Commissioned by Roger II (12C), San Giovanni degli Eremiti and its luxuriant garden is an oasis of freshness and tranquillity. One of Palermo’s most famous churches, it is a simple angular structure surmounted by five domes, evidence of the Arab know-how behind the Arab-Norman style. The interior is sober and void of ornamentation; the hustle and bustle of the city seems a world away.