Noto in Sicily
I was arriving to Val de Noto from Syracuse just some 30 km away. The road was good and the scenery around very pleasant.
Val de Noto is a centre of the “Baroque Triangle of Sicily” in Italy
Val de Noto consists of eight late baroque towns. They are Caltagirone, Militello Val di Catania, Catania, Modica, Noto, Palazzolo Acreide, Ragusa and Scicli.
UNESCO took up these cities in the list of World Heritage for their Outstanding Universal Value. In fact, they encompass the most representative centers of the late Baroque period in the area.
Catastrophic earthquake in southeastern Sicily
Unfortunately, the catastrophic earthquake in 1693 ravaged towns across south-eastern Sicily.
The rebuilding, restoration and reconstruction of these eight communities created of an exceptional group of towns. As a result, the late Baroque architecture of the 17th century in all its forms and applications is perfectly reflected here.
Privately owned
Private citizens up to this day own the majority of the properties in all eight components. Other owners are the Church or the Government.
All about Noto
I visited five of these towns but this post is all about Noto.
Noto in Sicily is also called the City of Churches
Porta Fernandea (or Porta Reale) is the entrance to the old town. It leads onto the pedestrian zone of Corso Vittorio Emanuele.
Three squares of Noto
Noto is characterised by three squares: Piazza Immaculata, Piazza Municipio, and Piazza XVI Maggio.
Why so many churches in Noto?
The little town of Noto with its around 23, 000 inhabitants has 33 churches. I was told that this is due to the fact that the noble families of the time all had their own church. And interestingly, they were competing with each other on who had the prettiest of them.
The three streets of Noto
The three main streets of Noto were built to run from east to west for best exposure to sun light.
The highest street was inhabited by the nobility. The middle one by clerics and the lowest by the the rest of the population.
Piazza Municipio and the Cathedral of Noto
The most imposing of the squares in Noto is the Piazza Municipio with the Catedrale di San Nicolo de Mira.
Majestic stairs
The majestic flight of stairs leading up to the cathedral is very impressive.
Palazzo Ducezio
Opposite you will find Palazzo Ducezio now the town hall.
French palace architecture inspired this building of the 18th Century.
Fountain of Hercules
Continuing down the Corso Vittorio Emanuele you reach the Piazza XVI with its magnificent Church of San Dominico.
Right opposite is the Fountain of Hercules.
Some say that the fountain is antique Greek artwork recovered from the ruins after the earthquake. But not all experts agree on this.
Palazzo Astuto and Palazzo Trigona Cannicarao, two elaborate noble palaces, are located on the close by Via Cavour.
Flower festival in Noto
By the way, mid May, Noto celebrates the “Infiorata” i.e. the arrival of spring and coming summer. Artists from all over the world create a carpet of beautiful petal mosaic covering most of Via Nicolaci.
Via Nicolaci
Via Nicolaci leads you up to the Chiesa dei Montevergini.
I was intrigued by the heavily decorated balconies along the road.
Palazzo Nicolaci
Half way up the hill, I found the Palazzo Nicolaci de Villadorata. The palazzo is still inhabited by some members of the Nicolaci family. The ground floor is now the local library.
Patio of the “Palazzo Nicolaci”
From the upper floor of “Palazzo Nicolaci” I got a great peak onto the Patio.
As stated already, the family still lives there for some part of the year. However, some areas of the “Palazzo Nicolaci” have been converted into a hotel.
Tourist market in Noto
A bit further down Corso Vittorio Emanuele is a little tourist market.
It sells many items greed for the tourist market but I was intrigued by these locally produced ceramics.
Are we still in Europe?
I had to include this photo as it seems to have been taken somewhere in Morocco or Tunisia.
But after all, Sicily is not that far from North Africa.
Conclusion
Noto, with its innumerable number of churches in relation to its inhabitants, is definitely an amazing town to visit. To see the imposing stairs in front of the Cathedral, the three squares etc. is just a unique experience.
In all this, in my post I just gave you a little taste to convince you that it is a “must see” if you are in the area.
A little tip : Get there early in the day
One last little advise. Get there early in the day as it does get very crowded with busloads of tourist arriving.
The majority of sights close over lunch time. There a many restaurants on the main street to pass the waiting time.
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Ragusa
My next planned destination in Val de Noto was Ragusa. Unfortunately, the accommodations I had booked turned out to be not as expected.
Being 5pm, I started looking around to find an alternative. At one point, I stopped to enquire with some ladies sitting in front of their houses on the main street. Well, within few moments, my search for accommodation became an issue that everybody close by got involved. At the end, I decided to just drive down to the Marina de Ragusa and spend the night there. It was a good decision. The sundowner by the sea was great and so was the food in the restaurant.
Posts for Sicily include Siracusa, Noto, Taormina. Other locations are groups up into one post. Also check out my tips for Sicily.
Enjoy the read!
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