area: Centro
The first construction, built around the 1300s, was a small chapel dedicated to the martyr San Vito, the venerated patron saint of the seaside village. From the ancients it is said that the young Vito (actually born in Mazara del Vallo), who converted to Christianity, was forced to leave his native village to escape the persecution of the emperor Diocletian.
The fugitive was accompanied by the nurse Crescence and to the instigator Modesto, after having sailed for a few days at the mercy of the sea, they found refuge in the gulf sheltered by a rocky head (Egitarso), not far away presiding over the inhabitants of the village Conturrana, to whom the three castaways would try to convert their faith to Christianity, but they were sued off; In the escape Vito I find death and a landslide buried the village and all the inhabitants (the punishment of God for the infidels). Still according to the myth of Santa Crescenza, fleeing threats from the villagers, who arrived at a distance of about three kilometers from the village, turned to look at the collapse of the town and became stone in the same spot where the chapel now stands.
Just past the suggestive imprint of the chapel of Santa Crescenza, running towards the town you leave a glimpse of history, to begin a journey full of suggestions of ancient cultures, a mixture of colors of low white houses cloaked in the green of bougainvillea, perfumed alleys from jasmine waterfalls, and flavors that narrate ancient traditions to be fixed in the memory and carried away within oneself.
Walking along the whole of Via Savoia, the main street of the town, we arrive in front of an ancient Arab fortress transformed in the XIII century into the majestic Sanctuary. In front of the Sanctuary in the square, shows and concerts are organized on summer evenings.
A few steps from piazza Santuario we find the Museo del Mare (via Savoia 57), where some important archaeological finds recovered from the San Vito seabed are preserved, especially on the wreck of the Arab-Norman ship that lies on the seabed in front of the Lighthouse. The Lighthouse of San Vito emits a light that reaches up to over twenty nautical miles, and for this reason it is one of the most important in Sicily. It is about 1 km from the town, and the tower is high mt. 39. 60.
Leaving the lanes of the village, and going towards the Zingaro reserve, you arrive in Via del secco where La Tonnara di San Vito Lo Capo is located at the foot of Monte Monaco, a recommended stop not only for tourist interest of the structure, but also for being able to take a swim in crystal clear waters, enjoying a background that tells so much history alone. Establishing with precision the year of construction of the building is difficult, some news date back to the 1600s.
It is supposed to have been the property of the Monastery of Santa Rosalia of Palermo, although the Marquis of Villabianca, in a truly confused manner, also mentions the Monastery of San Vito in Palermo. In 1872 the Tonnara del Secco was bought by Vito Foderà of Castellamare del Golfo, the factory was built where tuna were salted and canned, the building was enlarged, the back garden was built and the terrace in front.
Vito Foderà maintains relations with the whole of Italy and sells tuna, not only in Sicily, but also in Naples, Livorno and La Spezia.
On the death of Vito Foderà (1920) the widow Silensi in Foderà the rent; first, to the Plaja brothers (from 1920 to 1924), and then to the Monticciolo brothers (from 1925 to 1929).
In 1930 the Plaja brothers bought the Tonnara and in 1933 the contract was signed.
But the mattanze begin to be negative, the fish is never canned but sold to the fish market.
An inexperienced Rais wanted to change the fishing area and took them to the sandy bottom in front of the beach.
The nets have not been lowered since 1969. Not even a fish was caught that year, but even today in spring and early summer it is easy to see tuna swimming happily on the surface of the Gulf of Secco, sign that those big fish - once riches for entire populations - have not completely deserted these seas.
Currently the complex is impractical and unfortunately in a state of abandonment.
The Gypsy reserve is one of the most evocative landscapes of Sicily without a coastal road, (although one was planned and actually started already in 1976). It develops along the coast for over seven kilometers, in one of the few strips of land still intact throughout the island. They are mountains that rise from the sea, crossed by paths that lead to discover glimpses of landscapes of beauty in which the particular light reverberates the colors of the rocks and vegetation contrasting them with the different shades of blue sea of ??the coast.
The Reserve extends in the Western part of the Gulf of Castellammare, in the peninsula of San Vito lo Capo overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea between Castellammare del Golfo and Trapani. The territory falls largely in the municipality of San Vito lo Capo and to a lesser extent in the municipality of Castellammare.
