The Real Palermo

Palermo is an Italian metropolis and is actually quite a large city. Most visitors get a glimpse of the historic centre and the town of Monreale but see little of the city's "real life."

I decided to wander past the famous attractions and spent a Saturday on the promenade near the port.  I could compare this place to Bombay's Marine Drive, as there are a lot of smiliarities. You can see a cross section of Palermo society on this promenade. Couples, families, groups of young people and of course joggers!

The big difference between Marine Drive and the Palermo promenade is the fact that the latter faces the east, so no beautiful sunset by the sea.

The entire area around the port reverberates with energy. I also enjoyed watching future football stars in action and had a Spaghetti ai Ricci (With sea urchins) at a roadside restaurant. 4 days later, I didn't get poisoned and so I can say that was a good experience. The people running the place were yelling at each other in a Palermo dialect. They sure did remind me of Sicilian Americans near the South Street Seaport in New York.

Monreale: Glimpses of the Real Sicily

Move away from the beautiful Duomo in Monreale, a hill town above Palermo, and walk up the narrow and winding alleys. This is where you will see the Sicily of movies. A Sicily where people talk louldy, outside the church after mass or around a market. The town of Monreale has its share of real shops, and by that I mean family run stores.

There is so much charisma to this pretty town, which is just 20 minutes away from Palermo but has its own dialect. There's no doubt that mosaics of the Duomo and the Arab-Norman architecture is stunning and unique but the prized attractions of the town are the smaller and historic churches that are functional and used by normal Sicilians.

I walked into one such church, where a Sicilian beauty told me about the church and the people of Monreale. She laughed at my stupid ideas of her island. "No, my father and brothers won't kill you for engaging in a conversation with me, or for even calling me beautiful....Sicily really isn't like that anymore," she said.

The smell of fish in the markets, the colours of the fruits and the delicious desserts of the island; these were all things I saw, smelt and tasted in the pretty town of Monreale.

Sicily's Indians

On my first day in Palermo, I was surprised to see a sari shop. Sicilians don't exactly walk around wearing the traditional Indian dress. Then there were the curry houses and people with Indian features. (I was told the flower sellers were Tunisians and not from South Asia). As I walked past an Indian shop, the owner stepped out and asked if I was Indian.

He went on to tell me about how he came from Punjab illegally but has been in Palermo for 13 years with a legal status, where he pays a lot of taxes! "They don't give Italian visas in Delhi," he said. When I reminded him that illegal immigrants were the reason behind tough visa rules, he hit back saying that "you Bombayites have the money from birth and can do whatever you please but object when the rural poor want a better life"

I honestly loathe human smuggling and the barely educated people who illegally immigrate to the West or any developed country for that matter. Such people are the bane of the decent hard-working and educated Indian. But Sicily doesn't seem to mind these Indians. Many young people in Palermo relish Indian food at these curry houses and also appreciate the hard-working Indians who run cyber cafes and phone centres late into the night.

One Sicilian even told me that South Asian migrants were a boon to Palermo and helped the economy. This man did not have kind words for what he calls thousands of clandestine Americans living and working in Rome as tourist guides, illegally. "Don't they need visas? Does anyone even care." he said.

See this link for an analysis on immigration in Sicily.

http://www.bestofsicily.com/mag/art181.htm

I have to add that many people in Palermo assumed that I was an immigrant especially since I speak Italian. So, when I went to the more expensive places dressed well and with my DSLR camera, there were stares. A well to do, well-dressed dark man.. hmmm.. That is a rare phenomenon in Sicily.

Staying safe in Palermo at night

The Sant'Elia is located close to the Quatro Canti on Via Maqueda in Palermo. It is indeed a great place to watch a concert but then arises the problem of walking home late night in this beautiful city. Guidebooks advise people to either avoid being out at night or walking in a large group. Since the venue was jam-packed, I assumed that many people would walk towards the Politeama Opera Theatre with me, but as I stepped out, I saw a large crowd walking the other way.

I didn't feel unsafe, but after hearing all the stories, I decided to walk fast and be aware of my surroundings. All the Indian-operated cyber cafes and the curry houses were open. So, I guess if I had trouble and the "kick and run" policy didn't work, all I needed to do was get into a currry house and scream bachao (help in Hindi).

Of course, the evening wasn't that exciting, the streets were full of South Asians and a few Sicilians with punk-styled hair cuts. There was also a smattering of French tourists taking pics of the city at night. I had about 10 Euros in my pocket and if a mugger wanted it, he could have it. As I walked back to the hotel, I felt more and more at ease.

Palermo was beautiful, peaceful and kind to me on this gorgeous night. 

