The heart of Ortygia by TheWanderingCamel
The wide oval space of the Piazza dei Duomo (Cathedral Square) is the very heart of Ortygia. With the cathedral at one end and the sweet little church of Santa Lucia at the other, dazzlingly white stone paving, lemon trees hanging over the high wall and balustrade of the Episcopal Palace along one side of the square, cafe tables and chairs set out along the other side and a clutch of handsome palazzos spread around the perimeter, it's as lovely a square as you'll find anywhere. You won't find many city squares though that have such a long and chequered history.Laid out in the 8th century BC as Ortygia's acropolis, the piazza has seen the city's fortunes rise and fall. Greeks, Romans, Normans, Spaniards have all left their mark on the piazza, but today it belongs to the people of Syracuse and they certainly claim it as their own.
The cathedral is undoubtedly the most significant building on the piazza and warrants a tip of its own, so let's just take a walk around the piazza and we'll leave the cathedral for later.
The Chiesa di Santa Lucia is dedicated to a young Roman virgin from Syracuse who was martyred here in 304AD when she refused to marry a pagan. The patron saint of Syracuse, she is also much loved in Scandinavia where St Lucia's Day is celebrated with much festivity. The church was rebuilt after the earthquake of 1693 in typically Sicilian Baroque style.
The cafes are the perfect place to indulge in a little people-watching. Unlike most ring-side cafe seats in other cities, these are not overly expensive and a drink here won't break the bank.
Palazzos to take note of particularly include the Palazzo Beneventano dei Bosco along from the cafes and, facing it, the Palazzo Municipale, though my favourite was the pretty pink-painted palazzo adjacent to the Chiesa de Santa Lucia - I wonder if anyone knows what it is called.
