Cathedral of Syracuse

Wedding Day

Wedding

 Hotel Des Etrangers

Reception

Sunday tour of Syracuse

Our Story

Our Wedding

Sunday afternoon: Walking tour of old Siracusa

Ortygia walking tour

The day before the wedding we are organizing a walking tour of the main sights in Ortygia (Siracusa). Please join us at 3pm outside of the Duomo.

Sunday Evening: Dinner in honor of Christina Öberg

October 15, the mother of the bride, Christina Öberg, turns 60, which we will celebrate with a buffet dinner at 7 in the evening at Palazzo Borgia del Casale. All wedding guests are invited to help us celebrate this important birthday.

Pre-wedding activities

Travel and Accommodations

Siracusa

Proposed walking tours in Siracusa

As an old city Syracuse has gone through many stages. The railway station lies closely to what used to be a border between Neapolis and Archadina, Neapolis to the north-west and Archadina to the east. From the railway station you can walk to Ortygia, an island and the oldest part of the city, founded by Greek settlers led by Archias in about 734 BC. Remains from that period can for example be seen at Apollo's temple and in the Duomo which has incorporated the old Greek temple to Athena. Ortygia is also where the wedding will be and many of you will stay here during the weekend.300 years after the city's founding, in the times of Dionysius, the city's parts were Tycha, Archadina, Neapolis, Epipolae and Ortygia. Some remains from that period can be seen: at Latomia dei Cappuccini, an old quarry where the Athenians were held prisoners after their disastrous defeat in 413 BC; at Strada Mura di Dionisio, a road that follows where the Dionisio's wall used to be; in old Epipolae at Euryalus fortress, a key fortress in the defense of Syracuse and a nice point from which to view the city.More Greek and Roman buildings can be found at the Parco Archeologico, a few minutes' walk from the railway station. Also a few minutes from the railway station are remains from the old Roman forum, now Foro Siracusano.Syracuse also has an rich Christian heritage, most noteworthily from the time of the early Christian church and from the baroque period. The catacombs, the Basilica of Santa Lucia and the many beautiful baroque buildings on Ortygia stands as remains from those periods.Two other interesting items are the fish market and the view over the great harbor from Foro Vittorio Emanuele II, named after the first king of united Italy.Below are some suggested walks, which all start at the Apollo temple.Short (&lt;5 km):Tempio di Apollo → Corso Giacomo Matteotti → Via Trento → Via Guglielmo Perno → Riva Sauro → Via del Forte Casanova → Riva della Posta → Ponte Umbertino → Corso Umberto I → Via Filippo Cordova → Via Eritrea → Riva Forte Gallo → Ponte Umbertino → Piazza Emanuele Pancali → Tempio di ApolloTempio di Apollo → Via dell'Apollonion → Via Savoia → Via Duca degli Abruzzi → Via XX Settembre → Viale Giuseppe Mazzini → Riva Giuseppe Garibaldi → Ponte Santa Lucia → Via Malta → Giardini pubblici del Foro Siracusano → Corso Umberto I → Ponte Umbertino → Piazza Emanuele Pancali → Tempio di Apollo Medium (~6 km each):Tempio di Apollo → Piazza Emanuele Pancali → Ponte Umbertino → Corso Umberto I → Foro Suracusano → Piazza Pantheon → Largo Nicola Calipari → Corso Gelone → Via Tirso→ Via del Colle Temenite →Piazza della Repubblica → Largo Due Giugno → Via Basento → Viale Paolo Orsi (westward) → Viale Giuseppe Agnello → Teatro Greco → Orecchio di Dionisio→ Viale Giulio Emanuele Rizzo → Via Necropoli Grotticelle → Viale Teracati → Via Ettore Romagnoli → Parco Archeologico Neapolis → Anfiteatro Romano→ Viale Paolo Orsi (eastward) → Corso Gelone → Largo Nicola Calipari → Piazza Pantheon → Foro Suracusano → Corso Umberto I → Ponte Umbertino → Piazza Emanuele Pancali → Tempio di ApolloTempio di Apollo → Piazza Emanuele Pancali → Ponte Umbertino → Corso Umberto I → Foro Suracusano → Piazza Pantheon → Largo Nicola Calipari → Corso Gelone →Viale Teocrito → Largo Rosario Mascali → Via S. Giovanni alle Catacombe → Catacomba di San Giovanni → Via S. Giovanni alle Catacombe → Largo Rosario Mascali → Via del Santuario → Santuario Madonna delle Lacrime → Piazza della Vittoria → Via Sofocle → Viale Luigi Cadorna → Viale Teocrito → La Villa Landolina → Viale Teocrito → Via Torino (northward) → Parco Giovanni Paolo II → Via Maria Politi Laudien → Latomia dei Cappuccini→ Via dell'Unità d'Italia→ Via Pisa → Via Giovanni Vermexio → Basilica di Santa Lucia al Sepolcro → Piazza Santa Lucia – Via Gaetano Fuggetta → Via Cuma → Via dell'Unità d'Italia → Via Piave → Via dell'Arsenale → Viale Regina Margherita → Corso Umberto I → Ponte Umbertino → Piazza Emanuele Pancali → Tempio di Apollo Long (~20 km):Tempio di Apollo → Piazza Emanuele Pancali → Ponte Umbertino → Corso Umberto I → Foro Suracusano → Piazza Pantheon → Largo Nicola Calipari → Corso Gelone → Viale Teracati → Viale Tracati (left turn) → Viale Epipoli → Euryalus Fortress → Stra. Mura di Dionisio → Contrada Targia → Viale Scala Greca → Via Augusta → Viale Santa Panagia → Via Italia → Via Antonello da Messina → Via Madre Teresa di Calcutta → Via Francica Nava → Via Don Luigi Sturzo → Largo Luciano Russo → Via Gaetano Barresi → Viale Algeri → Viale Tunisi → Via Puglia → Riviera Dionisio Il Grande →Via dell'Arsenale → Viale Regina Margherita → Viale Montedoro → Via Filippo Cordova → Corso Umberto I → Ponte Umbertino → Piazza Emanuele Pancali → Tempio di Apollo