August Summer Night in Palermo

I am fortunate enough to be in this wonderful city at the time of the International Palermo Classical Music Festival. There are concerts almost every single evening and musicians perform the works of Beethoven, Rachmaninov, Brahms and Tchaikovsky.

Using my student identity card from Siena, I was privileged to watch a concert of the Mediterranea Chamber Orchestra for just 7 Euros. This concert, held yesterday, was a tribute to Brahms. I thoroughly enjoyed it, but it didn't compare to what lay in store for me this evening at the beautiful Palazzo Sant'Elia. The lovely building played host to a free concert of a quartet that played everything from Jazz to Classical music.

The building was jam-packed by what seemed like the entire intelligentsia of Palermo. It was a warm August night in the city and despite the heat, the large crowd that turned up for the open air concert in the foyer of the building loved every second of the concert. I particularly appreciated the renditions of Gershwin's compositions.

I have seen a concert at Vienna's Musikverein and an opera at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow this year and I can safely say that neither of those experiences compared to this magical evening in Palermo. Classical music was made for Italy and like the wonderful concert I witnessed at the San Agostino Church in Siena 2 weeks ago, this concert set my soul on fire.

There I was in that wonderful venue, listening to "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" and looking up at a star-filled Sicilian night. All I could feel was gratitude for being there this wonderful summer night. Thank You Palermo, Thank You Sicily, Thank You Italy and most of all, Thank You Professore.

On that August night in 2010, when I sent you an email at 11 pm to enquire about the Italian course, I had no clue that you would respond to me in 5 minutes and I had no clue that the course would make my life so much more fulfilling and happy. Less than 2 years later, I am in Palermo listening to one of the best renditions of classical and jazz music and interacting with some of the best people in all of Sicily.

Palermo: Uniqueness Unlimited

I didn't know what to expect from the capital of Sicily. Most outsiders know Sicily for one reason and that is the Cosa Nostra, the dreaded mafia. They really managed to make life hell in this beautiful island but thankfully they have been crushed.

Palermo is like no other city in the world. It has a mix of Norman and Arabic architecture with influences from many other parts of Southern Europe and Northern Africa. I love the Quatro Canti, an area with 4 fountains and beautiful churches.

It's hard not to be awestruck by the city's magnificient Arabo-Norman Cathedral, the wonderful churches with the most beautiful interiors and the Palazzo Reale, with its own Palatin Chapel and the Sicilian Parliament.

Palermo is a wonderful city for pedestrians and it's a pleasure to walk around during the day. I wouldn't like to take late-evening strolls here, though. This evening, I am off to the wonderful Paliteamo Theatre for a classical music concert.

Mount Vesuvius and Naples

This photo was taken from the resort town of Sorrento, where I spent a wonderful couple of days.

Beautiful Capri

Home to the rich and famous of Italy such as Giorgio Armani and Sophia Loren, this small island is one of the most beautiful in all of Europe. There is absolutely no sign of the so-called financial crisis in Capri, where as the Italians say, "you eat for 1 person and pay for 10."

I took the famous Azurro Grotto cruise only to find that I could not enter the Blue Cave because of the waves, but the cruise on the azure blue and crystal clear Gulf of Naples was a highlight of my time here in Italy. The limestone island has many places from where you have breathtaking views.

My favourite was the via Krupp, named after the German steel baron Friedrich Alfred Krupp, who commissioned this path by the cliffs that connect the small marina with the Augustus Gardens. The path is absolutely spectacular.

There is something about coastal Italy and the islands that appeal more to me than the areas inland, which I love anyway.

Argument alla Napoli

In Tuscany, there is a certain amount of gentleness among the people, who tend to be a bit reserved. I have seen people bumping into each other in buses and smiling with a brief "excuse me." In Naples, where the people are anything but reserved, it's easy for locals to get into heated arguments.

While taking the famous R2 bus from the central railway station, a teenager bumped into a seated pensioner. The man immediately exploded and told the girl to be more careful. The conversation then changed from Italian into a Neapolitan dialect, of which I understand almost nothing.

The heated exchange, laced with an occasional smile, went on for the next 10 minutes with many others interfering and people taking sides. No side yielded and the girl, whose friend vociferously supported her, got off the bus, thinking she had the better of the exchange.

Despite the fact that this was a fight, I enjoyed the exchanges. I guess the fun was in the energy of the people and the beauty of the dialect that they spoke.

Viva Napoli!

Don't talk to psychopaths!

