Amy 'n Rei

(3/12 – 3/26/2026)

LIVE!

Our Sicily trip includes a week of hiking Magna Via Francigena followed by another week of sightseeing. This is now our favorite travel mode.

Day 1: To Palermo, Sicily

Our flight to Rome was one hour late. Fortunately, we had a very long connection time. Rome airport was bustling with travellers and activities. There was a food sampling event, where Rei got to try free Italian ham and red wine!

The flight to Palermo was only a short 1+ hours one. It was around 6:30pm when we arrived. After retrieving our luggage, we walked out to find the Prestia e Comande bus stop. The trip cost 6 euros per person.

According to my information, we should get off at Politeama (Piazza Ruggero Settimo). However, Rei looked at Google map and told me there’s no such station. Then he found out that the airport bus didn’t follow the route on his Google map! It turned out that my information was correct.

Originally, I was concerned about walking after dark; however, the place we got down was a busy commercial area full of stores, restaurants and people. There was also a very impressive Politeama Theater.

Hotel Tonic was only several minutes walk from the bus stop. After we checked in and stored the luggage, we went out to dinner. We were told by the receptionist at the hotel that the restaurant next door was good, so we walked there.

The restaurant was fully booked, but we could still eat at tha patio. The weather was nice, though a bit cold; we agreed to have a table at the patio. The place was lit with strings of light and was quite romantic. Rei had salmon tataki, and I had tomato pasta. The food was delicious.

“Palermo seems to be a nice city,” commented Rei.

Afterwards, we simply returned to the hotel to wash up and to got to bed.

Day 2: Palermo and Monreale

We had an extra day in Palermo before the hike, so we decided to go to Monreale for sightseeing.

Hotel Tonic had an impressive breakfast buffet with eggs, ham, various pastries and drinks. Rei and I both ate a lot and really enjoyed the food.

The bus stop to Monreale was at Piazza Independenza (Independence Plaza), which was about 2 miles away from our hotel, so we would do some sightseeing on the way. We left the hotel shortly before 9am. The first stop was Teatro Massimo, which we only took photos from outside.

We also walked past Capo Market. There were many vendors selling seafood, fruit and souvenirs. Apparently it’s a popular place for tourists. We met a Gate 1 tour there.

We arrived at Palermo Cathedral around 9:30am, right at the opening time. This was a large and beautiful cathedral. It was also a stamp point of Magna Via Francigena. We had to ask around to find out where to get stamps — it was behind a closed door under St. Paul on the right side. An employee happened to come out from the door, and he stamped our passports.

Bus 389 was already there waiting when we reached the bus stop across the street from Piazza Independenza. The ticket cost 1.8 Euros per person. The bus was pretty empty, and we had no problem finding seats. It was a great relief because we were warned that the bus was overcrowded with pickpockets!

Then, when the bus reached the next stop, we found out that there were many people waiting to get on the bus! We were lucky to board in the previous stop.

Monreale Cathedral was about 10 minutes walk from the bus stop. There were two signs pointing to the cathedral: one pointing right, and the other pointing left. Rei said the left side with a wider road was for cars, and the right side narrow road was for pedestrians, so we should go right. It turned out that the right side was for cars going uphill, and we had to walk on very narrow sidewalks with cars passing by!

We arrived at Monreale Cathedral around 11:15am. The cathedral was free, but we decided to purchase the 12 euros per person ticket with complete access. The cathedral was famous for the mosaics depicting Genesis, Old Testament and Life of Jesus Christ. (I will have more detailed description of mosaics later.) There were many tour groups inside the cathedral, with some guides using laser pointers to point out particular artwork.

Our complete tickets including access for 4 other sites. We first went to the museum, where there were many religious artworks and treasures. Then we entered the very ornated chapel. Rei said since we paid extra, we should take many photos to get our money’s worth.

When we arrived at the entrance to the roof, the lady there told us that the roof access would be closed in 15 minutes for the noon closure, so we quickly entered. It’s great to go up to the roof right before the closing time, because there were only a few other tourists, and it’s easier to take photos. We could see the elegant cloister and beautiful ocean views from the rooftop.

We had lunch at a nearby small bar-restaurant. I had Caprese salad and Rei had a beef burger. The portion was quiet large and the food tasted good.

We went to visit the cloister after lunch. The place did not have a noontime closure. The cloister was a UNESCO site with many impressive columns. Each column was unique, and some with very colorful mosaics or intricate carvings. The place also had a small museum showing modern mosaic artworks.

Afterwards, we decided to skip the last cathedral, which wouldn’t open for another 20 minutes, and just return to Palermo. This time we walked the wider road down to the bus stop. The sidewalks were broader with great ocean views.

When Rei tried to purchase bus tickets from the driver, he was told “no tickets.” Passengers after us didn’t purchase tickets either, so we all got free ride back to Palermo.

Rei wanted to check out the larger Vucciria Market. This time we walked past Quattro Canti and Fountain of Shame. The fountain got its name due to its many naked sculptures. The area was bustling with many tourists. Vucciria Market covered a larger area but was similar to Capo Market otherwise.

We still had time, so we decided to go to Teatro Massimo to see whether we could join a guided tour. The 4pm tour was already full, but we were told that there would be another tour in 10 minutes.

Our tour was a combined Italian-English tour. The lady guide spoke both languages fluently. She switched the description in two language. We could go around taking photos when she spoke Italian. The tour was very organized and efficiently conducted.

Teatro Massimo was the largest opera house in Italy and the 3rd largest in Europe (behind the opera houses in Paris and Vienna). Its stage was the second largest in the world. When Aida was played, they could show a real elephant on the stage! We also had a quick visit to the royal box.

The last room we visited was the Echo Room. We all took turns to stand in the middle of the room to try the echo effect. Rei was the first in the group to try. The guide told us that Echo Room has 14 doors, but 8 of them were false doors!

Overall, it’s a very interesting tour. We were glad that we joined the tour. Highly recommended!

To be continued …