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| Sicily flag |
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| sepulchre surrounding the site |
Steps – 11,568
Today we are back in Italy for a day on Sicily. We were here once before and visited Mount Etna, so weren’t joining the masses who went there. A visit to Mount Etna is one of those one and done things, at least given the experience we had there…it was super windy and cold that day, so I’m glad I did it, but I’m also glad I’ve done it.
Instead, we visited Syracuse (pop 115,000) which is famous for its 2,700-year
history as a major Ancient Greek and Roman metropolis. Syracuse is a 1-hr drive from Catania where the ship is docked. The thought of a long bus ride never thrills, but in reality, it is nice to have time to listen to the guide tell us all sorts of things about the area (not just about where we are visiting), see the countryside, and have bus naps – there’s nothing like a good bus nap.
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| natural water source |
The highlight of the visit to Syracuse is its archeological site. We follow Matthew, our guide as he described what we were seeing…a massive 5th-century BC Greek Theatre, a Roman amphitheatre, and maybe the coolest of all, a limestone cave known as the
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| amphitheatre |
Next, we were back on the bus for a 10 min ride to Ortigia Island in Ancient Syracuse. This place was settled by Greeks in the 8th century BC. There are ruins here too – the main focus being the Temple of Apollo and the Syracuse
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| Ear of Dionysius |
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| more of the caves |
Cathedral, which was built directly over the ancient 5th-century BC Temple of Athena, preserving much of its original columns. It seems very civilized that churches and temples weren’t destroyed but transformed and built upon. This means that today, we see some of the original structure even though over the centuries the religions that occupied the building changed.
Syracuse’s old town’s streets are very narrow
and interesting. Today they are filled with artists’ shops, gelaterias, and
restaurants.
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| other amphitheatre |
By now, it was hot and we were chasing shade. Matthew released us for about 45 min of free time. We went inside one part of the church of St Lucia to see a copy of Caravaggio’s The Burial of Saint Lucia. The real thing is nearby but not near enough for us to visit.
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| temple of Apollo |
We had just enough time for a refreshment stop –
a couple of beers and the accompanying snack were the perfect finish to our
visit to Syracuse. The beers (€4) were served with 6 pizza dough balls 2, filled
with spinach, 2 with cheese and tomato and 2 with anchovy. We were semi-convinced
we would be charged for these as they were quite substantial to be at no
charge, but nope…no charge, and very tasty.
This was a tour with an extra charge – most Regent
tours are included in the fare. The tour was good but was it worth an extra
charge…don’t think so.
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| streets of Ortigia |
Once back at the ship, the lunch buffet was closed so we had a bite at the pool grill. The pool grill is absolutely sufficient for lunch. The pool grill has a buffet and items to order from a waiter…we did a mix of both.
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| refreshement break |
It was then back to the room to watch one of
the enrichment speaker’s recorded lectures. There is a former Anglican priest
on board as an expert speaker on art – woot! Often the speakers Regent has are interesting,
but not so location specific…his first 2 lectures were on Italian art…we are in
Italy, so seems appropriate.
Then it was a nap and chilling room time before the ship’s ‘block party’.
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| Burial of Saint Lucia |
Everybody spills into the hallway outside their room to meet their neighbors over a glass of
wine. This is a very charming tradition that I think is unique to Regent. We met one of the ship’s vocalists, a couple from San Francisco, another from Phoenix, and another from Switzerland.
got it in 3!
Dinner was at the ship’s Asian restaurant. It
was good.
The show was Argentinian tango theme with the
ship’s singers and dancers. It was OK.
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| Cathedral of Syracuse |
Kathie – the chocolate and rabbit were tasty!
Could you do it!
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