Petersontravels

The next morning the bad weather had parted and we were off towards our next stop, Noto.  Our guide in Ragusa told us that if we weren’t fans of Modica Chocolate (which we are not…they make it without milk and it’s very grainy) to just do a drive by at a viewpoint from the road, and to focus on visiting Scicli (pronounced shic lee) which is far easier to walk around and just as beautiful.  It’s worth noting our travel agent Fran also mentioned that Scicli was a must visit.  Fortunately the town of Modica can be viewed right off the side of the road, and we were the only ones there.

This is Modica’s Cathedral of San Giorgio (Saint George, who seems to be quite popular in this region).  The church is a masterpiece of Baroque architecture, with the dramatic flight of steps leading to the entrance.  It was built between 1702 and 1738 (it must have been a government job) on the ruins of a former church that was destroyed by the earthquake of 1693.  Actually, the entire city of Modica was destroyed in 1693!  That 1693 earthquake you keep reading about was a 7.4, making it one of the most powerful earthquakes in Italian history, destroying over 70 towns and killing 60,000 people.

Getting into Scicli was not easy…a very curvy road and then very narrow streets, but we were able to find parking and started exploring.  This town is very old, having first been settled in 300 BC, and control has changed hands numerous times over the years from conquest after conquest….a typical story in Sicily.

As we walked through the historic center you can see this church sitting way up on the hill.  More on that church to come.

We made a right turn and ended up visiting the Church of Saint Bartholomew, which sits right in a scenic gorge.  It was of course built after the 1693 earthquake, with construction starting around 1752 (things move slow in Sicily).

We ventured inside, and while they don’t charge admission the person at the front asked for a donation.  We were the only people there the entire time.  Quite gorgeous inside!

The painting behind the altar is from 1779 and called “The Martyrdom of Saint Bartholomew”.  He was killed because he refused to worship pagan idols as well as being able to convert a foreign king’s family to Christianity, enraging the local officials.

This fresco on the ceiling also shows Saint Bartholomew, defending his faith before a king or Roman magistrate.

We left the Saint Bart’s and I convinced Kim to take a bit of a hike up to that hill-top church we first saw from the historic center.  We kept going up and up, with the hiking path making us wonder if we were still going the right way.

The reward at the top is the view!  First up, this is the Church of Santa Maria La Nova, built at the bottom of a limestone quarry.  I love the side domes!  It’s worth noting that we were told about an Italian TV show called “Inspector Montalbano” that was filmed here in Scicli and well as in Ragusa.  Scicli was referred to as “Vigata” for the show, something we’ll have to watch when we get home.  It’s apparently quite funny!

There are great views in every direction!

Even the church itself.  Unfortunately the church we hiked up to, Saint Matthew, has been abandoned.  The 1693 earthquake forced those living up on the hill to move to the flatter valley below, and it was just too inconvenient for the parishioners to hike up the hill for mass.  It was officially closed in 1874.  It remains a great spot for photos!

Here is the view looking southwest towards the ocean.  The historical center of the town is in the foreground.

You can continue hiking above the church is you wish.  Here is a green-framed view of the city center from above the church.

One last shot of Scicli on our way back to the car (and more crazy driving).  This is the Church of San Giovanni Evangelista, which sits right on the town’s main square.  We opted not to tour the inside, as we are getting a bit “churched out” (aren’t you?).

Our drive to Noto was interesting as Google kept wanting me to drive into the city center of Scicli, which I was not going to do.  We ended up backtracking the same way we came into town.

Noto was unfortunately more narrow streets and crazy traffic, and we arrived just as a funeral was starting in a church near our hotel!  Ugh!  Oh well, at least we found parking and then left the car there for two of our three days here.  The place we stayed, Sikelia Suites, was nice, but the main issue was it’s in the upper part of Noto, so if you want to visit the historic center you have to walk down a shit-ton of stairs, and then of course back up!  We arrived before sunset so we braved the stairs to get some late afternoon photos.  First up is the Fountain of Hercules, which wasn’t working (like so many things in Sicily it seems).

Directly behind the fountain is the Church of San Domenico, considered a masterpiece of Sicilian Baroque architecture.  Unfortunately it was never open to visit while we were here.  Noto is known for their golden hued buildings due to the local stone used in their construction.

This church with the distinctive concave facade is the Church of San Carlo al Corso.  Bear in mind that every building in Noto was built after the 1693 earthquake.  The old town was completely destroyed and then abandoned when they moved here, 6 miles south of the original location.

This is the Noto Cathedral, which will grace any website you look at that encourages you to visit Noto.  It’s in the middle of the historic center and definitely it’s biggest tourist attraction.  We visited later so more details to come.

One last photo as we walked back up the hill to our hotel.  This is the Church of San Girolamo.  I guess I just love those concave facade designs!

Coming up next, we do another Tours by Locals in Noto, which I was surprised also included some stops along the upper part of Noto where we are staying.

