Sicilian Evenings

In the early evening, after all the sights have closed, we always ask ourselfes the same question:"And now?". Because most of the sights are open until 6 p.m. and we often only step out of the hotel at noon, we soetimes just manage to visit one  place a day. We are lucky that in summer in Italy the shops are usually open until 9pm, so we can then do some shopping in the evening, like on that day. There was also the Giardino Bellini across the street of our hotel, so we did a little exploration tour, but didn't see much, because it was dark already. 😁

Am frühen Abend,wenn alle Sehenswürdigkeiten geschlossen sind, stellt sich uns immer wieder die Frage: "Und jetzt?!". Da die Öffnungszeiten meist nur bis 18 Uhr gehen und wir meist erst mittags einen Fuß vor die Tür setzten, schaffen wir oft nur ein Ziel. Da die Geschäfte in Italien oft im Sommer bis 21 Uhr geöffnet sind, nutzen wir die paar Stunden dann natürlich noch zum Shoppen aus, wie auch dieses Mal. Danach haben wir dann noch den Giardino Bellini erkundet, der fast gegenüber von unserem Hotel lag, wobei man dann im Dunkeln nicht allzu viel erkennen konnte. 😆

What to do in Catania on a rainy day - The Benedictine Monastery & Catania Cathedral

I wouldn't particularly call Catania a city for museum enthusiasts, but if you can't live without art and history during a vacation, like I do,  you can always find sights to visit. Like on that rainy day, we decided to take a guided tour through the former benedictine monastery, which now houses a faculty of the Universaty of Catania. On Tripadvisor it is listed as one of the top activities and it was recommended doing a guided tour, because not all areas are accessible to tourists. Even though the tour was in italian, you get some info material in english. (Guided tours can take place in English or Spanish upon request)

The monastery was built in the 16th century and survived two major natural disasters in the 17th century, such as the eruption of Etna and a strong earthquake, so it was rebuilt and converted during this period of time. After the Italian Unification in the 19th century it was mainly used as a schoolbuilding and offices, therefore all the frescos and baroque decorations nearly disappeared. But during recent restorations, they discovered some ancient roman buildings, or what was left of them.

So because of its long history and the many different modifications, even though it isn't as splendid as other cloisters, it is still super interesting because of its architecture and the super nice tour guide, who provides you with a lot of insider informations.

Catania ist nun wirklich keine "Museumsstadt", aber wenn man ohne Kunst und Geschichte während eines Urlaubes nicht auskommt, wie ich, kann man natürlich neben unzähligen Kirchen noch weitere Sehenswürdigkeiten finden. Wie an jenem regnerischen Tag. Dieses Mal entschieden wir uns für eine Führung durch das ehemalige Benediktiner Kloster, welches jetzt eine Fakultät der Universität Catania beherbergt. Auf Tripadvisor ist es unter den Top-Aktivitäten gelistet und es wurde empfohlen, eine Führung mitzumachen, da nicht allzu viel frei zugänglich ist, was wir dann auch taten. Die Führung fand in einer sehr kleinen Gruppe auf italienisch statt, was für mich dank meiner Italienischkenntnisse kein großes Problem darstellte. Da man aber Unterlagen in Englisch mit dazu bekam (und ich probierte ein wenig zu übersetzten), war es für Tim dann auch informativ. Das Kloster stammt aus dem 16. Jahrhundert und wurde nach zwei Naturkatastrophen, dem Ausbruch des Ätna und einem starken Erdbeben, im 17. Jahrhundert um-und ausgebaut. Durch die Führung erhält man Zugang zu verschlossenen Bereichen und verschiedenen Ebenen, so dass man manchmal nicht mehr weiß, auf welcher Etage man sich gerade befindet. Im Keller z.B. gibt es eine Bibliothek, von der man sogar auf eine römische Ausgrabung inklusive Mosaiken hinabschauen kann. Ich denke, wegen der vielen Umbauten und der Nutzung als Universität ist es nicht so prunkvoll, wie manch ein anderes Kloster, aber dank seiner langen Geschichte und mit der super netten Führung trotzdem sehr interessant.

