciabatta. It turned out to be a great choice.

After lunch we intended to tour one or two of the city’s palaces. They were owned by wealthy families (some still are) and are also Baroque era. They are said to contain great art, interesting furnishings, and be great examples of the period. The problem was that by 1:30 pm the entire town literally closed for siesta. It was like being on a deserted island. The palaces were scheduled to reopen at 3:00 pm but even touring one of them would have had us getting back to Syracuse around 9:30 pm because trains between Noto and Syracuse run rather infrequently.

Instead, we decided to get dessert at cafe. I got gelato (Nutella and Lemon) and Deborah got casata cake. The Nutella was ok but the Lemon was unbelievably good. The casata cake was mostly marzipan – just the way Deborah likes it. We both washed it all down with some espresso.

We caught the 2:50 pm train back to Syracuse, picked up some groceries, picked up some cookies at our favorite bakery, and headed home for the evening. It was a fun little outing.

Saturday, November 12, 2022

This morning we went to Basilica of Saint Lucia ‘al Sepolcro’. It’s the church that’s supposed to have a Caravaggio and the place where Santa Lucia was buried. When we got there we found two buildings. The main building, Chiesa di Santa Lucia Extra Moenia, was buzzing with activity. There was a large number of nuns along with a large number of people in wheelchairs. We inferred that there was going to be a service for the injured.

We walked around the permitter of the church and located the Caravaggio above the main altar. As promised it was The Burial of Saint Lucy from 1608. Most Caravaggios are rather dark but the ones painted near the end of his life, like this one, are particularly so. Given the poor lighting in the church it was almost impossible to see any detail at all. We were a little disappointed.

Outside, down a flight of stairs, we found a small octoginal sanctuary built above the crypts. Under the main altar was a magnificent sculpture depicting Santa Lucia. Her body was placed in this church at the time of her martyrdom on December 13, 304 AD. When the Normans conquered Syracuse in 1039 AD the body was brought to Constantinople as homage to Empress Theodora. The Venetians discovered it during the fourth crusade and brought it back to Venice where it rests today in the Sanctuary of Saint Lucy

It’s widely known that Saint Paul traveled far and wide preaching the gospels and encouraging people to convert to Christianity. There are conflicting stories about his time in Syracuse. It is generally agreed that he was shipwrecked here for three days on a voyage from Malta to Rome. Some people have said that he preached at the Quarries near the ancient Roman and Greek Temples, some say he preached at the catacombs, and some say he preached at what is now known as The Church of Saint Paul the Apostle. History seems to agree that he was a prisoner during this voyage and it is unlikely that he was allowed to roam the city and preach. In any event we decided to pay a visit to the church that bears his name.

The church is located right near the Temple of Apollo. It’s a very nice, intimate Baroque church from the 17th Century that replaced a much older church. It features a lovely wooden statue of the saint and a Caravaggio-esqe painting over the main altar. The tympanum has an inscription that translates as, “He stayed in Syracuse for three days”.

After our visit to the church we wandered through the old Jewish District while trying to find a place for lunch. Syracuse is said to be home to the first Jewish community in Sicily dating back at least as far as 200 BC. Given that the city was a Spanish territory in the late 15th Century all of the Jews were expelled in 1492. The synagog was subsequently converted into The Church of Saint John the Baptist. The only evidence that this was once a thriving Jewish community can be found in the basement level of Palazzo Bianca where excavations have found the remains of a mikvah (a Jewish ritual bath) from the 6th Century AD.

We finally got around to trying Panelle. It’s a typical Sicilian food that probably came from the time of the Arab occupation. It’s ground chick peas that have been breaded and fried. It’s normally served on a sandwich along with potato croquets (also breaded and fried). Talk about carb overload. This place served them by themselves in a paper cone. They were a little on the heavy side but very tasty. As an aside, in Naples foods served in a paper cone were called “cuoppo”. Here in Sicily they are called “coppo”. It took great effort but we were able to make the transition 😎. Oddly, according to Google Translate, neither is a valid word.

We spent the afternoon trying to find a place to stay when we visit Jerusalem. It was a little difficult. Most places are on the small side, tend to be fairly expensive, and if you want to be near the old city you’re probably going to have to settle for a multi-floor walk up. The most popular area seems to be the Nahlaot district but we decided on a larger, more reasonably priced place just to the west near the central station. We’re booked for two months. It’s getting real!