Inside the reserve there is the Naturalistic Museum, the Maritime Activities Museum, the Museum of Rural Life, where the complete wheat cycle is reproduced, the Environmental Education Center, two equipped areas and rural buildings used for bivouac.
In the reserve there are over 800 species of plants of great naturalistic and landscape interest, over 40 species of birds nest, others winter or stay there during migrations.
Other representatives of the fauna of the reserve are the Volpe, the Weasel and the Allocco (nocturnal bird of prey typical of the woods that has adapted perfectly to this environment), the Wild Rabbit, and some reptiles such as the Vipera, the Saettone, the Biacco and the Sicilian Lizard.
The underwater landscape is an uninterrupted succession of colors and shapes. In the rocky walls covered with algae, anemones and madrepores, small fish with colorful liveries typical of the rocks of the inshore swim. In depth, where sponges are more frequent, it is possible to find some isolated colonies of red coral
Buildings are the symbol of the presence of human evolution:
a group of rural houses near Monte Passo del Lupo, and some scattered buildings that are found in C. da Sughero and in C. da Zingaro, inhabited until a few decades ago and destined to work related to agriculture and pastoralism; the Tower of the Uzzo, on the coast in the C. from homonym, built in the '500 with functions of military, to which subsequently small houses of agricultural use were leaned; the Tonnarella dell'Uzzo, active until the last century with support functions for the most important Scopello tuna trap.
Magnificently organized from the point of view of fruition (paths with precise indications, shelters, water points, equipped areas, museums, car parking, etc.), the reserve can only be visited on foot, as there are no driveways. All trails are well supported by adequate signage.
The entrances to the reserve are two:
- to the south: from Scopello - main entrance, equipped with accommodation facilities
Take the A29 Palermo-Mazara motorway to the Castellammare del Golfo exit.
Follow the SS 187 towards Trapani up to the junction for Scopello.
- to the north: from San Vito Lo Capo
Get to the SS 187 as indicated above and turn at the junction for San Vito.
EXCURSIONS
ERICE - SALINE - SEGESTA
MAZARA DEL VALLO - SELINUNTE
PALERMO - MONREALE
MARSALA - MOZIA - WINERIES
AGRIGENTO "VALLE DEI TEMPLI"
BOAT
ZINGARO SCOPELLO RESERVE
MINI-CRUISE motorboat
ISLAND OF FAVIGNANA AND LEVANZO
Erice
Erice is a medieval village surrounded by mighty walls, perched on the summit of Monte San Giuliano seven hundred and fifty meters, in front of Trappani and the Egadi Islands.
Elimi religious center, famous for its temple where the Phoenicians worshiped Astarte, the Greeks Aphrodite and the Roman Venus, was disputed by the Syracusans and Carthaginians until the conquest by the Romans in 244 BC. C.
Stone is the scenic feature of this citadel: in stone are the numerous churches, Arab-Norman houses with loggias, courtyards and patios adorned with plants and flowers.
Among the many monuments of considerable importance is the Chiesa Matrice (XIV century), dedicated to the Madonna and with the interiors redone in the last century, the Medieval Castle (XII-XIII century) with the remains of the temple and the Town Hall, headquarters of a library and of the Cordici Museum, rich with archaeological finds from the Necropolis of Erice, among which stands a head of Aphrodite from the 4th century. to. C.
In Erice there is the International Study Center named after Ettore Majorana, commissioned by the illustrious physicist from Trapani, Antonino Zichichi, which recalls the most qualified scholars in the world for the scientific treatment of problems affecting different sectors: from medicine to law, from history to astronomy, from philology to chemistry.
Saline
Sicily is a land rich in salt pans. The salt pans that make up the Trapani Nature Reserve extend over an area of ??nine hundred and fifty hectares. The coastal road, which from Trapani leads to Marsala, crossing the Reserve is called the "via del sale": a dreamlike landscape plain extolled with windmills, white heaps of salt that resemble pyramids, and which shine in the sun by day then at sunset they are tinged with purple, ruby ??to amaranth. The story tells that it was the Phoenicians who planted the first tanks for the extraction of salt. With Frederick II the emperor, they became a state monopoly. In Nubia, five kilometers from Trapani there is the Salt Museum, in which are exposed all the tools that tell the work in the salt pans.
