Messina

This is what we woke up to yesterday morning -- the Virgin Mary, towering over the harbor in Messina, Sicily, reminding us in Latin that she blesses us and the city itself.

Yes, after two days at sea, we finally felt dry land again! Dave and I didn't buy any arranged excursions in Sicily, so I took a look at Google Maps and got some ideas for sights to see. We decided to stick to Messina rather than trying to get to points more distant, though the minute we disembarked we encountered taxi touts pushing trips to Taormina. We ignored them.

We started our sightseeing just outside Messina cathedral, with its famous astronomical clock tower and elaborate Orion fountain. Messina was virtually destroyed by an earthquake in 1908, and much of the original 12th-century cathedral was rebuilt after that disaster (and again after bombing in World War II). The astronomical clock, the largest in the world, was installed in the rebuilt bell tower in the 1930s.

The interior of the cathedral featured elaborate tile mosaics on the ceiling.

On the cathedral plaza a woman named Giovanna was selling tickets for a mini-train tour that carries visitors around the city, and we decided to do that, just to get the lay of the land and see some of the main sights.

The train (which played cheerful Italian music that brought to mind Super Mario Brothers) took us up to the Tempio di Cristo Re, a church high above the city with a stunning panoramic view. Dave and I were both happy we didn't try to walk up there. (The temperature yesterday reached 39º C or 102º F, according to Dave's phone, though online sources tell me now that it was actually more like 36º C or 97º F. In any case, it was hot!)

We also saw the Norman-era Church of the Santissima Annunziata dei Catalani, built in the 12th century and one of the few structures to survive the 1908 earthquake.

The train didn't take us to either the Poseidon or Falcon fountains, which are supposedly must-sees, or to the steps that lead up the hill to a nearby monastery. So we decided to walk around a bit afterwards. On the way we came across the building above, the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele III, a shopping arcade built in the 1920s with a stunning interior (though it needs restoration work).

Here are the steps leading up to the monastery from the Falcon fountain, which you can't quite see at the base of the slope. That's the Tempio di Cristo Re on a hill in the background. The steps are lined with modern sculptures of birds decorated by local artists to pay homage to the figures on the fountain. That guy on the left was watering the tired-looking sunflowers along the path, bless him.

Here's a video of some of our Messina sightseeing, overdubbed with some copyright-free Italian-style music so you can experience something similar to the musical accompaniment we had on our train tour! You'll see:

1. Some generic street scenes from the train
2. A view of the Tempio di Cristo Re on a distant hilltop
3. The panoramic city view from the temple, including the Madonna overlooking the harbor and our cruise ship
4. A quick look at one of the modern bird sculptures on the steps near the Falcon fountain
5. The interior of the Vittorio Emanuele III shopping gallery, with its stained glass ceilings
6. The interior of the 12th century Church of the Santissima Annunziata dei Catalani

After all our exploration we sat in a cafe, where I had a limoncello spritz, which was a new drink for me. Quite refreshing! Then we beat a retreat to the air-conditioned ship, where we rested in the afternoon. Today we're in Salerno and visiting the Amalfi Coast.