Ciao, people of HIVE!
Let's continue with the report of my trip to Sicily. Today, in particular, I want to tell you about the days I spent in Palermo, the capital of the island.
Since I generally prefer landscape photography, and given that some photos from my 2018 trip were lost, I've decided to approach this article a little differently than usual. Today, I’ll list the 6 things I loved about Palermo. I'm also trying this as an experiment — let's see if you like it.
The Endless Cultural Heritage
Given its central position, Sicily has often been contested by the great powers of the Mediterranean. As a result, Palermo, the capital since Arab times, was a cosmopolitan city in the truest sense of the word, especially during the Middle Ages. Before the discovery of America and maritime routes to India, the Mediterranean was a key area for global trade, with exchanges passing from north to south and from west to east, often mediated by the Arabs and the Silk Road.
Phoenicians and Carthaginians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Normans, Spaniards: these are just a few of the peoples who have passed through the island, always leaving a legacy, and it’s something you can perceive in every place of Sicily.
During my walks, I often stopped to admire the details. In just a few meters, you can find buildings from different eras and opposite styles. Despite this, time has allowed all these legacies to blend together, giving us a unique heritage: domes and battlements in an Arabesque style, Byzantine façades, Moorish arches, bell towers reminiscent of medieval France and gardens that smell of Africa.
The Cathedral
I found it absolutely stunning. Construction began in 1185, and it’s a perfect example of architecture that blends Norman and Arab influences. For this reason, it is also considered a UNESCO World Heritage site, along with other Arab-Norman sites in Palermo.
The current version of the cathedral was built after the Norman conquest to celebrate the return to Christianity, but the church had already existed for several centuries. It had also been a mosque during the Arab period, and even earlier, it was an Orthodox church during the Byzantine era. Later periods, such as the Sicilian Renaissance and Baroque, also left their marks, but I won’t bore you with the details — even because I’m hardly an expert on the subject.
The tomb of the Norman Empress Constance, the last queen of the Altavilla dynasty.
There are so many areas to explore in this cathedral, but I particularly enjoyed the visit to the roof. It was a great way to get a close-up view of the bell towers and see the entire city from above.
The Pretoria Fountain
This fountain has a very particular story. It was created in 1554 for the private garden of a nobleman from Florence, who, after thirty years, decided to sell it to pay off personal debts. It was then purchased by the Senate of Palermo, who placed it in the square in front of the Palazzo Pretorio, which is where it gets its name. To be transported to Sicily by ship, it was, of course, disassembled into 644 pieces.
An interesting fact: the citizens of Palermo deeply disliked the fountain, despite its beauty. During the 18th and 19th centuries, it was seen as a symbol of the corruption of the island's government (which, despite foreign control, still maintained a certain level of independence). Moreover, the locals didn't like that the statues were nude, and they disagreed with its purchase because, in addition to the high price, a lot of money was needed to maintain it. For these reasons, it was nicknamed la fontana della vergogna, "the Fountain of Shame".
Over time, however, it has been re-evaluated, even by the locals. Personally, I found it magnificent.
Politeama Theatre
At the time of this trip, I often went to the theater because my girlfriend at the time was a talented actress, and she had passed on her passion to me. So, during my visit to Palermo, I visited the Politeama Theatre with a deep emotional connection.
The theater, located in the heart of the city, was built after the unification of Italy and was inaugurated in 1874.
A few years later, in 1882, Giuseppe Garibaldi died and the theatre was named after him - Teatro Politeama Garibaldi.
The Popular Culture
Sicilian tradition and popular culture are truly unique and recognizable, even within the context of Italy. There are many differences between Sicily and the other Italian regions, in countless aspects, from the social to the linguistic, from cuisine to art.
One particularly unique aspect is the Opera dei Pupi (Opera of the Puppets), the traditional puppet theater.
The Opera dei Pupi originated in the 18th century as a popular art form and perfectly embodies the historical and cultural memory of Sicily.
