Travel Guide Agrigento

Tourists from all over the world flock to the region to visit the Valley of the Temples, a major site classified by Unesco. It is Agrigento which shelters, indeed, the best preserved monuments of the Greek civilization. The city, considered one of the wonders of the ancient world, has always been sung by poets, and the magnificent temples of Juno, Concord, Hercules, Zeus and Vulcan are all testimonies left by those who built a piece of eternity here... In this very place, Empedocles, philosopher, thaumaturgist, magician and inventor, embodying the spirit in ancient Sicily, said: "Nothing becomes or disappears: there is only a mixture or separation of existing things and, therefore, instead of perishing or decaying, everything is composed and decomposed These magnificent temples were born from the stones of Sicily and, hopefully, they will wait for a long time to return to mix with the earth and the wind.The arrival in Agrigento by car can be quite disappointing: the urbanism that developed in the 1970s has considerably modified the landscape. One building bar follows another. But once you enter the old town, you discover a rich and beautiful city, set on top of a mountain just in front of the turquoise sea. The small typical streets and the warmth that emanates from each of its inhabitants leave an unforgettable memory. There is not only the Valley of the Temples in Agrigento!Festivities. Among the most interesting ones, we can mention : the Sagra of the almond tree in bloom in February, the Film and Literature Award (Efebo d'Oro) in June, San Calogero, celebrated between the1st and2nd Sundays of July, the "Viva Agrigento" festival during the two summer months, as well as the Week of Pirandello (Settimana Pirandelliana), an opportunity for Agrigento to pay tribute to the native writer Pirandello, without forgetting the religious processions that climb up to the cathedral. Long closed for renovation, it is now open to the public.