Sunday, November 13, 2022

We suddenly came to the horrible realization that today is not only our last full day in Syracuse it’s also our last full day in Italy. That’s really sad. We will have been here for over two and half months and during that time we will have visited 24 towns. It’s going to be hard to say goodbye. We love it here. Unfortunately, because of the Schengen regulations, we can only stay for a maximum of 90 days during any 180 day period so it’s time to get out. I have a feeling we’ll be back.

Today was basically a rest day. We’re both pretty tired. The next leg of our trip will be nine days in Malta. We’re rapidly checking off places from our bucket list. By the time we get back to the United States sometime around June, 2024 our list should have very few entries left.

We went out one last time for lunch and got pastries for tomorrow’s breakfast. There’s a large cafe in the Piazza Archimedes that we’ve passed many times. Usually places in large squares are more expensive but we checked the menu and it seemed pretty reasonable. We shared a pizza Margherita and a lasagna. The pizza was very good and the lasagna was one of the best we’ve had.

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Wednesday, November 9, 2022

We started the day with a tour of the Cathedral of Syracuse aka The Cathedral of the Nativity of Holy Mary aka The Duomo. The original building on this site was the Temple of Athena. It was built by the Greeks during the 5th Century BC. The Cathedral was build in the 7th Century AD. From the outside it’s easy to see that the present building was constructed using the same footprint and on the existing foundation. We paid €2.00 per person to enter. Credit cards are accepted.

As expected the church is adorned with art and fixtures that span many centuries. The building still utilizes the huge doric columns from the Temple of Athena for support along all the walls. The floors are Baroque style inlaid marble. The roof is Gothic style wooden trusses. The Baptismal Font is a reused Greek marble urn from the 3rd Century BC. There is one large, beautifully decorated side chapel with a major relic of Saint Lucy (Santa Lucia), Baroque frescos, and a marble slab carved with a famous rendering of The Last Supper from 1763.

In the back there is a small room dedicated to Saint Lucy, a martyr who was born in and died in Syracuse around 304 AD; she is the patron saint of Syracuse. On display you will see her shoes and her dress along with other items pertaining to her.

Next we headed over to the Southern most tip of the island to see Castello Maniace. It was constructed around 1232 by Emperor Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor. The castle bears the name of a Byzantine general who captured the city from the Arabs in 1038 and who build the first castle there. Entry cost €5.00 per person. Credit cards are accepted.

Our tour started with a walk through a small museum. There was an interesting panel explaining how hand grenades came into being after gunpowder was invented in the 16th Century. It said that the grenades looked like pomegranates and so they named for them for the fruit. In Italian the fruit are called, “granata”.

The castle, really more of a fort, retains a lot of its original Gothic character with intricate marble casing around the doors and windows and high ceilings with large arches. There’s not too much to see. We walked around the entire perimeter where we could see the remnants of gun emplacements. Of course, the castle is surrounded by water on three sides and so there is a fantastic view everywhere you look. Inside the great hall deep in the interior there is a huge open space. Today it is being used to display works of modern sculpture.

After seeing the castle we walked over to the West side of the island and had lunch at a seaside cafe. This inspired us to order seafood. I got zuppa di cozze (soup with mussels) and Deborah got couscous alla pescatora (couscous with fish). The portions were huge, the fish was fresh, the sea breeze was delightful, and we enjoyed it immensely. It’s worth mentioning that couscous is a very popular dish in these parts. No doubt it was brought over by the Arabs many years ago.

While walking back to the apartment we found that Chiesa di Santa Lucia alla Badia, a church that had always been closed, was open. We went inside. The church is fairly plain inside with just a couple of colorful frescos on the ceiling. Sometime in 1608 Caravaggio, on his way back from Malta to Rome, stopped in Syracuse. He was commissioned to paint something based on the life of Santa Lucia. It appears that the painting in question hung in this church for a short period of time. Today that painting is said to be on display at The Church of Santa Lucia al Sepolcro here in Syracuse. We intend to check it out on another day.

Caravaggio led an eventful life. His story is an interesting one. We’ll go into it some more after we visit another one of his works, which has a fascinating story of its own, in Malta.

Before going home we stopped in at a gelato place that our host recommended (we asked him to recommend a gelato place and a pastry place). The gelato was good but nothing special. We walked by the pastry shop he recommended. There was a small selection and nothing really appealed. Fortunately, we found another bakery that had some amazing looking cookies in the window. We bought some for dessert after dinner. Some were almond / marzipan and others were lemon. They tasted even better than they looked.

