Savouring Sicilia

After the peace and quiet of Agriturismo Ferrai we headed to the southern stronghold of Sicily. Ostensibly to visit family, but also to reconnect with one of our favourite regions from the previous trip, and show the kids where a quarter of their family comes from. Unsurprisingly it did not disappoint.

After negotiating the ferry in the car we headed for Taormina. Taormina is a tourist town. Perched on top of a hill overlooking a turquoise ocean it’s made for piazza’s with a view. We stayed right in the middle of town in a top floor apartment with an upstairs rooftop terrace (so far the kids favourite). Views were spectacular and much fun was had at the local park. It felt a little like a mini Rome with hordes of tourists descending on the old town via buses during the afternoons. Large tour groups followed guides holding up sticks with small flags while listening on James Bond style ear pieces. A particularly decent spritz was had at Franco Wine bar ("Vulcano Spritz: Campari, amaro all'arancia, prosecco, soda).

We braved a wine bar (Al Grapplolo d'Uva) and managed two glasses! 

A day trip up Mt Etna was also a highlight, with Kel testing the recently ruptured achilles against some serious snow. Luckily all went well and the kids had a ball bum sliding down the snowy slopes. Some seriously good arancini resulted from a random lunch stop in the afternoon.

Next up was Catania. Now this is more of a working city. There’s still a few tourists around the main squares / churches etc, but it’s a large industrial city with real people doing real jobs. We stayed for just two nights, to catch up with Kelly’s family. Connie, now the major link between the Australian and Sicilian branches coordinated the stay, just as she had done some 15 years earlier, when we last visited. Lunch was with extended family, then we drove out to Connie’s place to have dinner with her. A beautiful garden and house, and a great night catching up on 15 years of life. The take-away pizza was the best of the trip so far. It was really beautiful to hear of her life and her sons, and see that most of life 's challenges are universal.

Next it was off to Ortigia, the old town of Syracuse. A seriously picturesque walled city on an island with the sprawling city of Syracuse extending inland on the mainland. We stayed in a fantastic old house, which was originally part of a church. It was bit like living in a cellar, being surrounded by thick stone on all sides. Highlights included a boat trip around the island and out to some caves, a great sandwich place (Caseifico Borderi), lunch at a Putia delle cose Buone and more 8 euro negronis. Photo from the Cave "ear of Dionysius".

Then it was time to leave Sicily. Kel was sad, having a real feeling of connection with the food, crazy driving, and late starts. But the blow was softened by the next destination: Tropea, which had a beach with real sand!