Sicily 2017 Itinerary
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Beyond the Greeks: Sicily’s Western Corner 27 March to 3 April 2017 Day-by-Day Program The largest and most fertile island of the Mediterranean, Sicily has been a cultural crossroads since Greek settlers and Phoenician traders mixed with native peoples more than three thousand years ago. The cities they founded would become some of the wealthiest of the ancient world and, in later centuries, would come to bear the distinctive imprints of Byzantine, Norman, Muslim, and Spanish invaders and rulers. Their legacy is an intriguing mosaic of extraordinary vibrancy and beauty, reflected also in the island’s complex and exotic cuisine. The western corner of this triangular island is focus of our trip, led by archaeologist Elizabeth Bartman and food writer Maureen Fant. Our itinerary introduces Sicily’s most spectacular antiquities—the Greek temples at Segesta, Selinunte (Selinus), and Agrigento—as well as the renowned Norman architecture of Palermo. Yet it leaves ample time for fascinating, less-visited sites too. Even if you’ve toured Sicily before, you will appreciate seeing and hearing about the latest archaeological finds and viewing some of the island’s newly renovated museums. Our timing, when the wildflowers bloom under the warming spring sun, could not be more ideal for visiting this magical place. And don’t forget the food. The island that the ancient Romans considered Italy’s breadbasket thanks to its prized durum wheat does not disappoint today. Lapped by three seas, Sicily celebrates its abundant seafood at the table (think tuna and swordfish). All manner of fruits and vegetables thrive in its rich soil, but its citrus (think blood oranges, the best in the world, and gargantuan lemons), tomatoes, cauliflowers and broccolis (really), eggplants, almonds, and pistachios are among the world’s finest. Its excellent anchovies and olives (and their wonderfully fruity oil) are highly prized. But superb ingredients are only the start. Generations of perfectionist Sicilian women have used hands and hearts to create intricate pasta shapes and richly flavored, labor-intensive, highly refined dishes that are alien to other parts of Italy. These often involve a delicate sweet-and-sour flavor characterized by tiny raisins, onions, and pine nuts, or wonderfully aromatic herbs, such as wild fennel and oregano, or local cheeses. Every Sicilian seems to have a serious sweet tooth, and dolcetti of almonds and pistachios are virtually a local art form. Just try to choose among the dazzling sweets for which Sicily is justly celebrated—superb gelato, genuine cannoli or cassata siciliana, trompe l’oeil marzipan fruits (as well as real fruits), and so many more. But don’t imagine that “Sicilian food” is just one thing! Palermo, the regional capital and largest city, which dominates the western part of the island, has its own specialties (pasta with fresh sardines being only the most famous). The area even farther west, the province of Trapani, is known for couscous, usually served with fish, but also for pesto trapanese, a flavorful sauce for pasta or bruschetta made from crushed ripe tomatoes and the superb, mild garlic of the area, and much more. Sicilian wines have been revolutionized in recent decades, with such native varietals as Grillo, Nero d’Avola, and Etna Rosso, among many others, being discovered and acclaimed by discriminating wine-drinkers worldwide. Beyond the Greeks: Sicily’s Western Corner will run from Monday, March 27 to Monday, April 3. The price is $5990 per person in a shared room or $6350 for a single. This price includes airport transfers in Palermo (even if you arrive early or stay later on your own), seven nights’ bed and breakfast, at least one full-dress meal with wine per day, additional light meals on some days, snacks and tastings as described in the final itinerary, all admissions and fees for activities described in the final itinerary, and all tips. The only things not included are your fare to Palermo, your personal extras, and your travel and health insurance. Note: Logistics and pending permissions may necessitate some changes to this itinerary, but rest assured, plan B, if needed, will be no less interesting or delicious. B = Breakfast L = Lunch D = Dinner S = Snack/tasting included included included included MONDAY: WELCOME AND PALERMO The tour begins in Palermo at noon at our hotel. Whether you fly in that morning or decide to arrive earlier, you’ll be met Falcone Borsellino Airport (PMO, also known as Punta Raisi). We’ll unwind and get acquainted over a delicious lunch before visiting some of Palermo’s most important Arab-Norman monuments. Roger I’s magnificent 12th-century palace, a UNESCO world heritage site, even today conveys the power of the new Norman king: its famed Palatine Chapel is