A wonderful Baroque day !

A journey in Sicily from Syracuse to Ragusa
on board the Museum Train of Val di Noto,
along the southernmost railway of Europe

by R. Copia

Photos by: V. Annuario e R. Copia (Soci AFS)

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On the occasion of the traditional train tour of mid-august, this year several AFS members, together with their families, met in Syracuse to go discovering the Baroque wonders of Val di Noto — enchanting southeastern corner of our Sicily — on board of a real Museum Train which, from June to September 14, 2009, thanks to Maratonarte project and the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, runs along the southernmost railway of Europe, stopping in Noto, Modica and Ragusa, allowing, for free, 150 passengers (tourists, arts fans, railway transportations enthusiasts, and simple onlookers) to spend an entire day in one of the world regions richest in sites established by UNESCO as Heritage of Mankind.

The departure, scheduled from Syracuse at 8:30 am, forced most of us to a very early rising in order to reach the Arethusan chief town from Messina, where most of us arrived just in time to have a quick breakfast at the railway station bar.

Just inside the main hall of Syracuse station, we pause in front of the plate devoted to the memory of Sebastiano Vittorini, “railwayman of letters”, father of Italian novel writer Elio Vittorini, one of the most well-known protagonists of 20^th century Italian Literature. It’s only the first of our cultural opportunities of the day which tempts us to investigate further the biography of Sebastiano Vittorini, a man who, since 1921 worked for the FS (Italian National Railways). The Syracuse main railway station was for several years his work-site and his family’s residence. Just during his stay in Syracuse station, his son Elio met his first wife, Rosa Quasimodo, she too a railwayman child and Nobel Literature prize winner Salvatore Quasimodo. It was just from Syracuse station that Elio and Rosa, in 1927, took flight organizing their famous “fuitina” (love flight) which has since stayed in the history of Italian Literature.

But go back to the Museum Train, yet ready on platform 1.

The organizing committee invite us to take our reserved seats on board of one of the two “centoporte” (centidoors) coaches in their renowned brown-isabel livery, with their fascinating and creacking wooden interiors, dating back to the Thirties, one of the Italian railways jewels which, together with a mail van, fitted as a permanent exhibition, and with a two-axle luggage van, as service van, make up the train, classed Reg. 34872 on the going trip and no. 34873 on its return trip.

The traction has been given to diesel locomotive D. 443 1007 (in its original livery) belonging to Catania loco shed (someone noted that it was the loco of which a famous Italian modelling firm has made an H0-scale model) assisted, in the rear, by the diesel locomotive D. 343 1022 (in its XMPR livery, “embellished” with graffiti, the sole false note of the train).

We start right on time and, as soon as we have run past the Syracuse loco shed, we take the railway to Modica and Ragusa, a section characterized by interesting engineering masterworks (stations, plants, tunnels, bridges, viaducts), built in the late 19th century (started in 1891 and opened in 1893) and today rarely used, which traverses a pure landscape of valleys, downs, riverways, estates bounded by stone walls, tracts of citrus orchards and olive groves, bunches of opuntias, laden with their delicious fruits. A railway section that shows breathtaking landscapes and sea views of a deep turquoise blue, mainly in the vicinity of Pozzallo and Samperi. A railway section that, thanks to advanced tricks and technical solutions overcome rises without significant disruptions until, reached Ragusa Ibla, one goes on towards Uptown Ragusa, 500 m. /1600 ft. higher up through an helicoidal tunnel, designed by an English engineer, of whom today nobody even remember the name, and who drew inspiration from the helicoidal Swiss tunnels. A real railway jewel which would deserve – it too – the title of Heritage of Mankind together with the Late Baroque Churches and Monasteries which we’re going to visit.

We immediately make friends with the Conductor, the most amusing and active Mr. Alfredo S., and with the whole “Maratonarte” Team, who travels with us, describing how our day will develop.

