In Sicily, in the metropolitan city of Messina, located between the Nebrodi Park and the not very distant Tyrrhenian Sea, there is among others a small village of less than 2400 inhabitants, this is the municipality of Galati Mamertino.
A small mountain reality that is certainly fascinating because it is peculiar in many tourist aspects, first of all its own urban conformation which, seen from above, recalls the silhouette of an eagle flying north.
It is an agricultural center located 810 meters above sea level, in fact it is located on a cliff, it is no coincidence that the name 'Galati', from the Arabic "Qal'at", means precisely 'rock'; the second appellation, 'Mamertino', would instead relate to the fact that an ancient Sicilian people declared themselves descendants of the God Mars.
The village also has a hamlet, the fraction of San Basilio, and the stream that flows there is also of the same name.
Things to do in Galati Mamertino: history and architecture
It is not known with certainty when the foundation of Galati Mamertino dates back, but a local historian has hypothesized that it may have occurred in the era of Ducezio, a leader of the ancient Sicilian-Greek era who came here from Syracuse. Subsequently, the village rises in Arab-Norman age and already starting from Renaissance it was one walled city, with a wall with two gates: the Porta Marina , Porta Montana. THE'medieval aspect of this village, in addition to the Renaissance one, are typical features visible in the organization of the neighborhoods and in the facades as well as the internal structures of the religious buildings present here.
The churches that are located within the country are numerous and interesting to visit, starting with Church Mother, dedicated to Our Lady of the Assumption, built in the XNUMXth century. But there are also, always dating back to the Renaissance period, the Church of the Rosary, Church of St. Catherine, Church of S. Luca, St. Peter's Church, Sanctuary of Trofillo (a rural and private church).
In the hamlet of San Basilio is located the Church of San Basilio Magno.
In addition to the ecclesiastical buildings, also the presence of the De Spuches Palace or prince's palace, which was built in the second half of the XNUMXth century during the Lanza dynasty, it has the Amato family coat of arms above the main entrance since the first to live in the sumptuous building was Don Filippo I Amato with the wife Margherita, also of blue blood.
Things to do in Galati Mamertino: nature
We have already figured out that we are in the territory of the Nebrodi mountains, these certainly generous as regards particular specialties in terms of flora and fauna, for example, in the first case, with regard to oaks, hazelnut groves and olive groves (with the relative fruits which are included among the autochthonous gastronomic products).
Very interesting to visit is the Catafurco waterfall, or a natural waterfall that forms at a height difference of a few meters along the course of the San Basilio stream. At the base of the waterfall, the waters collect in a natural cavity carved into the rock where, during the summer, it is possible to bathe.
Always on a naturalistic and gastronomic level, another native product given here by the earth are for example the mushrooms, in fact Galati falls within the so-called "four pairs of them funci” (four mushroom villages) together with Mirto, Frazzanò and Longi, which are nearby.
Things to do in Galati Mamertino: events
Above all, it is the religious events, all experienced with a great sense of faith and participation, that punctuate the moments of feast in Galati Mamertino, whose Patron Saint is St James, celebrated on 25 July but the procession around the streets of the town already begins the previous day, unlike the other celebrations which take place exclusively in the town centre, identified in the main square, or Piazza San Giacomo. Indeed, there are 3 saints celebrated here with special rites, namely the just mentioned St. James, but also San Rocco and Holy Crucifix, with the relative procession of all e three saints what happens together by 23 26 to August.
Although it is a small village, in reality there is certainly no shortage of interesting opportunities and fascinating things to see in Galati Mamertino, in fact, the same could be inserted in a tourist tour in that of the Nebrodi Park to discover and rediscover especially during the spring-summer.
David Mauro, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
