Sicily - Italy - page 549

% 091-7054317; € 5 adults, € 2.50 students, includes the Cappella Palatina;
Mon-Sat 8:30am-noon and 2:30-5pm, closed Sun afternoon and holidays), a
complex of palaces built by Arabs in the 9th century (its current Arab-Norman
facade was last reworked in the 17th c.). The main palace is now the seat of the
Sicilian parliament. Its halls are closed to the public during parliamentary ses-
sions, primarily Tuesday through Thursday. When it's open, you can wander
through the smaller reception rooms to the massive main hall with its ornate,
gilded ceiling. Through the windows you can see Palermo's skyline and distant
mountains. The Royal Apartments are not always open to the public except for
the Byzantine Sala dei Venti. If it's open, be sure to follow the signs to the Sala di
Ruggero II, which was King Ruggero's rapturously lovely bedroom, encrusted
with mosaics of colorful peacocks and amorous leopards, and nearly as beautiful
as the Cappella Palatina (see below). Outside, walled ornate gardens, called the
Parco d'Orleans, have been planted over the centuries with African kapok trees,
exotic rare orchids, and imported banyan trees.
From here you come to the one “must-see” sight of Palermo, the Cappella
Palatina

(in the Palazzo dei Normanni; % 091-7054879; Mon-Fri
9-11:45am and 3-5pm, closed weekend afternoons). This is Palermo's most pop-
ular tourist attraction—with long lines to prove it. The interior of the small
chapel, built by Roger II when he ruled Sicily in 1130, is an explosion of precious
gems and shiny mosaics covering every square inch of space. Tiny marble tiles are
inlaid with gold leaf or painted to look like lapis and designed to depict stories
from the Old Testament and Sicilian history. The gold and silver backing of the
tiles makes them glitter. The facial expressions are more realistic and emotionally
compelling than one would expect from mosaics. Art historians agree that they're
among the finest in the world, equal to anything you'll see in Ravenna, the Italian
city best known for mosaics. Other notable works of art in the chapel include the
exquisite mosaic-encrusted throne in the nave and the traditionally Islamic
muqarna design on the ceiling, created by North African artisans in the 12th cen-
tury (a surprising element in a Christian chapel).
To the south of the Palazzo dei Normanni is the Chiesa di San Giovanni degli
Eremiti

555

(Via dei Benedettini; % 091-6515019; € 4.50; Mon-Sat 9am-1pm and
3-7pm, Sun and holidays 9am-12:30pm), where the frescoes are seriously worn.
Spend your time instead wandering through the lush green cloister; it belonged
to the Benedictine convent that once occupied this church. From here you can
study the intricate weave of Norman and Arab architecture. The five red domes
are of Arab construction. For many, this church represents the harmonious blend-
ing of cultures, which is the basis of Sicilian history.

5

IL CAPO The labyrinth of streets that makes up the Il Capo district—across
the Corso Vittorio Emanuele and back from the Quattro Canti—is home to
many of Palermo's most imposing attractions. The main Cathedral

555

(Corso
Vittorio Emanuele; % 091-334376; www.cattedrale.palermo.it; free admission;
Mon-Sat 7am-7pm, Sun 8:30am-1:30pm and 4-7pm) sprawls over a flat, palm-
tree-lined square that seems out of place among the tightly clenched apartment
blocks that surround it. The Cathedral has undergone many major metamor-
phoses over the centuries. It was built by Archbishop Gualtiero Offamilio in 1184