Buona Pascqua

Palermo, Sicily - Two items of good news: (1) it's mid-term break; (2) we are spending the week in Sicily! We got in late Saturday night, and woke up Easter morning to the ringing of church bells.

We are staying at a fantastic little hotel that occupies the second floor of an incredible 12th-century palazzo. The Hotel Orientale is nondescript (at best) from the street, but inside, the crumbling courtyard is surrounded by huge arcades, and a marble staircase leads the way upstairs. Inside the rooms are simple and modern enough, with the exception of the library, which still has an original fresco on the ceiling.

The hotel is typical of old Palermo. The whole city seems to be falling apart, which I suppose is not suprising conisding that much of it was built in the 11th, 12th and 13th centuries. But the architecture is amazing. And even its decrepitude makes it more dramatic, more intriguing. The place oozes Arabic influences. More than once, I had to remind myself that we are still in Italy - not in Morocco!

Especially when wandering through the maze-like Mercato di Ballarò that is just behind the hotel. I expected the streets to be quiet on Easter morning, but the market was packed with patrons shopping for Easter dinner and vendors yelling, singing and whistling in attempt to get their attention. Tables were piled high with tempting produce in all shapes and colors, not to mention the fresh fish, huge cuts of beef, piles of olives, nuts and figs, trucks full of fresh bread, bins of fresh ricotta... We couldn't resist and we bought a fresh baguette and cheese and some spicy Sicilian olives for a picnic later on.

We did not mean to spend all morning at the market, but once we were there, we had a hard time finding our way out. Instead, we kept getting lured deeper and deeper by the sights and smells. But eventually, we made our way to the Cathedral, which is the centerpiece of the city.

The Norman-built Cathedral is an amazing amalgamation of tall towers topped with crenellations, majolica cupolas with tiled roofs and a vast dome at one end. As luck would have it, Easter Mass was ongoing when we arrived, so we stayed for the end. Even Jerry had to admit that it was fun to hear the Mass in Italian and figure out where we were in the service.

From here we are traveling to the Ionian Coast on the eastern part of the island. Next stop: Catania