Palermo is a big city that doesn’t always seem like one. Even when you wander out of its historic core, the streets and buildings feel more neighborly than imposing. Most of my wandering, though, stayed near the center, where there’s plenty to see!
The Via Maqueda, the long ‘main street’ that runs from the stately Teatro Massimo, above, down to the city’s central rail station is an endless panoply of restaurants and shops, a distressing proportion of them clearly aimed at the tourist trade.
But steps away, the small intersecting streets belong to a different world, one of small shops, apartments, restaurants and seemingly impossible traffic. We rented an apartment 30 yards from Via Maqueda, and couldn’t even hear the noise of the crowds.
Away from Via Maqueda, the options for eating are also quieter.
It’s also a city of monuments to its past rulers and powerful forces; the Teatro Massimo was a token of Italy’s 1870s unification; the Cathedral shows signs of changing overlords from times of Norman conquest to later dynasties.
That’s a pattern continuing into modern times; the city’s main post office is a monument to Mussolini-era fascist architecture, as is the Tempio Munito Fortezza Mistica, literally ‘Temple Armed with Mystical Fortress.’ Also known as the Casa del Mutilato, or ‘House of the Disabled,’ it served up images of heroic warriors and work programs for disabled World War I veterans.
Another conqueror had this elaborate city gate built in 1535: Charles V, who was simultaneously King of Spain, King of Sicily and Naples, Lord of the Netherlands, Archduke of Austria and Holy Roman Emperor. It replaced an ancient entrance to the city; 500 years later it’s still the Porta Nuova, or New Gate.
The city’s major cross street, named for a later king, Victor Emmanuele, leads from the Porta Nuova to the Porta Felice, built in the 1580s to secure the entrance to the city from the sea.
Still the center of regional and municipal government, the Norman Palace stands just behind the Porta Nuova. Within the palace is the stunning Cappella Palatina.
Nearby, a monument of a quite different sort: the Wall of Legality, which honors a wide variety of officials and citizens involved over the years in Sicily’s (officially-successful) campaign against Mafia influence and control. The wall was dedicated in 2022.
But by now… time for food. Palermo is full of small restaurants, many of them with similar menus, and it is a haven for lovers of street food. Two of my favorites, every time: Arancini and a freshly-made, stuffed-on-the-spot cannolo. And, time for a language lesson: -o is the singular, -i is the plural for the dessert. And, if you’re at the other end of Sicily, it also applies to the fried, stuffed rice balls. But in Palermo, the rice ball is feminine, so arancina, arancino.
Palermo’s street markets, one of which is nearly a thousand years old, are full of food that’s tempting and colorful, whether it’s the impossibly yellow melons, freshly-fried seafood, dozens of types of olives or the pasta and spices. Nowhere else have I seen pistachio in so many forms and so many recipes!
Of course, the markets aren’t all food…
That selection of kid-oriented stuff can keep a traveling child busy for quite a while for not much money, but my toddler granddaughter was often more interested in bigger challenges.
Some more noticings along the way…
An 1890s refreshment kiosk and a streetside bar serving both alcoholic and juice drinks…
A once-popular post-war outdoor movie and variety theater near the Teatro Massimo lives out its later life as a parking lot and auto repair business.
And a few bits of Art Nouveau and more recent architecture…
There’s more… much more… to Palermo. Every city I wander is full of sights to be seen, smells to smell, food to eat—too many for one essay. Wherever you are—wander and wonder!
