Sicilian Sun

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Sicily was never a place high on my to do list but when the opportunity arose for Adam to present at a conference in Catania, it seemed the perfect excuse to book a car, hit the road and see what adventures there were to be had. Before visiting, I knew very little about this Italian province. I had some vague awareness of Palermo being the capital (alla Marco Breciano, Socceroo star and midfielder for Palermo). Beyond that, the only other thing that came to mind when I thought of Sicily were imaginings of the Italian mafia, conceptualised almost entirely through scenes from the Godfather trilogy, the Goodfellas and similarly themed films. In my mind I imagined Sicily to be full of mafia men-that streets would be filled with beefcake blokes in black suits with smooth hair, smoking cigars and riding around in big flash cars wearing shades. Of course, this was a ridiculous concept born of too many gangster films shot in another era. If we did encounter anyone connected with the Mafia, which is still acknowledged to be prevalent in this region, the individuals were indiscernible from any other members of the local population. There were certainly no evident calling cards on display for tourist eyes.

The first thing that did strike me as I flew into Catania was the undulating landscape, defined by high rocky outcrops leading to lush green valleys, green olive groves and grapevines contrasted against expanses of brown dusty plains, and the shifting hues of blue and aqua of the sea with sunlight reflecting off the water surface. The backdrop to the city of Catania, where Adam spent four days prior to my arrival, was the volcano Etna, still active having last erupted in 2002. It was clouded in mist the entire time I was near enough to view it but on a clear day, the sight is said to be amazing.

Taking in the varied landscape on offer is quite a challenge by car as one confronts the chaos of the roads throughout Sicily. Driving on the right side of the road is still a major challenge for me, though Ads has mastered the art and drives with great confidence. I too have every confidence in his driving prowess, and yet, I spent most of my travel time with my hands gripping the seat and my eyes wide with terror as we took on the local Sicilians. For the locals, the enemy on the road is anyone who is driving at the signposted speed. God forbid one should drive even marginally slower...it simply invites abuse. In the first ten minutes of leaving the airport I heard an entire symphony of horn blowing as cars streaming down both sides of the narrow roads, narrowly missing sideswiping each other in passing. Cars could be seen streaming down either side of any vehicle felt to be moving too slowly, with local drivers undercutting at any opportunity. It was pure chaos. And that was on the highway. Driving up to villages located in the mountains was even more alarming, weaving through narrow lanes barely wide enough for a car to traverse, let alone pass other cars who had randomly parked along the route. However, despite the terror one encountered when driving high up into the village towns, the joys of these small villages made the ordeal totally worthwhile.

We stopped on our first evening at the village of Enna, a midway point on our journey to Alcamo. Enna offers spectacular views down a huge valley with other smaller villages dotted on the hillsides opposite. The town itself is full of stone buildings along narrow winding streets filled with cafe bars and interesting shops. The locals gathered in huge numbers in the central piazza as evening fell and greeted friends and loved ones with kisses to both cheeks. It was lovely to stroll around watching the typical Saturday evening routine of the locals. I find it fascinating that in Italy, it is the men who gather together and sit for hours on a park bench or at a bar, presumably catching up on all the local news (and perhaps checking out attractive woman passing by...) Again I have a stereotypical notion that woman by contrast invite friends into their homes and gossip to their hearts content whilst their men are otherwise occupied. Its nice to imagine this has been a routine on the weekends for all their lives, gathering together to seek out the companionship of old friends.

Leaving Enna, we headed to Alcamo where wed decided to base ourselves for 2 nights. As most people who’ve travelled with us would know, Ads and I don tend to live the high life when we holiday. Its a trade off-because we try to get away as often as we can, we try to keep our costs as low as we can so that we can keep heading away as frequently as we do. In particular, we try to keep accommodation costs low by staying in hostels and budget accommodation. As Adam has the energy of ten energiser bunnies, we are rarely in our hotel or hostel room anyway (if Ads had his way, wed never sleep at all for fear of missing out on some great thing there is to see!) But on this occasion, we decided to splurge and treat ourselves to a room in what has possibly become my most favourite hotel ever (I’ve not stayed in that many after all!) It was absolute bliss waking up in a huge king bed in a room with exposed wooden ceiling beams and a Moroccan-inspired decorative motif above us. Not to mention the gorgeous antique furniture and the amazing view out of the window. It set the tone for a wonderful few days in the region.

