Riga to Palermo, Sicily from €177

🌍 About Palermo, Sicily

Palermo's signature street food is pani ca meusa — a soft roll packed with veal spleen and lung, fried in lard, served plain or "maritata" with caciocavallo cheese. It's an acquired taste; if it's not for you, the arancina here is round (Catania's is pointed) and the panelle, chickpea fritters, are safe and excellent. Eat at the Ballarò or Capo markets, which still run like North African souks — a direct legacy of two centuries of Arab rule. That same fusion shows in the Cappella Palatina: Byzantine gold mosaics under a carved Arabic muqarnas ceiling, all built by Norman kings. Come April–June or late September–October for warm, walkable days. Skip July–August, when the heat tops 35°C and the city half-empties; winter is mild but wet.