Isola di Ortigia, centro storico di Siracusa

Visiting it means taking a journey spanning 3000 years, concentrated in just one square kilometer, shaped by Greek temples, Christian churches, Swabian, Aragonese, and Baroque palaces, Arab alleys, flowered courtyards, shops, modest homes, and large public buildings. To see is the Maniace Castle, crouched in the southern part, built in the first half of the 13th century by Frederick II of Swabia and used both as a residence and a defensive bulwark. Surviving both the 1693 earthquake and a sudden explosion of gunpowder in 1704, it has preserved its original square plan and has saved only one corner tower. The Cathedral, born in the 5th century as a temple of Athena, underwent several modifications to become a Christian basilica, up to its current Baroque form; it houses important works of art and a 17th-century statue of Saint Lucy. The lively Duomo Square is lined with fine Baroque palaces, including the Beneventano dal Bosco Palace and the Senate Palace. In the northern part of Ortigia is the Temple of Apollo from the 6th century BC, considered the oldest in Sicily, which over the centuries became a Byzantine church, an Arab mosque, a Norman church, and an Aragonese barracks. In Ortigia, all streets, all visit itineraries lead to the sea. At sunset, the great natural port becomes a magical place, filled with the last voices, the last gestures of the day, and the aromas of fish coming from nearby restaurants. To the north, on the mainland, stretches Neapolis, with the imposing Archaeological Park, which includes the Greek Theater, the Roman Amphitheater, the Altar of Hiero II, the Latomia of Paradise with the Grotto of the Ropemakers and that of the Ear of Dionysius, a necropolis, and the evocative Street of the Tombs.