La Palermo medievale: The medieval

segreti e scoperte
city: secrets
and discoveries
Project by your host Beppe

Fig. 1 The old city of Palermo between the two rivers (ipotetic render)

What we’ll do:

You will be surprised, through this thematic tour on medieval Palermo, to walk through alleys,
markets and squares, discover a city that has shared traditions, architectures, experiences of more
people that have always lived in the city. Focusing on the history of the main buildings, visiting
unknown courts, explaining the main urban episodes that changed the historic center, you will
rediscover the paths of the two rivers that once lapped the Old Center. The itinerary develops within
the perimeter of the Neapolis and the southern and northern walkways along the ancient route of the
walls. The path will help us to discover mysteries and unusual episodes, so as to become a narration
of historical events, of people and peoples, but also discovery and narration of "the city of two
rivers"

Where we’ll go:

Thematic tour of medieval Palermo. Circuit within the medieval walls on which in the 13th century
they raised imposing buildings, up to the route of the ancient two rivers of Palermo, Kemonia and
Papireto, then channeled underground. The peripheral connections of the medieval city: the
northern shera and the southern shera, ancient traveling roads and that up to the Arabs were directly
connected with the urban gates.

Where we’ll meet:

Bologni square (piazza Bologni) in front of Palazzo Riso, down the statue of Carlo V.

Tips and suggestions:

The path is completed on foot. To come to piazza Bologni (near Quattro Canti), by public transport,
get off at the "Biondo" stop in via Roma and go up corso Vittorio Emanuele. Cars can be left in the
area "via Mongitore" (no LTZ) or squares "Casa Professa" or "S. Onofrio" but both within LTZ (not
saturday & sunday).

What I will offer:

Palermo is the city of the street food! I will do my best to satisfy the special wishes of my guests
during the tour. During the journey a refreshing break is scheduled, offered by the host, with
homemade ice cream or soft drink. Therefore there is a stop at a bar and a little break.

What guests should bring:

 comfortable walking shoes
 schoolbag / bag with water
 hat or parasol on particularly hot days
 camera for your memories on pictures
 small map of the Historic Center

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NOTE:
The tour, which is a "promenade architectural" could deepen thematic aspects based also on the
curiosity of the participants. It will be a narration of the "city of the two rivers" that characterized
the city.

About me:
I have a deep knowledge of the historical city, of its urbanistic evolutions, anecdotes and unusual
episodes that characterize places, palaces and squares. I know many unknown places that are not
part of traditional tourist tours. This stimulates me to convey my knowledge, but also to allow a
"foreigner" to love this city through little-known paths. A city begins to love when it gets lost in it.
This experience is not so much a touristic tour but rather the story of the Palermo’s novel when the
city was between the two rivers that once flanked it, a way of imagining the old Palermo that the
Arabs and the Normans people found.

Guests' requirements:
Use comfortable walking shoes
Not suitable for children under 14 years old

Fig. 5-6 Palermo during the Arab period (ipotetic render)

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Fig. n. 8 A set of medieval buildings that we will observe (case Barresi e Agnello) in salita S. Antonio.

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 Foto n. 19 e 20 Medieval "guard" towers to control the water flow of the Kemonia stream: Torre Busuemi e Torre di San Nicolò.

Price: € 25 per person

Time required: about 3 hours
Palermo, agosto 2019 Il tuo host