Depart Hotel Kaos (Chaos) – has great potential as an amazing location but needs repair & management.
Luigi Piranello – famous Sicilian author and plawright (1865-19) from AKontrada Caos is the area wher hotel located. Born in Agrigento (Monte Lusa) owned Sulphur mines. “The Late Matias Pascal” is one of his books.
Andreas Camilerri (now 90) – From Porto Empedocles – inspector Specter Montealvano – character in TV series.
Roman villa – Guide Mimo (Domwnico) for part of the group and Sabrina for the other part of the group. It stands at the foot of Miunt Mangone near the Gela River and was built in the late IIIrd / early IVth centuries (293-305) by the Romans when the 2 Augustus (Diocletian and Maximilian) and 2 Caesars (Gelarius and Constance Chlore) were in power. After the Romans the Villa was used by the Byzantiums as well as the Arabs. During the Arab time it fell into disrepair. Around 1000 AD during the Norman time, it was redesigned and occupied. In the 12th centuryit was covered by a mudslide during the great deluge and all that appeared was farm land on top of the villa. Eventually it was uncovered in the 1930’s when there was some excavation, but it was in the 1950’s that the major excavation was done bringing it into its current form. The mud covering was a gentle protection permitting all the mosaic floors were intact. One walks on platforms on top of the mosaics. It belonged to a very important person close to the emperor or perhaps the emperor or governor and was built on top of another villa. After the 1950’s work it had plexiglas roof but it became a greenhouse fading some of the mosaics, so now has a regular roof.
3500 sq m of mosaics on the floors and the walls were covered with paintings. Rome needed grain and Sicily became the granary in the center portion of the island and the person who lives in the villa perhaps was the manager of the grain production. It is equidistant to Agrigento and Catania – the two main ports. Thermal baths and basilica were used for relaxation and business respectively. The 8 Km aqueduct from the River Gela fed the villa from the river.
The thermal baths were divided into three principal sections -Frigidarium, Tepidarium, Caledarium – three temperatures of the thermal baths. The laconicism is the dry thermal bath attaches to the hot humid bath.
The most amazing and extensive Villa near the town of Piazza Armerina, which grew over time and was still used in the medieval times. Then covered by the mudslide and was discovered while drilling for a well, finding mosaics. Spectacular portrayals of animals and human figures with shading and appearing in 3 dimensions which were used by the nobility, whereas the geometric patterns of the mosaics were for passageways and servants quarters.
We were lucky with the weather as it poured with rain when we were in the Villa under cover, but stopped when we were outside. Up to this point the sunny weather had been with us for the first few days. After leaving the Villa we went through the town of Piazza Armerina and up the hill to an overlook which was very reminiscent of Taxco, without he red roofs. After another couple of hours we got to the Hotel Sant Alphio Garden and Spa in Taormina-Giardini-Naxos which is to be our home for the rest of the trip.
Roger & Anne Travels 