Cefalù, Sicily.

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In our previous post we visited Stromboli town, sailed back to Lipari island, explored Lipari Castello and positioned the boat for the crossing to Sicily.

On Sep 16, 2023 we had a perfect Easterly to take us on a leisurely broad reach to Cefalù, Sicily.
A relaxed captain on watch, playing his guitar, while the autopilot does "the work".
At 6pm we dropped anchor, the required 200m off the coast, under the characteristic hill of Cefalù. Of course we "need" to get up that 270m high hill so we get up early next morning to beat the heat.
At 08.30am the following morning we tie our Ferrari (red dinghy) to the mole of Porta Pescara, in front of a still empty beach.
That beach hosts Porta Pescara, the sole survivor of the four gates once located along the city's walls that are remarkably well preserved.
Yes, we have to go up there.....somewhere.

After the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476, the Mediterranean sea became a lawless place. Cefalú remained part of the Byzantine Empire but the settlement was gradually moved from the plain up on the rocky hill for defence. As we wrote in earlier blogs, this occurred among many cities during the Byzantine era, as the Mediterranean was no longer solely controlled by one empire and was subject to Arab incursions. The old town was never entirely abandoned. In 858, after a long siege, it was conquered by the Arabs. For the following two centuries, it was part of the Emirate of Sicily.

The first fortified entrance to the Rock, a mighty barrier wall, built to create a narrow U-shaped bend and corridor, holding up and exposing the attackers to arrows from the tower.
Liza conquered the first gate with a smile, as always.
Remains of military barracks on top of the tower that protected the first gate.
Unstoppable, Liza takes the second gate in a three meters wide wall of defence that encircles the whole rock. The upper part of the wall served as a patrol walkway.
Remains of warehouses and ovens.
This Megalithic Building, popularly known as "Temple of Diana", contains a cistern carved in the rock, for the collection of rainwater. The building is at odds with other structures because of the use of large stones and it is not exactly known by whom and when it was build. The large stones probably saved it from demolition since many structures were cannibalised for building materials to construct new housing when the Norman King Roger II moved the population back down to the plain below the rock, after the Normans expelled the Arabs in 1063.
Ruins inside the castle grounds on top of the rock.
View to the East.
View to the West, indicating our floating home and the parking for our "Ferrari".
A WWII artillery station, now adorned with an iron cross.
The old town with the impressive Byzantine cathedral bottom right and our Ferrari top left.
The Cathedral of Cefalú was erected at will of the Norman King Roger II in 1131, after a vow he made for having survived a shipwreck. The construction was assigned to Byzantine architects and workers, whose Eastern style were highly influenced by the Nordic and Norman architectural styles.
Interior of the church. Note that the icon of the Christ Pantocrator over the altar is a replica of the mosaic that is under restoration behind the curtain.
This photo shows what is behind the curtain, made in 1148. Photo from internet.
Time for an espresso on Piazza Del Duomo, in front of the cathedral.
Street view, with restaurants to the right and the tables to the wall of the Mandralisca Palace and Museum, that used to be the family home of the Piraino di Mandralisca barons. Having no heirs, Don Enrico left all his assets to the City by testament for the creation of a museum and a school capable of educating the young people of Cefalù and the surrounding area.
The Oil Warehouse of the palace located on the ground floor, and visible from the street, with 20 large half-buried jars where the oil produced in the lands of Mandralisca was kept.
A wide curved staircase leading to a Medieval washhouse, located at sea level, four metres below street level in Vittorio Emanuele Street.
It has small basins, which are fed by water flowing from cast iron openings (fifteen of which are lion heads) placed along the walls of the low vault.
(Very) busy "Via Vittorio Emanuele", the street behind the city wall at Porta Pescara.
Buying local produce; olive oil - grappa - balsamico vinegar.
Street view.
Time for a late lunch at restaurant Triscele in the back alleys, away from the tourists crowd, where the quality of the food is usually better.
And we were correct (again). We do wholeheartedly recommend this place.
What a difference a day makes. An empty beach this morning has turned into a gathering place for oiled sun-worshippers.
It was only a short visite to Cefalù but the wind was still from the East and we wanted to continue the following day. So we jumped in our Ferrari and headed back to the boat.

Thank you for reading our stories and for following our journey. We love every minute of it. Our next stop will be Palermo, but that is for another blog.

Warm regards; Liza and Frits.