encrusted with Byzantine mosaics, painted and carved Islamic woodwork, and colored marbles that create a dazzling décor. Dinner will introduce the basics of Sicilian and Palermitan cuisine. An elegant 4-star hotel in the heart of Palermo will be our base for the next two nights. L, D TUESDAY: PALERMO We begin our day at the newly-refurbished Archaeological Museum of Palermo, one of the island’s most important repositories of classical antiquities. In late morning we will head to a typical street market, a bustling emporium for fish, meat, and mountains of fruits and vegetables. Lunch will consist of Palermo’s famed “street food” sampled as we make our way through the market. In the afternoon we visit the Palazzo Branciforte, an 18th-century structure recently transformed by the architect Gae Aulenti into a state-of-the-art museum displaying ancient ceramics. We’re also hoping the fabled Pitré ethnographic museum will have completed its major renovation and have reopened in time for our visit. We’ll continue our immersion in the culinary specialties of western Sicily over dinner, possibly in a private home. B, L, D WEDNESDAY: GREEKS AND PHOENICIANS AT SEGESTA AND ERICE We’ll make an early departure from Palermo to head west, to Segesta to visit its Greek Doric temple, one of the most spectacularly situated of all Greek temples anywhere. For the Greeks, location was critical, and few ancient ruins today can rival Segesta for its masterful siting of architecture in the landscape. We will refuel over a leisurely seafood lunch before heading west for a stop at the charming medieval town of Erice, originally a Phoenician outpost and later a Greek sanctuary consecrated to Aphrodite, goddess of love. The deity’s cult may be gone, but her spirit lives on in the delicious almond sweets for which Erice is famous. We’ll have a tasting- 2 encounter at one of the town’s most renowned pastry shops and then end our day at Trapani with a walk around its charming historic center and a visit to the Museo Pepoli. A short drive takes us to our base for the next two nights, a handsome four-star complex on the shore just south of Trapani surrounded by windmills and salt pans. The area is, in fact, famous for two things, the mildest, most delicious garlic on earth and a superb sea salt. The salt pans, where the salt is still extracted from evaporated sea water, are right in front of our hotel, as is a small museum dedicated to the history of this important local industry. B, L, S, D THURSDAY: TRAPANI AND THE 3 MS: MOZIA, MARSALA, AND MAZARA DEL VALLO Our itinerary today takes us south along the coast. Our first stop will be the tiny island of Mozia (ancient Motya), reached by a short ferry ride. Its ancient ruins include a Phoenician cemetery, and its small museum is famed for a stunning marble statue of a classical Greek charioteer. A short drive south takes us to Marsala (ancient Lilybaeum), whose Phoenician origins have been overlain by Greek and Roman layers. The site museum preserves what remains of a wooden ship sunk by Rome during the decisive battle of 241 BCE that destroyed Carthage, its formidable nemesis. While in Marsala, we’ll discover that the full range of Marsala wine is so much more than what the world knows through the famous veal dish. After lunch we continue on to Mazara del Vallo, a pretty seaside town that houses a small museum created to display the magnificent, over-life-size bronze Dancing Satyr in an exuberant pirouette. We’ll hear the story of its dramatic discovery by fishermen and its difficult restoration in Rome. The Satyr gives us a rare, and privileged, glimpse of antiquity’s highly prized bronze sculpture. B, L FRIDAY: SELINUS AND ITS QUARRY Ancient Selinus (Selinunte) was one of Sicily’s most prestigious Greek cities, and our morning visit re-imagines the grandeur of its various temples, public buildings, and walls. Recent excavations have transformed our image of this city and shed light on its sacred rituals. The quarries (Cave di Cusa) that were the source of the stone for Selinus’ massive buildings lie close by, and we will visit them to see the massive half-finished blocks and columns that exert a ghostly power. After lunch, probably on the seaside, we’ll drive to our next hotel, the guest house of an important wine estate whose countryside setting offers a perfect venue for our pre- dinner tasting of some of Sicily’s finest wines. B, L, S SATURDAY: AKRAGAS (AGRIGENTO) Agrigento’s famed Valley of the Temples, another UNESCO site, is our destination this morning—its colossal temples are awe-inspiring, and their fallen supports, carved in human form, eerily evoke our shared mortality. The local site museum displays many of the archaeological finds from this once-prosperous classical Greek city, and we will have plenty of time to examine its treasures during the afternoon.