Thursday, November 19, 2022

We visited The Galleria Regionale di Palazzo Bellomo. It’s a museum housed in a genuine Medieval palace that specializes in Medieval art sourced from the area. Entry was €8.00 per person. Credit cards are normally accepted but since the machine was down I paid in cash.

The collection included a large number of Byzantine paintings and triptychs. Most were in surprisingly good condition. We suspected that most had been restored relatively recently. There was also a nice display of Majolica, marble sarcophagi with high relief carvings, architectural components, sculptures, and illuminated music and scriptures. The palace was the perfect setting for a collection of this type.

Afterwards we had lunch in a cafe consisting of pasta with sausage and chicken cutlets. For dessert Deborah got hot chocolate. You don’t think that seems like dessert? You’ve never had European hot chocolate. It’s more like a very dark chocolate pudding. It’s very rich and very filling.

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Monday, November 7, 2022

A taxi picked us up at 7:00 am and by 8:00 am we were on a bus going to Syracuse. Once again we crossed through the interior of the island. This time we did see something interesting: the top of Mount Etna was completely covered in snow. It was quite a sight.

A woman named Rita met us at our apartment. She spoke very little English and, of course, we speak very little Italian. Somehow everyone managed to get their information across. The first order of business was lunch. There’s a nice outdoor market a few blocks from our place where a number of restaurants can be found. We had sandwiches. Mine was prosciutto, fresh mozzarella, sun-dried tomatoes, and olives. Deborah’s was fresh tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and basil. Both came on giant loaves of very fresh bread. Yum!

Our apartment is located on a small island called Ortigia. It is the heart of ancient Syracuse. After eating we decided to walk the perimeter and see the sights. There is a scenic walkway along the waterfront. This part of town is obviously a haven for summer / weekend activities. We saw a number of people on the beaches and in the water. According to Rita, the water is still a nice 23°C (73°F). We may try that on another day.

Having gotten up early this morning we were pretty tired. Once we completed our tour we hit a grocery and spent the rest of the night in the apartment. We tried to book a free walking tour but it’s no longer peak season and they only have them on Mondays. We did learn one interesting thing on our walk: Archimedes, a Greek who lived 200 years BC, is the first person credited with coming up with a good approximation of the transcendental Pi – and he lived in Syracuse.

Tuesday, November 8, 2022

We got an early start because we had a big day planned. First we walked about 1.5 miles to the Archeological Park. It’s a very large complex on the other side of the new part of the city. There are two main attractions and a number of smaller ones. The big ones are the Roman Amphitheater from the 1st Century AD and the Greek Amphitheater from the 5th Century BC. Each one could seat over 2,000 people. In both cases the theater was plainly visible but not in usable condition nor were we permitted to walk through them.

A large part of the park was actually the ancient quarry that sourced much of the stone for the complex. There were several man-made caves that we walked through – one of which was a source of saltpeter.

We were really interested in seeing the last item on the agenda. It was the Tomb of Archimedes. We assumed that there would be a grand monument. We had to walk up and down several large hills to get there and when we arrived we saw a field of debris. It was all ruins. A sign said that this was a Roman-age tomb and that it had been erroneously associated with Archimedes. What a disappointment.

We decided to lunch at the park’s cafe. We both got a pizza-like thing that was filled with spinach and cheese. It was covered in oregano and some other spices and was surprisingly delicious. That prompted us to try their desserts. We got a piece of almond pie and some almond cookies. The pie wasn’t much but the cookies were absolutely amazing.

Next we walked another half mile to the Archeological Museum. For €18.00 a piece we had purchased a combination ticket that would allow us to see both the museum and the Archeological Park. Credit cards are accepted.

The museum is centered on findings in and near Syracuse for the most part. It starts off with some Neolithic displays and moves on to the Stone Age and then the Bronze Age. We learned that Sicily once had a vast array of animals including elephants and hippopotamuses. We really didn’t spent too much time in these rooms.

There was a lot of information and artifacts about the Greek civilizations. It was almost like being in Greece. There was pottery, statues, bronzes, and pieces from temples. Many of the artifacts came from burial sites. This was the heart of the museum. After that there was some token information about the Roman and Medieval civilizations.

The museum’s prize possession seems to be a white marble sarcophagus. It was created in Syracuse in the 4th Century AD. It is elaborately carved in high relief with scenes from the old and new testaments.

