One of the most popular summer holiday destinations is Syracuse, the largest Greek city that will charm you with its beauty.
To stay in the very centre of the city, the ideal solution is to choose the Residenze dello Scirocco, two elegant apartments situated on the seafront of Ortigia, or the Casa Delo, the real heart of Syracuse: a walk among the monumental, scenic and historical beauties.
Sightseeing highlights in Ortigia
Walking through Ortigia, you can not help but admire its enchanting monuments. Once in Piazza Duomo, built in Baroque style and with incredible charm, stands the Cathedral or Duomo of Syracuse.
The peculiarity of this monument lies in its structure: conceived as a treasure chest, it contains the most famous and best preserved Doric monument in Sicily: the temple of Athena erected by the tyrant of Syracuse, Gelone, in 480 BC, to thank the goddess of victory over the Carthaginians.
Piazza Duomo, Ortigia
To date, the walls of the cell and the columns of the peristyle are still visible and have been incorporated into the current building.
Proceeding along the Piazza del Duomo you will find the church of Santa Lucia alla Badia with its imposing baroque façade with Rococo inserts in sharp contrast to the architecture inside a single nave, very bare and decorated with modern statues and paintings of important value as the Burial of Santa Lucia by Caravaggio.
The historical heart of Ortigia never ceases to amaze with regard to historical testimonies such as Jewish baths, underground structures fed by spring water that represent one of the few ritual baths in Europe to still be intact.
Syracuse and its monuments
From Ortigia you can easily move to Syracuse where you should not miss the Museo del Papiro, opened in 1989, which stands out not only for its museum activities but above all for its conservation, scientific and historical research aimed at the study of the papyrus from the point of view of preservation and restoration.
Museo del papiro, Siracusa
Continuing the visit of the city you come across the Tecnopark Archimedes born from the love for research, history, culture and architecture of the scientist Archimedes of Syracuse.
In the Tecnopark Archimedes you can admire the wonderful inventions of Archimedes as well as real working war machines.
The visit will not only be interesting but you can see how culture and passion are manifested in the ability to access the Greek Theatre of Syracuse, dating from the fifth century. BC, always built by the tyrant Dionysius I with the intent to manifest all its importance in the creation of monumental works.
Below the Greek theatre is a cave called the Ear of Dionysus, since its shape resembles that of an ear.
The peculiarity of this cave lies in its acoustic properties since the sounds are amplified up to 16 times: it is said that it was built by the tyrant Dionisio to place prisoners and listen to their speeches from the upper cavity.
