Siracusa

Once one of the largest cities of the ancient world, and the largest Greek city of all. Today it is split between the old part, the island of Ortigia, and the newer town.

Visiting Ortigia is a journey through Greek temples and Christian churches, Swabian, Aragonese and Baroque palaces, courtyards, Arab alleys and workshops. The Duomo alone tells the whole story: a Doric temple built over Sicel settlements, then a Byzantine basilica, a Norman church, late Renaissance and finally Baroque.

However you walk it, in Ortigia you always meet the sea: the natural harbour at sunset, the market, the smells in the street, the fish menus.

Just outside lies the Neapolis Park, with the Greek Theatre, the Roman Amphitheatre, the Latomie quarries and the Ear of Dionysius.