Click here to see the full post on the web with pictures.

Friday, November 4, 2022

Our day started with a trip to the Royal Palace, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In 1072 the Normans built a castle on this site. Six years later Roger II, the same king who built Palermo’s Cathedral, added the Palatine Chapel. For centuries the palace was the seat of power and private residence to the rulers of Sicily. It’s actually the oldest royal residence in Europe. Since 1946 the palace has been the home of the Sicilian Regional Assembly. Entry costs €19.00 per person. Credit cards are accepted.

The entire palace is in the Gothic style with high vaulted ceilings. The tour starts in the courtyard. From there you can see multiple floors supported by tall columns and characteristic arches. We climbed up one flight of stairs to get to the famed Palatine Chapel. It’s an intimate church contained within the palace. The entryway to the chapel is decorated with large divided frescos depicting secular and non-secular stories.

Entering the the chapel is a breathtaking experience. The interior is decorated in the Eastern Orthodox / Byzantine style and everything is trimmed in highly reflective genuine gold. The walls above the arches tell stories from the Old Testament. The exterior walls show stories from the New Testament. It was relatively easy to figure things out because most everything was labeled in Latin and/or Greek. We spent a lot of time figuring out the stories and identifying the saints. We both learned how to read some Greek when we were in Greece in 2018/19 but thankfully Deborah retained most of her knowledge.

After leaving the chapel we wended our way through the rest of the public rooms in the palace. The original stone walls were originally covered with frescos and paintings but now most were just plain stone. Fortunately, a few rooms were preserved with their original Byzantine decorations. Over the years subsequent owners have redecorated many of the rooms. Styles varied from Neoclassical, Eastern (Asian), and Rococo.

The tour concluded in the palace gardens. There was an array of plantings from all around the world. We would imagine that there would be some floral arrangements in season.

Next we headed to another UNESCO site: San Giovanni degli Eremiti. It was just a few blocks away. A church and a monastery existed there since at least the 6th Century AD. The site was razed by Saracens and may have been converted to a Mosque. In any event the building shows distinct Arab influences. When the Normans conquered the area King Roger II had the site restored and gave it to Benedictine Monks.

Today the church has lost all of its previous luster. The building consists of a vaulted entryway and a small church. We found small remnants of frescos on one wall. Outside there is a lovely cloister with a double colonnade made of marble with Corinthian capitals. On the other side of the cloister there was a small monastery. The two room building is now a museum containing a variety of nonsecular relics.

When we took the free tour on Tuesday our guide had recommended a place where she said we could get the best arancina in town. We went there for lunch today. Unlike most places our selections were cooked to order. They arrived hot and very crispy. The rice had been cooked with chicken stock and there was ample filling in the middle. These really were the best ones we’ve had.

Fortuitously our favorite granita place was next door. The clerk remembered us from our previous visits and made sure to recommend the large size. It was very amusing. We had intended to visit the Capuchin Catacombs after lunch but learned only then that they closed at 12:30 pm and didn’t reopen again until 3:00 pm. We didn’t want to kill that much time so we went back to the apartment for the day by way of the sweet shop at Chiesa di Santa Caterina d’Alessandria. We got some cookies and several cream filled pastries. Those nuns seem to have our number.

Saturday, November 5, 2022

Our destination was the Capuchin Catacombs. They are reputed to be different from other catacombs – even other Capuchin ones. There is a church associated with the complex called Santa Maria della Pace. It’s a lovely little church that has many original details from the early 1700s. The large altar is carved from a dark wood with spiral cut columns. There are many large funerary monuments carved from huge blocks of marble and the paintings all appear to be early Baroque.

On the other side of the catacombs there is a large cemetery with a large number of family plots, elaborate markers, and mausoleums. The cemetery is intimately associated with the catacombs. The catacombs/monastery sit in the middle. We paid €3.00 per person to enter. Cash only.

In 1597 the monks outgrew their cemetery. They decided to utilize the ancient caves under the church and excavated through a hole behind the main altar. They intended to move the bodies from the old cemetery to the new catacombs. Upon exhumation they noticed that many of their brethren had naturally mummified, were incredibly well preserved, and were completely identifiable. The Capuchins believed that this was an act of God and so they decided to display the bodies and propped them up in niches along the walls.

