Page 193 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Sicily

NOR THEASTERN SICIL Y  191

g Milazzo
Road map F2. * 30,000. V from
Messina & Palermo (091-616 18 06).
n STR Unità Operativa 3 (090-922 28
65 or 922 27 90).
Milazzo began to take its place
in written history when Mylai
was colonized by the Greeks in
716 BC. The Normans later
chose this peninsula as their
main coastal stronghold.
Frederick II personally designed
the castle built here in 1239. The
town was divided into three
distinct zones in the Middle
The sarcophagus of Roger I’s wife Adelaide in Patti Cathedral Ages – the walled town, the
Borgo and the lower town –
d Patti f Capo d’Orlando and it was expanded in the
1700s. The Salita Castello leads
Road map: E2. * 13,100. V from Road map: E2. * 11,300. n STR
Messina and Palermo (0941-892 021). Unità Operativa 1 (0941-912 784). up to the ancient rock, which
n STR Tyndaris (0941-241 136). affords access to the walled
∑ comune.patti.me.it Forming part of a region town via a covered passageway.
known for the intensive A doorway opens into Frederick
On one of the stretches where cultivation of citrus fruits, the II’s Castle, surrounded by a wall
the coastal scenery is most Nebrodi Mountains jut out with five round towers and the
fascinating, just past the rocky into the sea at intervals. great hall of the Sala del
promontory of Capo Calavà on The coastal town of Capo Parlamento (Parliament Hall).
the slopes overlooking the sea, d’Orlando lies at the foot of On the same rise is the old
is the town of Patti. Initially a fief the Rupe del Semaforo cliff Duomo, the original
of the Norman ruler Roger I, it and the rocky hill after which 17th-century cathedral, which
was later destroyed during the the town was named. is used as a congress hall.
wars with the Angevins and A climb of about 100 m Do not miss the chance of
then frequently pillaged by (328 ft) will take you to the top an excursion to Capo Milazzo,
pirates from North Africa. of the cliff. There, in a large where you will be rewarded
Patti boasts an 18th-century open space, stand the remains with towers, villas and, at the
Cathedral built over the of a 14th-century fortress and foot of the 18th-century
foundations of the former Maria Santissima, a church lighthouse, a marvellous view
Norman church. Inside is a built in the late 1500s and of the Aeolian Islands, with
sarcophagus with the remains now home to a number of Calabria beyond. This was the
of Queen Adelaide, Roger I’s interesting paintings. However, site of the 260 BC naval battle in
wife, who died here in 1118. the main reward for climbing which the Romans routed the
Along the road down to up the hill is the panoramic Carthaginian fleet. Steps lead to
Marina di Patti are the ruins view of the sea and of the the place where St Anthony is
of a Roman villa which were fishing boats moving about in said to have taken refuge from
brought to light during the the pretty harbour below. a storm in 1221.
construction of the Messina–
Palermo motorway. This
Imperial age building mea sures
20,000 sq m (215,200 sq ft) and
comprises a peristyle, an apse-
like room, thermal baths and
many well-preserved mosaics.
The villa was destroyed by an
earthquake; on the basis of
various archaeological finds,
histor ians have been able to
date this event to the second
half of the 4th century AD.
T Roman Villa
Via Papa Giovanni XXIII, Marina di Patti.
Tel 0941-361 593. Open hours vary;
call ahead. & combined with Tyndaris. The castle at Milazzo, strengthened structurally by Alfonso of Aragón

190-191_EW_Sicily.indd 191 11/3/16 2:10 PM