4/26: Explore Gerace

Gerace is another of the double towns, about 1.5 hours from Reggio. One of its claims to fame is that it used to have 128 churches. Now, with a population of 2400, it still has 28 churches. The bus couldn't take us to the top, so we got a ride in a tourist "train" and walked downhill after lunch to meet the bus. About 400 people live in the old town which also houses the school through 8th grade for the entire village. We visited the castle, but there is no entry because a major earthquake in 1982 took out the bridge that was the entrance. There is recent talk of rebuilding it, but building anything in the south is a challenge because of the reach of the Calabrese Mafia. 

Remnants of an old wall. the arrow slits are angled
toward the sea.

This is an earthquake zone. In 1982, the primary school
for the town was badly damaged and was rebuilt with
seismic insulation to let the basement wobble and
protect the classrooms

 

The iron gate shows where the old
entry started, leading to the opening
behind.

There are two different crests on the
castle - I think this one is Cordoba.

The other (unreadable) crest is
Grimaldi, the Monaco family

Our main focus was the cathedral that was built in the 1100s by the Normans. One of the original towers is still standing, and the others have been rebuilt. The entrance is unusual. It used to be through the back with the apparent front of the church leading to graves under the altar. When the back entry square got compressed by new buildings to being unrealistically small for the parish, the front became the entry.

The former main entry to the cathedral

Entry arch with sundial

The current entry point to the cathedral

The current entry through the catacombs

Original Norman tower that has withstood
the various earthquakes

Here too, older surviving stone was reused as
demonstrated by the different style of the pillars and
their capitals.

This area of Italy was inhabited by Greeks for many centuries and this cathedral became a place where both the Greek and Roman versions of Christianity co-existed. The hymn book above was one of the first in Latin.

The wooden platform on the left
covers what will soon be a new
dig. Our guide hopes they will replace
the wood with glass.

The series of arches above the openings is an old Arabian
method for transitioning from a square to a circular structure.

This is an enlargement of the third flower from the
right on the bottom row, showing 2 angels.

After the church visit, we stopped for a bergamot cookie where Annunziata had arranged for a 16 year old musician to play some traditional Italian tunes on a mini accordian. Gabriella was accompanied on tamborine by his friend Pietro. The cookie was good too.

Lunch was next - I got a sausage that was spicier than advertised --fortunately fine with me. I also scarfed down a simple lettuce salad, suggesting maybe that component has been a big scarce in our meals.

On the way down to the bus, we stopped in at a store where the owners have restarted jasmine production. This part of Italy was famous for both its jasmine and bergamot production and they contributed directly to the perfume industry. Unfortunately for them, perfume chemists discovered how to create the same scent artificially and the growing industry here disappeared. There has been a rebirth of interest in the real products and one major focus is how to expand the usefulness of both bergamot and jasmine. Earlier, we saw how the fruit of the bergamot is being turned into tasty products instead of being discarded when the essential oils were extracted. The women running this shop manage a plot of 400 jasmine plants and use almond oil, a neutral oil, to extract the essence of the flowers. They use the resulting product for cookies, chocolates, perfumes, and liqueurs. We were treated to a taste of the cookies, chocolate, and alcohol. Although I love the aroma of jasmine, I found the taste of the products to be pretty subtle.

View from the upper town

This is the residence of  a primary prosecutor of the Mafia.
The green screen behind the house is to foil would-be
snipers. The jeep in the drive is for the government
people who protect his family. He now lives away from
them for their safety.

We got back to Reggio about 4pm. Tomorrow we head to a one night stay in a national park, and taking a backpack or duffle to the hotel vs. our entire suitcase was recommended, so I am hoping that my new computer backpack will be adequately large to manage for one overnight.