Italy

I'm trying to be a good tourist today. It was easier forty years ago. Now we are being channeled and herded so much that the element of discovery is no longer easy to attain.

The open air archaeological site in Siracusa presents a Greek amphitheater and a huge quarry as well as a Roman amphitheater. In one place you can try to imagine being a Greek at a theater performance by Euripide or Plauto or attending a Roman gladiator event and wild animal battles in this oval arena. Just those two civilizations cover a thousand years. Before there were Elleni, Phoenicians and Etruscans, after were many, but notably Byzantines and Normans in the middle ages and a strong Baroque period as witnessed on Ortigia island.

Almost every town in Sicily was destroyed at least three times and entire populations were displaced and replaced. Quite incomprehensible by today's standards. Sicily might be the most historically diverse location on earth, over millennia so many different occupiers have ruled this island.

After a delicious lunch I visit the archeology museum, it's medium sized but holds an enormous collection of ancient coins going back to when coins came into existence some 2500 years ago. You can see them under armored glass in a bank like vault. No photos allowed. The museum is impressive as much as the heat outside is oppressive.

In the evening, after a restorative nap, I watch a Eurocup match outside on one of the many piazza on Ortigia. There is a lot of nightlife there.Read more