The Giudecca

The senses tell the Giudecca

hearing
Whispers and sounds in a faraway time

As you sit on the stone and are lulled by the gentle dripping of water, it seems as if you can hear the stifled laughter of Jewish women during a purifying bath as they welcome a young girl who has just become a woman.

taste
Unleavened bread

Unleavened bread, i.e. bread with no yeast, is a type of bread prepared with grain flour and water, like all other bread, but without the fermentation process.
bread is used as a ritual food during Passover, in memory of the Jew’s hasty escape from Egypt. It is said that during their escape the Jews had no time to let their bread rise before baking it.

smell
The smell of bread

When taking Via della Giudecca, the first scent to hit you would be freshly baked bread and biscuits. The street was full of bakeries and ovens, run by entire dynasties of bakers!

Ortygia and water. The Fountain of Arethusa

Nature in Neapolis

Giudecca and water. The ritual baths: the Casa Bianca mikveh

A journey to Pantalica

The Cathedral of Syracuse

The interior of the Cathedral of Syracuse

Giudecca and fire. Cooking and the Jewish religion

Ortygia and the air element. The Gods of Olympus and the Temple of Apollo.

Pantalica and the earth element

Neapolis and the air element. The Ear of Dionysius

Giudecca and air. The Basilica of San Giovannello

Giudecca

Giudecca and the earth element. Between gardens and artisan workshops

Pantalica and fire. The Metal Age: objects from the culture of Pantalica

The Neapolis

Pantalica and water: the Myth of the Anapo River

Ortygia and the earth element. Piazza del Duomo: discovering the origins.

Neapolis and the water element. The Nymphaeum

The fountain of Diana in Piazza Archimede

Pantalica and air. The skies of Pantalica: from hawks to bats

Neapolis and fire. The Altar of Hieron and the sacrificial fire

Neapolis and the earth element. Places of performance: the Greek theatre and the Roman amphitheatre

The naumachiae: naval battles at the theatre

Ortygia and fire. Archimedes and the invention of the burning mirrors

Ortygia