The first thing you can notice arriving in Palermo is that this is a place of big contrasts. Starting from the crumbling buildings of the city downtown, which often alternates blocks of questionable taste, arisen in the years of speculation, it appears as wrapped in a shroud of mystery. Glancing through the building facades, in this alternation of Arabian and Mediterranean recalls, I often wondered who inhabited these places, which tales are contained within these walls.

My discovery of Palermo began from an investigation about empty spaces, where the industrialization of recent past left a memory of strong structures, nowadays abandoned.

Chimica Arenella

The plant known as "Chimica Arenella" is a part of the recent past of this city. In this factory, built in the late 1800s on the western side of the Gulf of Palermo, they used to produce citric acid by extracting it from citrus fruits, for which Sicily was always among of the major producers in the Mediterranean area. The factory has been operating until the fifties, when a more economical production method, allowing the synthesis of citric acid by chemical processes, has been discovered. In this place, now completely abandoned, human traces of those who have lived and worked here are still visible. Meanwhile, the nature, little by little, is making his way through the crevices.

Mattonificio a Vapore” (brickyard steam)

Crossing the city towards east and continuing along the shore, we can find the remains of what the Brickyard Steam used to be. Here the human traces are clearly visible too, but the time has been less kind with the building structures. In this spectral environment, as scares in darkness, some holes in the structure let the harsh light of the sun to get in.

Palermo Nightlife

In spite of this decadent appearance, the night in Palermo has very good vibes. Besides La Vucciria, the fish market that becomes the center of nightlife in Palermo, the city has such a huge constellation of places where it’s possible to eat while live music is played, where people can meet each other having a good beer. People is constantly moving from a club to next one, because you can’t never stop at the first stage!