Proposed Day Trips

Visiting the surroundings of Siracusa

Generally it is better to travel by bus than by train in Sicily. Trip 1: Hiking on Mount EtnaMount Etna lies about 80 kilometers north of Syracuse. It is a famous place, as the highest mountain in Sicily and as one of the most active volcanos in the world, one eruption delayed the attempted invasion of Syracuse by the Carthaginians in 396 BC.One can go there by car, bus or train. There is also a train going around the mountain. If one wants a hike there are many different starting places, a good one is Rifugio Sapienza south of the top. There are buses between the railway station in Catania and Rifugio Sapienza. Remember to bring good shoes.Trip 2: Roman mosaics About 90 kilometers to the west of Syracuse lies Piazza Armerina. It is famous for the Villa Romana del Casale, a luxurious Roman villa from 4th century AD. It has one of the world's largest collections of Roman mosaics and also impressive frescoes.Make sure the villa is open before you travel there.Trip 3: Grape harvesting October is in the harvest season for grapes. To the south of Syracuse lies the famous baroque city of Noto. The region around Noto is a D.O.C., an origin-controlled wine region, with some good wines. For example in La Giasira there are some hectares of the grapes Cataratto and Nero d'Avola.Other interesting places within easy driving distance are:Bronte – Famous for its pistachios.Marzamemi – Seatown.Modica – Famous baroque town along with Noto.Noto - Famous baroque town.Pozzallo – Prides itself for its good beaches and water quality.Ragusa – Beautiful town. Parts of the Inspector Montalbano series is filmed here.ScicliAcrirealeCatania

Siracusa and surroundings

Photos

Wedding Party

Q + A

Syracuse

The closest airport to Siracusa is Catania, which is 45 min by car. If you fly in to Catania and need transport to the Hotel des Etrangers, please contact the hotel directly and they will arrange a shuttle.

From Catania

Our recommended hotel is Hotel Des Etranger, which is the location for the wedding reception. If you wish to reserve a room there and access the reduced price, please contact Pierpaolo Lauretta (<a href="mailto:plauretta@amthotels.it" target="_blank">plauretta@amthotels.it</a>) by September 1 with your arrival and departure dates and mention that you are a guest of the Marini-Öberg wedding. There are are multiple room options: single, double and triple rooms with and without a sea view for EUR 90, 110, and 130 (+40 for sea view), as well as junior suites, which can host up to 4 people with extra beds added by the hotel.

Hotel Des Etrangers

There are multiple other hotels within easy walking distance. We have been recommended Antico Hotel Roma 1880 (four stars) as well as several of the nearby bed and breakfasts. We have not blocked off any rooms at these places, but they currently have multiple rooms available during the Wedding weekend.

Other hotel options

The nearest international airport is Palermo, which is 3 hours by car. It is possible to get from Palermo to Siracusa by public transport through a combination of trains and buses, but we recommend to instead rent a car. If you plan to fly into Palermo and would like to carpool, please contact us and we will try to coordinate that.

Karin & Davide

Karin & Davide

Photos