We stayed in the hill-top town of Ragusa (most towns in Sicily are on a hill-top!) for two nights at the San Giorgio Palace Hotel, which if you read the last post you will see it sits right on the edge of a cliff.  It’s an ancient noble house which has been converted into a 4 star hotel.  The best part is it’s easy to get to, as you park down below the town (for free no less) and avoid the narrow streets and pesky pedestrians.  From the parking area there is an elevator up to the top of the cliff.  It’s also 100 meters from the historic square. This is the view of the tunnel, cut right into the hill, that leads to the elevator.

This is the view from our room.  If only there was a balcony it would be perfect!

Ragusa is actually two towns, the original called Ragusa Ibla which was mostly destroyed by the 1693 earthquake and then rebuilt, and the newer part called Ragusa Superiore (Upper Ragusa) where most of the citizens moved after the earthquake.  Nearly all of the worthwhile sights are in Ragusa Ibla.

We had a walking tour of the older section with Tours by Locals, which I try to opt for in most towns as you get an insiders view of what there is to see.  We met at the Portal of San Giorgio (Saint George), a remnant of the church of San Giorgio which was originally built in the 14th century.  It was heavily damaged by earthquakes in 1542 and 1693.

The relief above the arch is Saint George slaying a dragon before Princess Sabra (missing her head to erosion due to how soft the local pink limestone is).  According to a local legend the town of Ragusa was terrorized by a dragon that required daily sacrifices.  When it was the Princess’ turn to be sacrificed, Saint George rode in and slayed the dragon.

We then walked into a massive garden area which sits at the eastern end of the town.  Within the garden is the Church of Sant’Agata, which survived the massive 1693 earthquake.  The original church structure was built in 1519.  The triptych behind the altar is considered a masterpiece by Pietro Novelli, painted in 1635.

Here is a better look at the central part of the triptych, known as “The Assumption of the Virgin among Angels and Saints”.

In the lower left of the painting you can see a self-portrait of the artist, looking back at you.

I love the wooden ceiling.

On one of the ceiling beams you can see the year 1614, branded to mark a major historical expansion and reconstruction phase of the church.

Also inside the garden area is this war memorial to honor the citizens of Ragusa who lost their lives during the World Wars.  We saw these war memorials honoring the locals who died during WWI and WWII in pretty much every town/city in Sicily.

We left the garden area and walked slightly uphill towards the historic center.

This is the Church of Saint Joseph, rebuilt around 1756 after the original church was destroyed in 1693.  The sky was fully cooperating.  Little did we know how hard it would start raining about two hours later!

Here is the interior of Saint Joseph.  The area behind the altar appears to have a crown above and a robe around it.  The two odd looking cages on each side of the church were for the nuns to view the service without being seen.

We had stopped by this business the evening prior to pick up a bottle of wine and some awesome gelato!  If I were to open a business in Italy this would be it, both wine and gelato in one place?  Solid business plan!!

The main tourist attraction in Ragusa is the Duomo di San Giorgio that sits prominently at the highest spot in town.  You can see they already have Christmas lights strung up.

Our guide explained that there was a reason the Duomo has a massive ornate fence around it.  In the 1800’s Ragusa was deeply divided into two factions; The Sangiorgiani (the old nobility still living in the old lower town, dedicated to Saint George) and the Sangiovannari (the new rising merchant class living in the new upper town, dedicated to Saint John the Baptist).  To flex their wealth and political prestige the people of the old town continuously added grandiose details to their beloved Duomo, including the fence and gate that was installed in 1890.  On top of the gate is Saint George on horseback slaying the dragon.

Here is another shot of the church with the wrought iron fence in the foreground.

Here is the altar and the Dome of the church.  I’ve gotta say I expected more from the dome based on the competition with upper Ragusa!

This wooden sculpture depicts Christ mocked and crowned with thorns.  This sort of imagery, to me, is all about keeping the kids in line.  Maybe a little too graphic?  Was Christ really starving at this point in time?

Our guide pointed out this interesting cross near the altar, which is a classic cross of Saint George.

There is another one in mosaic on the floor of the church.

One last look at the Duomo from the west side of the church.  Does it really look like it’s going to dump buckets in 2 hours?

Not far from the Duomo is the Palazza la Rocca, a former palace with interesting sculptures under the balconies.

Check out the guy in the lower right who looks like a vampire with modern sunglasses.  WTF?

From the end of our tour you could see the newer part of Ragusa, with their “competitive” church of Saint John the Baptist at the top.

After it starting dumping we made our most important stop in Ragusa, and it stopped raining as we walked here and as we walked back to the hotel.  My weather karma continues!

We had dinner that night at one of Ragusa’s two Michelin Star restaurants, Locanda Don Serafino.  The restaurant is inside of a cave that used to be part of the adjacent church, and it is just gorgeous.

The first dishes were so cute I had to take photos.  While this looks like a popsicle, it’s actually a savory food item.

While these fish-bone and cannoli lookalikes were crackers with seafood.  Very artistic!  The meal was excellent, it was just sad to see there were only three couples in the restaurant that night.

The chef has been working here since 2002, receiving his Michelin Star in 2007.  That’s an amazing amount of time for a highly acclaimed chef to be in one spot!  He greeted us on departure and I asked him about that longevity and he said he just loves it here so why would he leave?  Excellent mindset!

Up next we depart Ragusa and make our way towards Noto, with a stop to view Modica and then a walk around the beautiful little town of Scicli.