Segesta
Founded by the Elimi and located in the northwestern part of Sicily.
The old city is located near Mount Barbaro, behind the Gulf of Castellammare.
Of particular beauty are the Doric temple, and the theater partly dug into the rock of the hill.
Since their foundation Segesta and Selinunte, were at war for reasons of borders.
Segesta asked Athens for help to intervene against the Selinuntian initiative supported by Syracuse.
The Athenians besieged Syracuse but were disastrously defeated.
The clashes ended when Selinunte was besieged and destroyed by the Carthaginians, once again invoked by the Segestans.
The city rinaque with the Romans who defended it from the attempt of Carthaginian reconquest.
Segesta was destroyed exacerbated by the Vandals and never dared to violate the temples and the theater.
"Temple"
The temple is in Doric style and stands in majestic solitude on a hill.
Closed by 14 columns on the long sides and 6 on the facade and 6 on the back, they are 9 meters high, and have a diameter of 2 meters.
For its invoice and its current state of preservation, it can be considered one of the most beautiful temples of antiquity.
For some historians it was not finished, perhaps due to a war.
"Theater"
The theater is located further north of the temple, where the acropolis stood, within the walls.
Seven wedges divide the seats of the spectators. The separation is done in travertine.
The horizontal division of the theater (diazoma) allowed visitors to move from one section of the theater to another.
The theater could accommodate up to four thousand spectators.
Mazara del Vallo
It rises on the left bank of the mouth of the Mazzaro river, along the western coast of the island between Capo Boeo and Capo San Marco.
The port of Mazara for fishing is one of the largest in Italy.
Mazara preserves numerous testimonies ranging from the 11th to the 18th century, including the church of San Nicolò Regale which is Norman style; while in the Baroque style is the church of Santa Veneranda and Sant'Ignazio the Piazza della Repubblica on which the Seminary of the Clerics, the Bishop's Palace and the Cathedral open.
Selinunte
The city of Selinunte took its name from Selinon, the wild parsley.
Today it is mounds of ancient remains and stones of Greek colonization.
In the sixth and fifth centuries BC C. nine imposing and magnificent temples were built, decorated with statues and metopes in Doric style.
All the land involved today forms an archaeological park about 40 hectares in size. The archaeological park is today considered the largest and most impressive in Europe.
The sculptures found in the excavations of Selinunte are found above all in the National Archaeological Museum of Palermo the most famous work Efebo of Selinunte now kept in the Museum of Castelvetrano.
The archaeological park is divided into four areas: the Acropolis, the eastern hill, the ancient city and the sanctuary of Malophoros.
Palermo
Palermo is sumptuous and poor, indolent and effervescent, splendid and melancholy tender and passionate; has kept the mystery of things gone.
Years of foreign domination have left indelible traces also in the artistic heritage, made of masterpieces and architectural styles that coexist together: Punic, Greek and Byzantine Palermo; Arab buildings; Norman churches and castles, imaginative Spanish Baroque up to the modern liberty.
Among the most significant monuments of the historic center of Palermo we recall:
. the Palazzo dei Normanni, also known as the Royal Palace, which is now the seat of the Sicily region and which preserves the most significant monument of Arab-Norman art, namely the Palatine Chapel, built by Roger II in the 12th century and entirely covered from sparkling golden mosaics and inlays;
- the Church of San Giovanni degli Eremiti, built on the ruins of a pre-existing religious building in the 12th century, is one of the most significant examples of the Arab presence in Palermo, and this can be seen above all in the red domes and in the numerous ogival arches that decorate the interior of the church;
the Cathedral of the Assumption, built in the 12th century but heavily remodeled in the following centuries, which preserves the tombs of the Norman emperors and the sacred relics of Saint Rosalia, the patron saint of the city;
- the Martorana, the name by which the Church of Santa Maria dell'Ammiraglio is known, built in the Norman era and still today decorated with splendid mosaics from the 12th century;
- the Oratory of Santa Zita, a small chapel dedicated to the Madonna which has a complex stucco decoration depicting biblical and allegorical scenes;
Palazzo Abatellis, built in the fifteenth century and now home to the National Gallery of Sicily, in which valuable works by Sicilian artists are preserved, such as Antonello da Messina (XV century) and Francesco Laurana (XV century);
- the Parco della Favorita, one of Palermo's public parks that was once the hunting reserve of King Ferdinand IV, is also enriched with some buildings where cultural and social activities take place.
