Today we visited the Palazzo dei Normanni and the Cappella Palatina, the Palermo Cathedral, and Monreale Cathedral.
The Palazzo dei Normanni, or Norman Palace, is the oldest royal residence in Europe.
It was the home of the Kings of Sicily during the Norman domination and served
afterwards as the main seat of power for subsequent rulers. Today it's where
the Sicilian Parliament sits.
The Cappella Palatina, or palace chapel, was commissioned by
Roger II of Sicily in 1132 and built upon an older chapel. The ceiling is painted wood and every inch of the walls is inlaid
with precious stones and gold.
The Palermo Cathedral dates from 1185 but was
remodelled in the 18th century. It is magnificent from outside as is
the view from on top.
Monreale Cathedral is considered one of the greatest
examples of Arab-Norman art. Founded in 1172 it’s famous for its magnificent
gold mosaics representing episodes from the bible. The columns are from Roman
temples built before Christ.
From the roof there are great views of Palermo.
As we moved around Palermo on the hop-on hop-off bus we took some other photos too.
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