Palermo Parks

There is so much to say about the parks in this city, more than I can put in one post. So, there will probably be several. For a city of 3 million people, most living in apartments or other attached housing, open and green space is necessary. And well-used. I am amazed at how popular BA's parks are, every day of the week, but especially on the weekends. They look well-loved, too. Many could use a whopping dose of maintenance, but I imagine with a metro area of 14 million using these parks, it can be pretty tough to keep up everything.

BA has its own Central Park (or Washington Park/Forest Park), a VERY large expanse of green near the center of the city that provides a host of activities for Portenos of all ages and interest. It is in the Palermo neighborhood and is within walking distance of my flat. Actually, it is a series of several parks and public venues all linked, including a rose garden, a Japanese garden, a zoo, a botanical garden, a horse race track, a polo field, a soccer complex, a planetarium, a small art museum (with outdoor cafe), several plazas and a park with a lake and lagoon. There are roads and paths choked with walkers, runners, cyclers, rollerbladers and skateboarders. Also, you can rent paddle boats in which to putter around the lagoon. Vendors sell grilled meat (of course) and people picnic. I even saw someone fishing in one of the lakes. On a sunny spring day like last Sunday, everybody was out: young, old, families, lovers, groups of friends. Apparently at night a part of the park becomes the transvestite red light district. The only thing I didn't see was a frisbee (or a transvestite).

In addition to this big complex, Palermo has several smaller parks, plazas, monuments and plazoletos (small plazas) scattered about. Many are ringed with cafes and ice cream parlors. Interestingly, you don't find many plazas in front of churches or cathedrals, like you do in Italy. Actually, you don't see many cathedrals or churches as you might expect in a largely Catholic country. One very popular park is Plaza Palermo Viejo, which was packed with families on Friday night. While some of BA's plazas contain contemplative green spaces (usually with some monument or statue), this one is jam packed with areas for kids: a merry go round and two fenced play areas.

If I have nothing to do on a Friday or Saturday night, I just go stroll to a local park or plaza with my book and read for a while or buy an ice cream and people watch. It is one of my favorite things to do here in BA in the evening.