Monreale
Monreale is situated on a hill eight kilometers from Palermo.
One of the jewels of this small town is the Cathedral of Monreale, a masterpiece of Byzantine-Arab-Norman art dedicated to the Madonna and entrusted to the order of the Benedictine monks for whom the abbey was also built.
Marsala
Masala is the provincial town famous for its wine.
The historic center of Marsala is of medieval origin, we can admire: the Spanish Quarter which is rich in buildings erected during the Iberian domination;
the two monumental doors Porta Nuova and Porta Garibaldi; The imposing buildings Senatorial Palace and the Norman style Cathedral; The Tapestry Museum which preserves Flemish arrests.
Mozia
Mozia is a small island, flat and low, a strip of Phoenician land.
The island is easily accessible by motor boats that in a few minutes cross the small arm of water, the strategic position, surrounded by the shallow waters of the Stagnone lagoon, and naturally protected by the nearby Isola Longa, made it a coveted target for both Carthaginians than by the Syracusans. And it is precisely because of the latter that Motya was completely destroyed and soon forgotten, only to be rediscovered at the end of the last century.
Agrigento
The province is a very famous island tourist center thanks to its huge archaeological heritage - just think of the Valley of the Temples -, historical, cultural, naturalistic and folkloric. It has been able to exploit itself from the social point of view, as evidenced by the cultural manifestation of the "Almond in Flower" which occurs every year in February and which takes place in the mythical Valley of the Temples and which for some decades has been associated with the International Festival of Folklore.
The Almond Blossom Festival is a clear tourist attraction that tends to enhance the already picturesque cultural and historical heritage of the city in which it takes place, so it is an excellent tourist tool.
We still visit: the Pirandello theater, built in 1870 by Giovan Battista Basile and Dionisio Sciascia, and which was originally dedicated to Queen Margherita, and only in 1946 took the name of the famous man of letters.
A visit is a must to the Cathedral, whose first works began in the year 1100 but only 200 years later, the church was named after San Gerlando, patron saint of the city.
The visit to Pirandello's birthplace is interesting, where the Pirandello family took refuge on the occasion of a cholera epidemic, and Luigi was born here, on June 28th 1867.
We continue our visit to the most popular seaside resort in the province of Agrigento, that of San Leone, a destination for many vacationers in the summer.
Not to be forgotten: the Viale della Vittoria, considered for centuries the place of the Agrigento's Sunday walk; Villa Bonfiglio and Piazza Cavour; and Piazza Marconi, where the railway station is located.
Our visit continues towards the most evocative part of the city: the Valley of the Temples, that is what remains of the splendid Akragas, an ancient and prosperous city of Magna Graecia.
Finally, a visit to the Archaeological Museum of Agrigento is mandatory, which, with its extraordinary treasures, is the most visited in the whole of Sicily.
Valley of the Temples
Valley of the Temples is an archaeological site dating back to the Magna Graecia period, located near Agrigento, Sicily. Since 1998 it has been included in the list of World Heritage sites, compiled by UNESCO. It is considered a sought after tourist destination, in addition to the highest source of tourism for the entire city of Agrigento and one of the most important in Sicily.
The Valley of the Temples is characterized by the remains of seven temples in Doric style:
The temple of Juno, dedicated to the homonymous Greek goddess. It was the temple where the wedding was usually celebrated.
The temple of Concord; The temple of Heracles was dedicated to the veneration of the god Heracles.
The temple of Zeus built to honor the namesake god; the temple of the Dioscuri was built to honor the twin sons of Sparta and Jupiter; the temple of Vulcano is one of the temples most damaged by time and natural phenomena; the temple of Aesculapius built outside the walls was a place of sick people in search of healing.
Points of interest
* Distances as the crow flies
