Sicily is one of several autonomous region within Italy with its own Parliament (located in Palermo) and control over most affairs except for the Military and Foreign Affairs. Over the centuries the island was an independent crown before being controlled by many different powers including Arabs, Normans, Aragon and Spain. In 1816 the Kingdom of the Two Sicillies was formed joining Sicily with the southern part of the Italian peninsula which lasted until the 1860s when all of Italy was united by Giuseppe Garibaldi and the island was granted its special status within the country.
This has given the island a rich history and culture drawn from many influences which shows up in many areas including food and architecture. When the Normans swept thru the island pushing out the Arabs they worked hard at integrating the existing population into the new power along with making Christianity the dominant religion. This meant of course tearing down mosques and building churches. They asked the local architects to help design and build the churches, these architects having no idea what a church looked like build churches that looked like mosques giving Palermo unique looking churches rich in Arab influences called Arab-Norman architecture. Look for this in the pictures below. UNESCO recently granted these buildings world heritage status.
We are lucky to have any of these buildings at all, Palermo was heavily bombed during World War 2 this all could have been lost. The city was rebuilt and later expanded to meet the needs of a growing population. The difference between the old and new sections is very noticeable in the streets, the old areas retaining the twisted tight road layout which are no fun to drive and the newer areas having straighter wider roads which are also no fun to drive due to the large amount of traffic and a chaotic driving style. The older sections of Palermo became run down for a while as the population moved to the newer sections, recently that trend has reversed, the younger generations are moving back in and gentrification is taking hold.
We had a great local guide who took us on a walking tour of the city showing us Ballarò Street Market, Palazzo dei Normanni (home of the Sicilian Parlament) and its Palatine Chapel, Palermo Cathedral and San Giovanni degli Eremiti (St. John of the Hermits) to name a few. What was funny for me was these places were all very close to our hotel but when I drove into the city I was concentrating so much on traffic I missed it all. After this busy morning she drove us out to Monreale to see its massive Cathedral. Monreale was a royal hunting ground for the Norman Kings, King William II (aka William the Good) came there frequently and had a dream that the Virgin Mary asking him to build her a church with the treasure stolen by his Father, William I (aka William the Bad). Being King has its privileges and Monereale Cathedral was built. The tour was very informative and fascinating.
As you may have guessed this was a busy and exhausting day but we were not done yet. In the evening was the highlight of the Festa di santa Rosalia, dedicated to Saint Rosalia. Rosalia was born of noble blood but gave it all up to live in a cave (shown to her by angels) and dedicated herself to God. In 1624 (500 years after Rosalia died) Palermo was hit badly by the plague and Rosalia appeared to a hunter who had lost his wife and daughter to the outbreak and told him where to find her remains and if the citizens gave her a procession thru Palermo she would get rid of the plague. This was done and the plague disappeared. Saint Rosalia of course became the patron saint of the city and a celebration and procession has been held ever since and tonight we saw the deep dedication the citizens have to her. A very moving thing to witness.
