Sicily: Syracuse

There are two main areas of interest in Syracuse - the island of Ortigia and the archaeological park. We spent an evening wandering around Ortigia and then the following morning at the archaeological park before heading to our next destination in Sicily.

First, Ortigia. A really great place to just get lost in with many narrow streets, little shops and restaurants, and a fun square by the Duomo. The Duomo is the main attraction there and it's situated on a large square with some cafes, as most churches are these days:



The other big attraction, which I guess I thought would be completely different, is the fountain of Arethusa. I thought it would be a fountain, with water features, statues, etc. Turns out it's just a fresh water source right next to the ocean where papyrus grows. There were men in wetsuits in the fountain cleaning it when we were there so it wasn't in its best state.



Some pictures of the little streets. Ortigia is really cozy.



If you're not careful, somebody comes by and puts a bird on you, takes your phone and takes a picture, and then demands 5 euros! Ridiculous. (we gave her 2)



This cat was patiently waiting outside a butcher's shop. Obviously, he knows the right place to be at the right time (it was closing time) and the butcher must be a sucker for cats lol. I'd be the same way.



Being an island, there's also some ocean. There were even some people sunbathing down by the water and possibly even swimming.



We ate dinner at a fish restaurant, Kantunera Bistrot, where we just had big heaping plates of delicious fish... Martin had tuna with a browned onion topping and I had some whole white fish that were called dolphinfish but something must have been lost in translation? There actually may have only been 1-2 dishes on the menu that didn't involve fish, so don't go there expecting to eat anything else. I don't think there were even side salads available. The waitstaff were excellent as well.

The next morning we wandered over to see some Greek and Roman ruins on our way down to the south shore of the island. The archaeological park is home to a Greek theater, a Roman amphitheater, and a famous cave known as the "Ear of Dionysius" (plus some other interesting sites but those are the 3 big sellers). We visited the Greek theater first and it was really impressive. It was first built in the 5th century BCE and there are still occasional plays performed in it during the summer months. Of course the day we visited it was super hot and uncomfortable to be walking around in it but we got a few pictures.



The ear of Dionysius, which is ~60m deep and was named because, well, it looks like an ear. There are also great echoes within it. The cave is actually man-made and was created in Greek/Roman times for water storage:



And finally the Roman amphitheater, where gladiator fights were held. The underground pit visible in the middle was likely used for machinery used during the fights.



During our single night in Syracuse, we stayed at the Parco Delle Fontane hotel which was a nice oasis in Syracuse. It's set back nicely from the street and the pool area is quiet and peaceful. Our room was large and clean. I don't recommend ordering the club sandwich from their lunch menu though - it's two slices of crustless white bread with mayo and ham between them! Either they just didn't care to learn what a club sandwich is supposed to contain or they purposely tried to put a twist on it by making it something you'd feed a picky 4 year old. Their french fries were amazing though. Anyway, here are a few pictures of the hotel and pool:



This rooster hung out by the pool all day. He was really cute. He didn't make any noise and just hung around waiting for some crumbs.