The puppets are used to stage performances that tell medieval stories, sometimes inspired by epic chivalric poems, tales of King Arthur, or the great tragedies of authors like William Shakespeare. Other times, the stories are directly inspired by Sicilian history, particularly the Norman kings who conquered the island in the Middle Ages.
What sets the pupi apart from regular puppets is that, through a more advanced technical system, they can move more quickly and fluidly, allowing even duel and battle scenes to be depicted in a precise and captivating way.
Because of its uniqueness, this art form was declared by UNESCO a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2001.
Street food in Palermo is extraordinary, hearty and very affordable. The most well-known and loved dish is the arancino (little orange), a ball of rice coated in breadcrumbs and fried, typically filled with ragù, peas, and caciocavallo cheese, or with diced cooked ham and mozzarella.
This dish could trace its roots back to the island's Arab tradition. A famous 1226 Arab cookbook, in fact, contains the recipe for Nāranjīya, a meatball made with lamb, dipped in beaten egg, and fried to resemble an orange, quite similar to the arancino.
Moreover, the arancino is also called arancina in some parts of the island, and over time, a fun rivalry has developed between those who defend the masculine version and those who support the feminine one, depending on the province. If you ever visit Sicily and want to try this dish, never ask for an arancino in Palermo, and never ask for an arancina in Catania... you’ll upset people! 😁
Falcone e Borsellino
It’s difficult to talk about the Sicilian mafia in just a few words, especially in a blog mostly read by foreigners who may not be familiar with the Italian context. That’s not my intention here, at the end of this long article.
However, allow me to pay tribute and keep alive the memory of two of the greatest Italians who ever lived. Two judges, two honorable men, educated, intellectuals, who could have had long lives, wealthy and surrounded by the people they loved.
Instead, even in the face of death threats, creeping cowardice and the indifference of institutions, they chose to do their duty. They knew very well how it would end, but they decided to face danger with their backs straight, as true men, with the goal of pursuing justice and the hope of living in a better Italy and a better world.
For this reason, they lost their lives in 1992, along with the guards who courageously accepted the task of protecting them.
If you're interested, seek out their story online, read and listen to the interviews they gave. Look into their eyes, their gestures, the tension in their movements. You will witness the mafia in its most subtle and brutal form, and you will understand what it truly is.
As for me, I prefer to describe it with the words of another great Sicilian, also killed for justice: "Mafia is a mountain of shit".
The Albero di Falcone (Tree of Falcone) is a project that combines the fight against the mafia with environmental education for the future generations.
Which of these things did you prefer?
Did you like this post?
Feel free to share your experience, or any similar one, or an emotion that my article has stirred in your heart.
For now, as always, thank you for your time, your attention and your support!
See you soon on the road,
Alessandro
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Amazing 😎
I really like your post,you've spotted some of the best sights, nice work.
Thank you so much, I did my best :)
Bravo😉
Grazie, amico ✌️🤠
😉
So nice to see that you share beautiful Italian places 😍
Haha, thank you 😊
Thanks for this guide! I haven’t been there yet, but all the people that have visited that land, share their experience as a high recommendation!
I love the fact that you said "yet"... I consider it a sign of ambition 😁
Thanks a lot for stepping-by and leaving a comment.
See you soon ✌️🤠
Travel Digest #2454.
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Hiya, @glecerioberto here, just swinging by to let you know that this post made it into our Honorable Mentions in Your post has been manually curated by the @worldmappin team. If you like what we're doing, please drop by to check out all the rest of today's great posts and consider supporting other authors like yourself and us so we can keep the project going!That's really amazing, thank you so much ❤️
May I ask you a question?
I noticed that my last two posts didn't manage to reach a normal number of visualizations. They recovered a bit just after you included them in the Travel Digest. I would like to understand if it's a coincidence or there is something that I'm doing wrong - just a question to be able to solve the problem, in case you effectively have an answer for this.
In any case, thank you so much in advance! ✌️🤠
Hi @alecaltab! This is @ninaeatshere. It is well deserved! Keep up the good work! 😀
When you say “normal number of visualizations” what do you mean, upvotes? or specifically the views of your post?
