After a wonderful day of traveling, the group needed a fine Italian appetizer to finish the day. We had seen old churches laden with Islamic mosaics and an incredible puppet show following the tale of countless knights who wished to win over the heart of a certain Angelica. Seeing old Islamic mosaics was particularly exciting for me because, growing up, I have visited the Alhambra, the Seo, the Mesquita de Córdoba, and other mudejar architectural sites in Spain, but never did I realize Christian and Islamic architecture had combined in other parts of the world. Plus, geometrical mosaics create some of the most beautiful art I’ve ever seen. Pictured above are fine Italian cheeses, salami, mortadella, lard and jams that we devoured in seconds, despite severe jet lag. Boy is it good to be back!

  
This is huge. Adamo and I studied abroad in Bologna, Italy together, and we never thought we would return after our time in Bologna was up. Little did we know we would end up in Sicily together, especially after I had missed a flight to Palermo that would have been with Adamo while we were in Bologna. We are so #blessed to be returning a mere three months later, and we are so #excited to eat Italian food, visit historical locations and take in the land that created the artists we are currently studying. Sicilia here we come!

  Spotted between a visit to the stunning Cappella Palatina and my first serving of pasta on our trip, signs of this sort are oddly common in Italian cities. The relevance of Homer Simpson to delicious Indian food served in Italy seems indecipherable to me — I’ll leave it that way and remember that America is the king of specious cultural “fusion.”  — AG

  (Behold my first blog post, a blurry photo of a poster.) After doing some research about the impact of cosa nostra — the Sicilian mafia — on Sicilian life in the 20th and 21st centuries, I was struck and moved by how immediately these traumas became apparent. On the drive to the city or Palermo from the airport, for example, you can’t miss the large memorial to Giovanni Falcone, an anti-mafia judge whose car was blown up by the mafia while he made that same drive in 1992. This is a  Falcone quote I loved from a photography exhibit featuring the mafia-related work of Letizia Battaglia, a Sicilian artist known to take photos of mafia crime scenes. A rough translation: “To this city I’d like to say: while men pass through, ideas stay, their moral tensions stay. They’ll continue to walk on the legs of other men. Each man has to continue to do his part, small or large, to help create in this Palermo more humane living conditions.” -AG

From its removed, quiet hill top position overlooking the city of Palermo, Monreale is a rather unassuming location for one of the most splendid churches in the world. Built and dedicated to the Virgin Mary by the Norman king William II, the cathedral at Monreale is very similar to the Capella Palatina in that it also contains a captivating fusion of architectural styles, artistic traditions, and religious symbolism. One of the most noticeable distinguishers of this structure from its counterpart in Palermo is its grand scale. The cathedral in Monreale truly takes the magnificence of the Capella Palatina and expands it to monumental proportions. For instance, the mosaic image of Christ Pantokrater positioned inside the main apse calotte in Monreale is an enormous 120ft wide!  When visiting the Cathedral at Monreale, one can’t help to be amazed by the spaciousness and grandeur of the interior.