Saturday, April 8, 2023
Catania, Sicily is not a pretty port, because it is very industrial. Looking out from the bow of our ship, however, we saw a spectacular view of Mt. Etna. How magnificent! Europe’s tallest active volcano, Mt. Etna has wreaked havoc on the island through the ages. In 1669, a catastrophic eruption swamped the city with molten lava. In 1928, Mt. Etna erupted the worst it had since 1669, with lava reaching the lower flanks of the volcano within a short period after the onset of the eruption.
Our original plan was to walk the mile or so from the port to La Piazza del Duomo (Cathedral Square). However, before we reached the port gate to the city, we saw a hop-on-hop-off bus for only 15 Euros each, so we decided to try that. It was open air and the weather was quite cold.
The bus took us on a very long drive out of the city and up the rugged coastline toward the town of Savoca. The buildings throughout our drive had great amounts of graffiti. Many condos, homes, hotels and other buildings were very old or in need of painting and repair. Even most of the pricier beach front homes needed some TLC. We saw quite a bit of litter as well.
Most structures seemed to be stucco, and some were stucco over black volcanic rock. We realize that part of the reason so many structures seemed to be in ill repair is that Catania was battered with storms on October 26, 2021, that flooded the streets and overwhelmed the city. Also, I was wondering why many of the historic buildings are blackened. After a little research, I discovered that the buildings have turned black from the soot and ashes of the volcano. In fact, the city is nicknamed “The Black City.”
Additionally, Sicily has Italy's highest share of people living at risk of poverty. The island is actually referred to as “Italy’s problem child.” The roads, full of potholes, are in poor condition, making for a bumpy ride, there are frequent speed bumps, and the traffic patterns don’t seem to make any sense.
Many of the historic buildings are crumbling and not very well preserved, which is a stark contrast to Malta. However, we could see the beginnings of work on some ruins and ancient buildings. Both Malta’s limestone structures and Petra’s buildings and caves carved from sandstone seem to last much better through the centuries.
Along the drive, we saw huge cactus plants, some orange trees with ripe fruit, and many flowering trees and wildflowers. The area is usually very arid and rocky, so what grass we did see was scruffy, or weeds grew instead. The blooming wisteria vines everywhere were lovely.
The best part of the drive along the coast was an amazing fort on a high formidable, rugged black rock base towering over the beach, waves crashing at its base.
Unfortunately, none of us could get a good photo of it. The driver turned, and instead of taking us all the way to Savoca (a mountaintop village famous for the catacombs of the Capuchin monastery featured in the The Godfather movies), he wove the bus around the narrow streets to head back to Catania.
We consulted the map and realized that the last stop would be where we wanted to go, La Piazza del Duomo. We passed by the large Giardina Bellini (Gardens), where many locals were walking and playing. After that, we took a turn around the Anfiteatro Romano. This was fantastic! We could look down below the city streets and see the protected and fenced in remains of the old Roman theater. This was the most exciting part of the drive for us.
Not long afterward, the driver told us that we had reached our last stop before the cruise ship, and to leave the bus. A short walk past shops and churches led us straight to La Piazza del Duomo. The sidewalks and streets were packed with people. Scooters sped through the crowds, weaving in and out. Catania is the only place we have been where a man was singing beautiful opera on the street.
Before entering the Piazza itself, we stopped at a sidewalk cafe. Cliff had a huge local beer and the Catania specialty, Pasta all Norma, which is made with penne, tomato sauce, and eggplant, topped with grated salty ricotta cheese. He cleaned his plate! Joan had red wine and I had white, and both glasses were enormous. We both ordered spaghetti with Ragu Bolognese meat sauce. It was wonderful.
We walked around La Piazza del Duomo and admired the beautiful structures. We saw the lovely Catania Cathedral, dedicated to St. Agatha, a Norman Cathedral from the late 11th century.
In the center of the square was La Elephant Fountain (Liotru), made of lava stone. On top of the elephant is a high Egyptian obelisk with ancient hieroglyphs, brought from Egypt. The elephant is the animal symbol for Catania.
We also saw the Amenano Fountain, made of Carrera marble in the late 19th century.
Other close by sights include:
Palazzo dei Chierici (16th century, rebuilt in 18th century after an earthquake)
San Placido Church (15th century, rebuilt in 18th)
The Cappella Bonajuto or Salvaterrello (Byzantine, between 6th and 9th centuries)
Teatro Massimo Bellini Opera House (on Via Giuseppe Perrotta)
Monument of Vincenzo Bellini (1882 white marble)
We crossed under stone archways, above which was an old road, into a park where there was an arts and crafts fair, and then back to the square. From there, we found the road that led back to the ship.
Sicily wasn't our favorite stop on our World Cruise, but it was interesting, so we are glad we did get to see it. If your cruise ship stops there, we recommend that you walk straight to Cathedral Square (La Piazza del Duomo), enjoy the historic sites, and have a wonderful meal. However, if you are a Godfather fan, you might enjoy one of the tours focused on the Town of Savoca.
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