Every country has its share of loonies and as I was to discover, Italy is no exception. On the Circumvesuviano Train from Sorrento to Naples, I interacted with many of the fellow passengers. They were suprised that I wasn't a Bangladeshi immigrant but rather an Indian journalist studying in Italy. In fact, I met a lot of wonderful people on the streets of Naples who were happy to see a  "real Indian." I have to admist that I did feel special, like a star :)

Getting back to that train ride, there was a nice man sitting next to me in the train, who looked a bit like the all-time great baseball manager, Tommy Lasorda. The man knew some Bengali as well and befriended me talking about Buddhism and Christianity, analysing both religions. So far, so good. He then told me that he could show me a couple of places in the city as he had some free time. What a nice man, or so I thought!

I should have gotten a hint when he saw some young boys in one of the station and commented that they were sundar purushes as he put it (beautiful men in Hindi)! After we reached Naples, we took a bus and then I noticed that his affection was making me uncomfortable. He started holding my hand but then I thought it's a Southern Italian way of being nice. When he tried to touch my knees and my back, I asked him to stop.

Out of the bus and in a nice area of the city, I wanted to thank him for showing me around and leave. Then comes the question: "Have you ever made love with a man?" I told him that I haven't and don't want to. He then said Indians and Bengalis like to take it slow. I politely told him that I am not interested. He then told me that he was a leader in the Neapolation Mafia called the Camorra and that he could be dangerous. I didn't respond to that and he then said, we could meet in Siena. I doubt the man would come all the way here, but I can safely say that this is the first time in my life that getting friendly with a stranger put me in such a situation.

Napoli: Italy's Grafitti Capital

Before I write any further, I would like to set the record straight. I love Naples and the wonderful people that live in the great city.

Now that I got that disclaimer out of the way, here are some frank expressions on the city, which can easily be called the Bombay of Italy. My dear Italian professor in Bombay once commented that Naples resembles the Kalbadevi area of Bombay. I am inclined to agree that this is the case on a small scale as Naples just has a population of 1.5 million and the sheer madness of Kalbadevi on a weekday afternoon cannot be matched.

There are several points in Naples that offer great views of Mt Vesuvius and the Gulf of Naples. What distrubed me was the fact that most beautiful areas of the city have been trashed by grafitti. I fail to understand how people can be driven to destroy their heritage. It's one thing to spray paint newer structures on hills, but something else to vandalize old piazzas. Thankfully, the Galleria Umberto, one of the most beautiful buildings in all of Italy, has been left alone by the vandals, but the Piazza del Plesbicito, the most famous public square of the city has been desecrated by the grafitti punks. They haven't even spared the church on the square.

A lot of churches have been attacked by these "artists." Many of India's monuments have also been desecrated by idiots but the sheer scale of vandalism in the beautiful city of Naples shocked me.

Viva Napoli

There was a sense of coming home when my train entered the platform of the Naples Central Railway Station. It was a lifelong dream for me to visit the great city in southern Italy since I was child. Maybe it had something to do with the Dean Martin song "Amore" or the fact that I grew up in a neighbourhood in New York that had pizzerias serving Naples-style pizza. The home-coming may also have had to do with the fact that Naples has a lot in common with Bombay.

Spending time in the city made me nostalgic and thought about the older Italian men playing bocci in the afternoons in Queens. The people in the south looked more like the Italians you encounter in America.

They say you get the best pizza in the world in Naples and I can now certify that. The taste is out of this world and it will be tough for me to appreciate a margherita again...

Running in Siena

This is a wonderful city for those who want to get into good shape. It's hilly and going from any place to other involves going up and  down various hills.

Running can be a challenge here but I love my evening jogs up and down the hills of this historic town. It's too hot to run during the day, so it's either late evenings or early mornings. If I can manage to run regulalry, I will end up with muscular Tuscan legs, something that should help me run well in Shimla in the end of September.

As I write this, I see a crimson cloud on the Tuscan sky and twilight covering up some of the rolling and green hills of this beautiful region. I am truly blessed to be in what I consider the most beautiful country on earth.

Beautiful Siena

There are beautiful town and then there's Siena, a Tuscan hill town that was built in the Middle Ages and is almost preserved to perfection.

I will slowly get back into the blogosphere. So readers, please be patient.

Grazie

Who needs Guantanamo Bay when there's Delta Airlines?

I pondered long and hard about whether I should write this post and in the end I decided to go ahead with because I don't even want my worst enemy to suffer the torture of flying Delta from Bombay to Amsterdam.

In what has to be the greatest rip-off and con job, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines has a codeshare with Delta, where the latter flies to India's financial capital instead of the former. In keeping with the fact that American airlines are in bad shape, Delta flies a Boeing 767 with very little legroom, no individual monitors behind seats, poor in-flight entertainment, a terrible and freezing cold aircraft, service that leaves a lot to be desired and terrible food.

This is the worst long-haul flight one can ever take and it needs to be avoided like the plague. There are many options to fly to Europe from Bombay, so please look for another one.