The catacombs were originally intended just for the monks as but word of their remarkable ability to preserve bodies spread more and more people wanted to be buried there. Often rich people requested to be displayed with particular clothes or to have their clothes periodically changed. As long as the families of the deceased continue to support the monks the dead were maintained in a prominent place. Once donations ceased they were often moved to boxes or shelves to make room for other rich patrons.

Entry to the catacombs is down just one flight of stairs. What you are faced with can easily be described as creepy. Pinned up in vertical niches along the walls are dead bodies fully dressed, often in fancy clothing. There are several long tunnels that go on and on. There’s a section for men, women, children, families, and monks. There’s also quite a few bodies lying flat in horizontal niches or in wooden boxes. Not all are perfectly preserved but in the vast majority it is possible to see features like hair, facial skin, eyelashes, and nails. It’s quite a sight. Photography is not permitted but I managed to capture a couple of shots when no one was around.

Afterwards, on our way back to the apartment to rest up before tonight’s concert we were on the lookout for an ATM. There are many in the old town area where the tourists tend to congregate but they have outrageous fees. My bank will refund any normal ATM fees but these banks were trying to charge some sort of conversion fee that amounted to about 15%. My bank won’t return fees that only an idiot would pay, AKA graft and corruption! Since ancient times catacombs were always located outside of the city and consequently we were now in the new part of town. We tried several ATMs that still wanted to charge about 5% but we held out until we finally found one that didn’t change anything at all – not even a typical ATM fee. Caveat emptor!

Several days ago we purchased tickets for a concert tonight. The concert was held at the Teatro Politeama Garibaldi. Like Teatro Massimo it was constructed shortly after the reunification of Italy. The building is in the Neo-classical style. There are large Pompeian style frescos around the proscenium and around the main dome. Above the proscenium is a colonnade that is flanked by Roman style statues. Sadly, the decorations have deteriorated and the inside of the dome is almost completely bare. The theater is in need of some serious restoration work.

The theater was originally called Teatro Municipal Politeama but when Garibaldi died in 1882 it was renamed in his honor. Since 2001 it has been the home of the Orchestra Sinfonica Siciliana, who were performing in tonight’s concert. It was an all Brahms affair. The program included the Double Concerto for Violin and Cello and the Second Symphony.

The Double Concerto was first. The soloists did a fairly good job but it was clear that their background was in chamber music and not as virtuoso soloists. The duo played an unaccompanied encore. It was the Passacaglia for Violin and Viola by Bach/Halvorsen.

The orchestra was clearly more familiar with the Symphony. They played with much more spirit and abandon. Kudos to the viola section and the principle french horn for holding up their end. There were some messy spots but most of that could be blamed on the inadequacy of the conductor.

All in all it was a fun evening of good music in a beautiful hall. We would definitely have preferred to see something in the Teatro Massimo but the theater was dark the entire time we were here.

Sunday, November 6, 2022

Today is our last full day in Palermo. During our stay we had considered traveling outside the city to see some other notable sights. We could have taken a tour to see Temple Segesta, an Ancient Greek Temple in excellent condition that has never been damaged by earthquakes. Those tours usually include Erice, a beautiful Medieval town, and the salt flats. These places are not accessible by public transportation. We could have gone hiking on Mount Pellegrino or gone to nearby Monreale to see the magnificent Medieval church there. Sadly, we just didn’t have the time and didn’t want to kill ourselves by overdoing. We’ll have some things to do the next time we’re in the area.

In the morning we went to the Archeological Museum but just before the museum is a lovely Baroque church. We’d visited before but as we approached we heard the sound of the organ. We sat in the pews for a few minutes and listened. We left just as the service was starting.

We’d seen some negative comments about the Archeological Museum here but we’d say they were completely unjustified. It is a little on the small side but it has some fantastic artifacts and some incredibly interesting information. The museum is almost entirely focused on ancient populations that were in Sicily including the Greeks, Carthaginians, Arabs, and Romans. To get the most out of the experience you have to read a lot but we didn’t mind. A great deal of the museum was dedicated to the Greek civilization and the temples from Selinunte, a city in the Southwest corner of the island. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the beautiful fountain in the entry way that is replete with a bunch of large turtles.

For lunch we tried some genuine Sicilian pizza. I don’t care for the stuff we get in the States because the crust is just too thick and dense. Here the crust is more like risen bread. It makes all the difference. It was really good.

Considering it was our last day we made one last trip to the nuns for pastries. We found a couple of new things to try. We may have gone a bit overboard but nothing we’ve had there has ever disappointed.