Iconic Catania,Sicily -Part II

Connecting people of the Mediterranean before internet

There is a bookcase in my library bulging with volumes, illustrated guidebooks and material from many years of speaking on cruise ships to far away Alexandria and Trabzond, to elegant Nice (Nizza when Italian) and St.Petersburg/Leningrad. The names may have changed with successive regimes but the people and lifestyles have remained the same. Last month my ship stopped in the Adriatic port of Koper, Slovenia (previously Capodistria) and Kotor, Montenegro that the Venetians called Cattaro.

The successive waves of cultures, races and languages made little difference for those who lived on the shores for the Mediterranean was connected by a dense network of maritime links, routes and ports - a sort of prototype of the Internet.

The “sea between the lands” -Mediterranean- has been a well-traveled highway for ships since pre-history, as soon as sailors learned to construct vessels. Each port was attached to countless other ones, connecting civilizations on opposite sides of “Mare Nostrum” .

Have you been to some of these ports ? So many places to visit, so little time… My book of travel essays about the area near Rome’s port Civitavecchia is available directly (no amazon) . Just send me a message for information…it is a handbook for inquisitive travelers & groups coming to central Italy. Click on underlined links for more information.

Port cities are much more cosmopolitan than isolated inland areas for they have welcomed and absorbed newcomers - and new ideas - for millennia. The trading of goods and sea commerce gave rise to colonies and powerful civilizations and we can catch a whiff of them in today’s markets in every port. The golden rule for first-time visitors to a new port city is “one church, one museum, and one gelato” - and then check out the local market.

Catania is one of these ports where it is a delight to ramble in the multi-layers of the historic center instead of taking an excursion - especially one that goes anywhere near Mount Etna!

A short walk from Palazzo Biscari (see previous article) brings to the historic center of Catania and its magnificent Duomo dedicated to S. Agata. The church facade faces the main piazza where the statue of an Egyptian elephant in black lava stone holds pride of place. Known affectionately as “U Liotru” the elefantino is surrounded by many legends: it is the very symbol of the city just as the Trinacria is the symbol of Sicily.

To the elephant’s right the white marble Amenano fountain splashes merrily, announcing the way to the rowdy fish market. Fed by an underground river flowing from Etna to the sea, it played an important role throughout the city’s history and its water is said to change color when volcanic events are about to occur.

The piazza holds municipal buildings, a fancy bar with typical pastries (Arab influence) and high end shopping streets lead off in several directions. Spend an hour in the Catania fish market and you will have a better understanding of the Mediterranean soul and stomach. The vendors here are chosen for the volume of their voices.

The air is full of smoke from the makeshift grills as fish are prepared and served at stalls and eaten as street food. Buzzing Vespas zoom among the bancarelle, and men carrying crates of fish - or a ladder- add to the happy confusion.

But if you are lucky you might find a stool to perch on or a comfortable table behind the Baroque fountain for a lunch you will not soon forget.

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