Sicily

Teatro Massimo

Located on the Piazza Verdi in Palermo, Sicily, Teatro Massimo opened in 1897.  It is the largest opera house in Italy and is one of Europe’s biggest.  The opera house was designed by the Italian architect Giovan Battista Filippo Basile, who was inspired by ancient and classical Sicilian architecture.  Basile was well known in Sicily for his previous restorations and new design projects, including garden and villa works in the city of Palermo.  Construction started in January 1874, but was stopped for eight years, from 1882 until 1890, until finally being completed in 1897.  It was the fourth largest opera house in Europe at the time.   Teatro Massimo was inaugurated with a performance of Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi’s Falstaff conducted by Leopoldo Mugnone.  A bust of Giuseppe Verdi sits atop a pedestal outside the theater.

Piazza Vigliena

Piazza Vigliena, also known as Quattro Canti is a Baroque square in Palermo.  The site is the intersection of two major streets with a large building on each corner facing the center.  The four sides of the piazza are dedicated to the four seasons, four Spanish rulers of Sicily, and four female patron saints of Palermo.  Statues of the kings are positioned on the second floor, and the saints are on the top level.

Piazza Pretoria

Built in fourteenth century and renovated in nineteenth century, Piazza Pretoria in the city center of Palermo, features the Fontana Pretoria.  The fountain was installed in 1573 and is comprised of sixteen nude statues of nymphs, humans, mermaids and satyrs.

Cattedrale Di Palermo

The Palermo Cathedral (Cattedrale di Palermo) was erected in 1185.  This magnificent cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Palermo has a long history of additions, alterations and restorations, the last of which occurred in the 18th century.  The upper orders of the corner towers were built between the 14th and the 15th centuries.

Around Palermo

Various street scenes and buildings in the city of Palermo.

Agrigento

Akragas, now Agrigento, was a major city during the golden age of Ancient Greece. Founded around 582-580 BC by Greek colonists from Gela in eastern Sicily, it covers a large area and is loaded with archaeological sites, many of which are still unexcavated.  The famous Valle dei Templi (“Valley of the Temples”) is just outside the city of Agrigento.

Cefalù

About 70 km east of Palermo, Cefalù is located on the coast of The Tyrrhenian Sea .  Cefalù is a popular tourist town and home to several historic churches, including the Cathedral of Cefalù.  The Cathedral was constructed between 1131 and 1240 in the Norman architectural style.  The town is also well known for the famous medieval wash-house.

Sicilian Beaches

The island of Sicily has no shortage of stunning beaches.  The Mediterranean waters are warm year-round and the most popular beaches are packed with people, even outside of the summer months.  There is, however, a seemingly endless number of more secluded beaches with fewer visitors.   This photo collection has pictures from two, more remote, clothing optional beaches.  Capo Bianco beach, near Eraclea Minoa, is about 37 km north-west of Agrigento, on the coast of the Strait of Sicily.  Some of the beaches around Capo Gallo, within and near the Capo Gallo Nature Reserve (Riserva Naturale Orientata Di Capo Gallo) are rocky while others are sandy.  Capo Gallo is near Sicily’s capital city of Palermermo.  The beaches of Capo Gallo, on the Tyrrhenian Sea (part of the Mediterranean Sea)  all have clear, warm water.  The clothing optional area in the nature reserve provides an excellent relaxing experience for naturists.