Catania at night (and sunset)

Who would have thought, that we would find such a distinctive nightlife in Catania?! We spent hours roaming the streets of various cities at night and even in Rome you really have to have some insider information to find some good locations. But that's different in Catania and it wasn't difficult at all. Beforehand we were warned by different people, that Catania is known for their criminality and therefore we were a bit insecure at first to walk around at night, but that changed quickly and we almost felt saver than in some german cities at the same time of day. The first place we found accidentally after our visit at the museum at Castello Ursino,when we walked back towards the Piazza Duomo. There, near the fishmarket are not only many restaurants, but also some bars and we found some places where you can just join groups of people, who meet in front of those. After a beer or two and some take away fried fish, we then decided to climb up to the dome of the cathedral and enjoyed the view over the illuminated city. After that, we just followed some groups of younger people, who looked like they were ready to go out and they led us to Via Bellini, a street lined with bars and pubs. Even on our way back to the hotel we were super surprised, because we headed into some small, seemingly plain side streets and then right around the corner we ran into groups of people a few times, who gathered in front of some location. So I can't say Catania is missing some nightlife at all.

Catania - Museo Civico Castello Ursino

After walking around the historical center of Catania for a couple of hours, it was already late afternoon and we decided to still visit the Civic Museum at the Castello Ursino, which was also on my Tripadvisor list and nearby. The Museum is situated in the 13th century castle Ursino, which was built for Emperor Frederick II, King of Sicily. At the museum on display are diverse exibits from the castle itself, but mainly from Catania and its surroundings and from artists, who were born in the city, which date back to ancient times. Unfortunatelly the museum seems a bit chaotic or even improvised and there was a lack of information boards in english and in general a main theme. Nevertheless there is a colourful mix of artefacts and you won't get bored. My highlights were some paintings by some local artists for example L'effetto dell'hashish (1875) by Pasquale Liotta or Head of mad Ophelia by Michele Rapisardi.

Nachdem wir durch die Altstadt gewandert waren und es schon später Nachmittag war, entschieden wir uns dann noch in ein Museum zu gehen, was auf meiner Tripadvisor-Liste stand. Da das Museum auch bis 19 Uhr geöffnet war, passte dies perfekt. Das Museum befindet sich im Castello Ursino, welches im Auftrag Kaiser Friedrichs II. im 13. Jahrhundert erbaut wurde. In dem Museum befinden sich diverse Artefakte aus Catania und Umgebung, die bis zurück in die Antike reichen. Leider erscheint das Museum teilweise improvisiert und mir fehlten Erklärungen zu den Ausstellungsstücken und im allgemeinen ein roter Faden. Trotzdem entsteht ein buntes Allerlei und es gibt es einiges Interessantes zu sehen. Meine Highlights waren die Gemälde einiger aus Catania stammender Maler wie z.B. L'effetto dell'hashish (1875) von Pasquale Liotta oder Head of mad Ophelia von Michele Rapisardi.

Catania - First Impressions

So after one week in Puglia, we packed our bags again und travelled to our next destination, Sicily. We wouldn't have chosen that destination on our own, because we didn't associate much with Sicily and weren't that interested in exploring that part of Italy, but since my parents were also on holiday on the island at that time, we decided to meet there and then travel back to Germany together. So we travelled to Catania first and then wanted to go by train to their holiday resort near Palermo.

For our first day in Catania I didn't have a specific sight in mind. We booked an hotel right in the city center and just wanted see the neighboorhood and historic heart of the city.

I think it is so much fun strolling around, exploring new territories  and not having that pressure of time. And our first impressions were so different from what we expected. We thought it would be similar to Naples, but that was wrong. The streets are super neat, as well as the many large squares, lined with pretty, historic houses and baroque churches and palaces. Nothing what you think of when hearing the name 'Catania'.