Page 149 - The Rough Guide of Sicily

By bus From Palermo, buses run every half hour to Bagheria, dropping you on Corso
Umberto I, from where it’s a short, straight walk to the villa.

By train There are frequent trains from Palermo to Bagheria’s train station, from
where it’s a 10min walk to Villa Palagonia (turn left onto Corso Butera, then left onto
Via Palagonia).

By car There’s free parking near the villa, though you might find yourself sucked into

the narrow streets of the old town trying to find it. Eventually you should be directed
into a space by a parking guy (tip a euro).

EATING

Antica Osteria Zza Maria Via Paternò 11 091 931 388. All wine barrels and old

photos, this atmospheric place is the best option in town for a meal. There’s no actual
menu (and you might have to hammer at the door for entrance), but you’ll get a good
plate of home-made pasta con le sarde or similar for around €10. Find it by walking
down Corso Umberto I to the free-standing columns at Piazza IV Novembre and you’ll
see the restaurant sign on your right, down Via Pasquale. Mon dinner, Tues–Sun lunch
& dinner.

Solus

Mon–Sat 9am–7pm, Sun 9am–2pm, last entry 1hr before closing • €2 • By train from Palermo, get off one stop
beyond Bagheria (at Santa Flavia-Solunto-Porticello station), crossing over the tracks and walking down the main
road towards the sea; after 300m there’s a signposted left turn up the hillside

Beautifully sited on the slopes of Monte Catalfano, ancient Solus, a Phoenician
settlement, was originally founded in the eighth century BC, resettled in the fourth
century BC, and later Hellenized, finally surrendering to Rome after the First Punic
War, when its name was changed to Solentum. Ruins at the site date mostly from the
Roman period, notably the impressive remains of wealthy houses – one, with a

standing column, was built on two floors, the stairs still visible, and retains a
complete geometric mosaic floor. The main street leads past houses and shops to the
agora itself, a piazza with nine clay-red-coloured recessed rooms at the back. Above
it sit the fragmentary ruins of a theatre and a smaller odeon, deliberately sited so as to
give marvellous views away to the coast. Beyond the agora are the remains of a water

cistern and storage tanks – necessary, as Solentum had no natural springs. Two
“pavilions” interpret the site and display many of the finds, one at the entrance (before
you see the ruins) and one at the exit, though there’s nothing in English.

Porticello

With views across the bay towards Cefalù and up to the line of rounded peaks on the

horizon, PORTICELLO, 6km east of Bagheria, makes a great bolt hole from the city