It is quite difficult to establish as an objective criteria a “normal” amount within an ecosystem as dynamic as Hive. In any case, it is important to understand that there are many things to take into account in order to achieve visibility.
The easiest to check, if we are not breaking any communities' rules, is the interaction and engagement with the community. Consciously interacting with other users, supporting their posts with valuable comments is important, because of the retribution this can have, but it is something that is neither immediate nor anyone's obligation, it is a job that requires constancy and dedication for others to reciprocate.
Another important thing is the commitment we can have with Hive and this is seen in our HP. There are some projects that do not vote users with little amount of HP if they already have some time on the platform, everyone has the right to establish the way they want to support or not to support users. So it would be advisable to work on increasing that HP, through the rewards you get with your posts. But hey! this is just a suggestion.
Then there is the luck factor or coincidence as you say, our Block Chain is based on a technology that is not economically stable or perfect, as nothing in the world is, and this does not allow anyone to guarantee votes or profits. Maybe surfing different types of content can help.
I hope this can help you and if there is anything else we can assist you with, do not hesitate to contact our team, as you have done now or through Discord, where we are open to the queries of all travelers.
Cheers!
Hey @ninaeatshere! Thank you so much for your answer 😊
In my two previous posts, I just noticed a sudden decrease of upvotes, in a proportion that made me suppose that maybe I was breaking some rule without noticing and this was making the algorithm penalize my contents, making them less visible. This is what can generally happen in other platforms.
I was asking myself if this could happen even here.
Today I wrote another article and tried to post it a bit earlier, and it seems it is going quite normal, as it was in the past. So, maybe it was really a coincidence?
I tried to ask this question directly to you because I thought it was an interesting opportunity to learn something new or find confirmation, or food for thoughts even in case someone else has the same doubt I have.
I will post another article this week, we will see how it goes.
Thank you so much again for your dedication, your kindness and your time.
See you soon ✌️🤠
Ok, likes=upvotes!
But no, Hive is a decentralized network so no algorithms or time frames around here. The number of upvotes varies depending on the people and projects that vote for you, because there are "curation trails", it's a way to allow someone to vote for you in addition to manual curation, and if many people follow someone who votes for you, you can have many votes coming from that trail although that doesn't mean that those votes have much or little value.
So sometimes the number can be very significant, but sometimes it's just a number.
I would recommend you not to focus too much on that, but rather on creating quality, original and heartfelt content. Enjoy the experience and do it for you, more than for the rewards, they will come on their own if the content is real.
-Nina
I agree, and this is what I try to do. I'm a journalist and a writer even outside of HIVE, so I would never publish anything if I was not convinced 😁 For example, these contents I'm talking about were also both included in the respective Daily Travel Digest.
I also want to specify that it wasn't simply about rewards, it was a bit strange just because in this last period I'm finally being more constant (after months of absence), publishing two articles a week, being present in the community and so on. So, I thought I maybe was doing something wrong, I wanted to reason in a correct way and fix the problem in the future posts.
Really thank you for your answer, Nina, I appreciate a lot. I will try to reason from a different perspective, see how it goes with the next articles and maybe do some experiments - like trying to post a bit earlier.
We will see 😊
Hi @alecaltab, here is Liz,
great that @ninaeatshere could help you with your question :) - As she said hive is decentralized so a variation of viewers happens all the time. Even my posts are different all the time. In my experience of course you can increase the visibility with the tags you are using, and the community that you are choosing,g and of course the quality of your content is important for the curation trails just as Nina said.
I did see the difference in the timing of the posting as well. In European times often it was best to post around 12-14:00.
But also not always. In the end, it is not all measurable but yeah, try it out and see what is best for you ☀️😎
In any case, we are already looking forward to reading more about your adventures soon! 👍🐝
This place looks so beautiful. I love it. Thank you for sharing us 😊
It's really nice, yes. You're welcome, thanks for passing by ✌️🤠
Welcome my friend ❤️