Thread by @PaliparanDotCom

Goodmorning from a stormy Cefalù! I have one day to explore this beautiful town and one day for the city of Palermo a bit further down the north coast of Sicily.

In case you missed the earlier Twitter threads: I started off this trip visiting beautiful, underrated Turin with its many excellent museums..

https://twitter.com/PaliparanDotCom/status/1444240950549794819?t=A-s9Tx792v4Xsbk8L7PywQ&s=19

And yesterday I took a long but beautiful train ride from Turin all the way down to Sicily. First on the high speed train to Milan, then on the night train to Sicily.. which goes on a ferry to cross the Strait of Messina!

https://twitter.com/PaliparanDotCom/status/1444923389748170753?t=A-s9Tx792v4Xsbk8L7PywQ&s=19

Back to Cefalù: There is a nice beach in town but the weather is not so great. The beautiful seaside location is one of the main attractions of this town, especially with the backdrop of a large rock rising high above the old town.

Cefalù is listed as UNESCO World Heritage because of its Cathedral, which was completed in 1240. Built in Norman style, it was constructed after the Normans conquered Sicily in 1091. Typical of this architectural style, the church looks and feels like a fortress!

Around the cathedral square, you can find plenty of cute little streets to explore.

From the sea I'm heading inland to climb the great rock of Cefalù! Up there is a castle and the ruins of old churches and temples to admire. It's a great way to burn off the excess calories from all the food & wine. It'a very humid today so overall it's sweaty walking around..

Needless to say, there are some great views as you climb up. You pass through numerous levels of fortifications and gates. Already in antiquity, they have fortified this rock, seeing the huge defensive potential.

There are archaeological remains of warehouses, cisterns, churches - and even a temple of Diana (pic 4) on top of the hill.

The views are stunning from up here!

Climbing even higher up on the rock, and also here the views don't disappoint..

And climbing down again, with a little treat of arancini al ragu and a Messina beer from draught waiting for me (love the glass!)

Cefalù station. Time to take the train to Palermo today! But first, some coffee at the train station kiosk.

The days of Italian regional trains being old, derelict and smelling of urine are over. Modern, new train sets are often used, with power sockets at every seat. Views aren't bad today - even the sun is making an appearance after days of cloudy, rainy weather!

Between Cefalù and Palermo, this RV (Regionale Veloci, a faster regional train with fewer stops) only halts at one station: Termini Imerese.

And after a fast, comfortable ride we reach Palermo..

Palermo Centrale station.

First order of business: some lunch! Big thanks to @RossiMargo for the tip about 'Ferro di Cavallo', a restaurant which turned out to be a homerun with great food for affordable prices. Squid ink spaghetti, stuffed squid and traditional setteveli cake (Palermo speciality). Yum!

Together with Lecce, Palermo may well be one of my favourite Italian cities. It's beautiful, but at the same time has some squalor. It's elegant, but also down-to-earth and low key. Then there is the constant chaos, both on and off the road. It's like an Italian version of Hanoi.

Piazza Pretoria with its large fountain is flanked by the Santa Caterina d'Allesandria Church and two palaces, one of them housing the City Hall.

The Piazza Quattro Canti is symmetric, with a fountain and a statue inside a niche at every counter.

Villa Bonanno is a beautiful park in central Palermo..

At the western end of this park you can find the Palazzo dei Normanni, a 9th Century Norman palace.

The Royal Chapel of the palace, the Capella Palatina, is absolutely stunning. It's a mixture of Byzantine, Norman and Islamic styles (the arches are proper Fatimid style).

From the Norman Palace, it's a short walk back to the Cathedral. I love these old balconies on the streets here!

A look inside Palermo's Cathedral..

After the Norman Palace and Cathedral visit it's time for a well deserved beer with a view.. Palermo is one of those cities where it's fun enough just to sit down and watch the world go by in all its Italian craziness and splendour.

Some more Palermo impressions..

Salumeria Vino e Cacio is a friendly place to stop by for a good glass of Sicilian wine and some cold cuts.

Lovely colours at dusk as the streets are slowly filling up with people going out for a drink, dinner or just to stroll around aimlessly, see around and be seen (the traditional 'passeggiata').

I'm joining the crowd as well for a stroll and a drink..

Walking by a couple of other Palermo landmarks such as the Teatro Massimo, Palazzo delle Poste and the Chiesa San Domenico.. I love the contrast between the elegant boulevards & main squares and the local life in the small streets.

The Vucciria Market area has two crumbling squares (Piazza Caracciolo and Piazza Garraffello) which are happening spots for a drink at night. Very low-key and local, love it.

And with an IPA from a craft beer bar I'm calling an end to the day - and basically to my trip to Italy. Tomorrow it will be back to the corona-infested lockdown lands of Romania where the current political disfunctionality would shock even the Italians ;)

The last train ride ot this trip is the 1-hour-long journey to Punta Raisi, Palermo's stunningly located airport wedged between the sea and a Gibraltar-like rock.

Flying back the unglamorous way (but cheap, only 16 euro incl seat reservation) to Bucharest. The brooding skies overhead are gorgeous.

What a spectacular view from the window!

And back in a chilly Romania..