Taormina

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Possibly my favourite place in Italy! About 45 minutes away from Catania where I arrived on an altered railpass 😊. Had to wait for a bus to take me up the hill to the bus station, from where I walked uphill to the old town gate. It was so so nice, but swarming with tourists unfortunately. The pics say it all - it was a stunning town - proper medievel with the Teatro Greco built in 1st century BC, so so so nice 😊 with amazing views of the coastline particularly from the Teatro and the viewing terrace on the Piazza IX Aprile - who needs the Amalfi coast when you've got this beauty??! The Villa Communale took my breath away and was a nice getaway from the swarms of English and Americans in the main town.

After a stroll round this beautiful old town I took the cable car down to the beaches. Although I didn't go in the sea, it looked lovely - really clear. I came here late afternoon so there were loads of people on the beach. I think to really appreciate these beaches you need to get here early! I then walked from Mazzaro beach over to the next, nicer beach called Isola Bella. There was a slight walkway to an island just off the shoreline and this looked so beautiful 😊

You can usually get a good view of Mount Etna from Taormina but today, although the sun was blazing and the sky was pure blue, Mt Etna was covered by mist which was unfortunate because it was a main reason for coming here but I'm still very happy I came and discovered this wonderful place. I will definitely be back.

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Photos

football ground suspended in the mountain
Taormina

Mazzaro beach
and its clear sea