Soon we are in Noto (this railway section allows speeds around 75-80 Kmh / 45-50 mph), stopping in platform 1 of the local station, outside which three buses are awaiting to get us to the City Park. Here we are welcomed by Tourist Guides ready to drive us along the main roads of this delightful town, correctly considered the Capital of Baroque.

Very interesting was the visit to the recently restored Cathedral, which soars stately on top of a monumental flight of steps, and to Nicolaci Palace with its splendid rooms but, most of all, with its balconies decorated with figures (among which, it seems, one portraying the Prince Nicolaci himself) that overlook the avenue along which, every year, is held the famous “Infiorata” (flowers exhibit).

Time is a tyrant, and we need to go back to the station to reach Modica. We still have time though for having timely our group photographed with the train in the background — decorated with the destination plaque helding, for the occasion, our Association’s logo.

All aboard ! The doors of the Centoportes slam quickly one after the other, Alfredo (our Conductor), waving his green flag and with a peremptory whistle, allows the start. The train moves, slowly first, and then, faster and faster. But now the speed does not exceed 60 Kmh/45 mph, with the windows wide open and a couple of daredevils for ever leaning out of the windows to take pictures and frequently risking to bump against shrubs and reeds, that, sometimes, border the track.

We arrive in Modica just after midday. As in Noto, here too, the buses drive us downtown and the tourist guides escort us along the town roads.

The summer heat hangs over us, we are hungry and thirsty. A couple of us get sandwiches and drinks out of their backpacks. Others, not having anything to eat, renounce, even reluctantly, to the guided visits and decide to enjoy a quick lunch on a bar tables to taste the famous Modican chocolate ice-creams - the world renowned - water ices and brioches and to devote then themselves to a quick tour of the town roads, occasionally running into labs for the production of home-made chocolate but to visit the Nobel Literature Prize winner Salvatore Quasimodo’s birthplace, who, we remind again, lived almost all his life in the City of the namesake Straits.

Once again we have to get back to the station. Luckily, we still have time to take a stroll along the Modican tracks, dominated by the famous overhanging road viaduct, to visit the old steam loco shed, with its entrances now walled up, in front of which stay some ALn 668 diesel locos. Going back toward the station, we see the water pump, still in good conditions, once used to fill the loco tenders’ tanks. A few steps forward, past the dismissed goods shed, near which some service cars are parked, we see some old 740 and 940 steam loco wheels, covered in weeds,that, according to us, should be restored. Lastly, at the other plant end, the loco turntable whose compressed air motor was directly supplied by the air pipes of the same locos.

It’s now time to go back to the Museum Train wooden coaches, the Conductor Alfredo welcomes us on the platform, invitino some of u sto step on the loco cabin, at the engineer’s side. With our cameras, we quickly accept the invitation enjoying the trip to Ragusa Ibla, from the unusual and enchanting view offered by the loco cabin.

Even if we get in Ragusa Ibla on the hottest hour of the day, the visit gives us high-level cultural. We start with the San Giorgio portal to meet after that, the Baroque Church devoted to Purgatory Souls, the Conversation Club and the San Giorgio Cathedral, built between 1744 and 1775, following the project of famous architect Rosario Gagliardi, borded by a protective wonderful wrought iron railing.

On our way back to our buses, we admire some of the sites which served to location to film some scenes of the serial TV “Il Commissario Montalbano” (The Superintendent Montalbano), from the novels by Italian writer Andrea Camilleri, as, for example, the fictitious Vigata Police Station, the eatery “La Rusticana”, where Montalbano used to eat with his Vice Superintendent Augello the delicacies of the Sicilian cuisine.

Tired but satisfied, we stroll along the Ragusa roads until the local railway station where our traini s waiting to get u sto Syracuse, this time without other stops.

Conductor Alfredo, whistle for the last time and waves his green flag…our journey through the wonders of the Sicilian Baroque on board of the Museum Train stops here.