There was a lot we wanted to see in the days we were in the north-west of the island. First on our list was Monreale, another small hill village famed for its amazing cathedral and cloisters. According to the trusty guidebook, the cathedral has the most extraordinary and extensive area of Christian medieval mosaic work in the world, the apex of Sicilian-Norman art and upon entering this colossal space, it certainly lived up to every expectation I held. The mosaics were truly amazing, as was the view down the valley looking out toward the capital Palermo and the sea beyond. Palermo itself is a city with a lot of grit. Again, traffic was crazy, garbage was abundant and the smelly remnants of the fish and food markets held in the heated morning permeated pockets of the city making the air odorous and difficult to breathe in some parts. Whilst Adam felt Palermo had a lot of charm, I found it a difficult place to fall in love with. True, we visited a number of churches which were impressive in their size and visual splendour, as was the seaside itself, as well as some of the cobbled streets which were quite attractive. But I found that you didn need to look very far in any direction to see a gritty pocket where people were living in crowded apartment blocks set back from the main walkways displayed plenty of signs that better times were long gone and poverty remained. Given that one of the highlights of this city was finding a graffiti wall displaying our initials, I think its safe to say its not a city I would quickly rush back to.

The same could not be said for several of the other places we visited. Alcamo itself had a nice township-again made even more endearing by yet further witness to the gathering of local folk following church on a Sunday evening-again to wander about the main piazza or sit among friends and wile away the evening on a bench or street corner. We wiled away a lovely evening people watching in the main square, eating huge slices of the most delicious pizza followed up with the hugest scoops of gelato. Another gorgeous spot was the village of Erice, another hilltop locality with stunning views across to Trapani and the coast. Built in medieval times, this village is jam packed with charm by way of the numerous steeply inclined cobbled alleys, gorgeous churches, temple and castle, imposing city walls and numerous small shops selling local artefacts. Every aspect of this tiny village was delightful and I could have wandered around getting lost in the alleys for a few days very happily. But unfortunately our time here was brief as we squeezed in a same-day visit to Segesta. This spot was once an ancient city, the only remains of which are a Doric temple and amphitheatre. But how stunning these remains are! The temple itself dates from 400BC and though incomplete, its still quite a spectacular sight. Located on a hill above (a good 2km trek uphill but worth the sweat) is what remains of an impressive theatre, with more stunning views across green slopes to the sea. The location is truly gorgeous (despite the blithe of the motorway cutting across the view).

While the whole trip around this tiny Mediterranean island was fantastic, there were a few highlights that were unforgettable. One of these was a morning spent in the Reserva Naturale dello Zingaro, a gorgeous stretch of national park lining the coast. We took a lovely 20 minute walk to the first cove beach where we swam in the most crystal clear, aqua blue water I’ve ever seen. It was amazing. My only regret was our lack of time to explore the rest of the 7km stretch-its undoubtedly home to more hidden gems! Another highlight was visiting the Valle Dei Templi in Arigento, where the remains of 6 temples stand along a ridge facing the sea. Each of the temples vary in their completeness, ranging from being little more than a pile of rubble to being almost fully assembled. Each is amazing but the most stunning is Tempio della Concordia, the most completely restored and the most elegant in its proportions. While I would never claim to have a huge passion for ancient history and archaeology, standing before this amazing site one could not help but feel awed. Similarly, visiting Piazza Amerina, a Roman hunting lodge buried by a mudslide and only excavated in the 1970s, I felt truly humbled by the stunning mosaics lining the floor of each room of this huge site. This is a site that is still undergoing extensive restoration work and I can only imagine how spectacular it will be when completed and the mosaics can be showcased in their entirety. It will be breathtaking. Last but definitely not least was Ortygia, a small Island and the old centre of Siracusa where we spent our final night. This gorgeous spot is almost entirely traffic free (most of the lanes and alleys are barely wide enough to fit a car through!) and it is the perfect location for spending long lazy days in a state of pure bliss. This tiny island encapsulates what is best about Sicily-the beautiful seaside with a hilly backdrop, the towns with their narrow lanes lined with gorgeous shops, the restaurants showcasing local fare such as Sicilian antipasto and Cassata, and the stunning architecture to be found at every turn. Our night here was my favourite one in Sicily. It was magical and of all the places we loved in Sicily, it is the location to which Id most like to return again and again to soak up the splendour.

All in all, we set off barely knowing what wed find and uncovered an island of delights. We were both so astonished at just how much Sicily has to offer and I live in great hope that we’ll have cause to return here to drink in the magic again someday.

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