Snippets of Sicily, Italy – part one

The eastern and southern coastal regions

It’s only possible to enjoy all Sicily has to offer if you have the luxury of several weeks to explore.  Sicily is much larger and complex than one might imagine so it’s wiser to attempt either a week or two discovering the eastern and southern regions of Sicily, OR a week or two for the northern and western areas of the island, OR a week discovering the joys of the Aeolian Islands. All three options offer a wonderful palette of experiences of slightly differing hues.

I hared around researching the entire place in just twelve days so this series of posts offers only an introductory overview to help steer your chosen course.

Find part two – western and northern Sicily here
Find part three – the Aeolian Islands here.

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Summer in Sicily is hot! It’s dustier and rustier than many other favoured regions of Italy and some attractions seem underwhelming by comparison. This said, I loved it. And despite the shadow of the mafia still lingering in some parts, I felt safe in Sicily (mind you, I’m probably safe anywhere given I’ve passed being of interest to any exuberant Italian)

Travel tips to help maximise your enjoyment

• Sensible (sigh!) non-slip shoes and a large hat are essential.
• Do not be tempted to accept an upgrade to a larger rental car – the roads are narrow and parking spaces are tight. I use rentalcars.com to search for the best options.
• A friend recently arrived in Catania to discover some car rental companies require an international drivers license for non EU visitors.
• Follow the timing of the locals. Get up early to do your sightseeing, and stay out late to enjoy the transformative night life because some of the places you pass during the day are barely recognisable by night. Nap in the afternoons – it’s too hot to enjoy doing anything anyway.
• Arancini balls in Sicily are great! Order them – often. I never once tasted a failure, even when I was lost in the dregs of downtown districts and almost willing to eat my own toenails.
• Try as many flavours of granita as you can. This means at least one daily which is hardly a chore. Granita is a crunchy type of sorbet/ice cream usually served in a brioche bun. Did you know the lid of the brioche, being French in origin, represented the head of Marie Antoinette after her guillotining during the Revolution? Visualising this almost put me off – but only almost.
• Be aware that many good restaurants close at 2.00pm following the lunch shift and only reopen after 7.30pm.
• Carry a small amount of cash in low denominations for tips, tolls, entry into several churches and historic attractions, some public transport, and the occasional dodgy taxi driver.
• If you head off the beaten track, which I always do, the condition of some interior roads is diabolical.
• Be prepared for the affront of uncollected rubbish bags strewn alongside the back roads. You’d think the ruling powers would show some pride in their domain and have the place cleaned up, especially given the original rot followed strike action as far back as 2009. This residual squalor does take some shine off the place.
  

I flew into Catania, picked up my hire car, took one look at the banks of grubby, shabby apartment blocks and continued on towards Taormina. I do know though that Catania offers vibrant nightlife, mad and wonderful street markets and an old town well worth exploring but, given my itinerary was full to bursting, I chose not to dally there.

Taormina

Elevated high above the Mediterranean Sea, Taormina is as spectacular as you’d expect after watching White Lotus with a multitude of historic attractions, sophisticated shopping and many excellent restaurants. So much is already written on Taormina that include visiting the Ancient Theatre of Taormina, the Taormina Opera House, the Greek-Roman Theatre Museum, and the many gorgeous churches, so your days will be filled with worthwhile activities. Join a private tour if you find the discovery process overwhelming.

Here, for my discerning subscribers, is what I learned in Taormina:

• The iconic Isoabella is more impressive from afar or from the water. The entrance fee to visit the tiny island is worthless because the gorgeous footpaths leading to the elevated vegetation and sea facing areas are roped off and entry is forbidden. Jump on a boat to view instead.
• The dilapidated Isolabella ‘museum’ offers no additional information you can’t find on Wikipedia.
• I got the sense that the benefactor of Isolabella, Lady Florence Trevelton, had visited Barcelona and was profoundly influenced by Gaudi. Unfortunately, her constructors were not seemingly blessed with matching architectural skills or technical brilliance so, without major restoration, the survival of the buildings here appears questionable.
• Like many other tourist hotspot beaches, the pebbly approach to Isolabella becomes packed full of unimaginative sunbathers unless you visit early or late. There are much better beach options north and south of here and some even have sand on them. If you need to do some sun-worshipping, it’s a better idea to venture south to Giardini-Naxos where you’ll find a great beach and a lovely promenade.
• Lady Florence also funded and oversaw the development of the charming public gardens, Villa Comunale, but the same construction problems are evident here with the structures rotting and roped off too.
• Pine cones and chillies are good luck symbols in Sicily and adorn many buildings in the brightest and boldest forms. They’re in every souvenir shop too if you’re truly persuaded they will look good at home.
• A useless tidbit for your next quiz night, prickly pears are not native to Sicily but took root and spread madly after being imported from South America.
• Nuts are a big thing here, especially pistachio, and the charismatic street sellers make purchasing bags of them great fun.
• After mounting hundreds of stairs in stifling late afternoon heat to visit the very modest church of Madonna Delle Rocca and high above it the Sacren Castle, I discovered firstly that access to the castle is closed and secondly, there is a road at the rear that allows easy vehicle and bus access to the site. Visit instead the impressive beauties of the Church of San Giuseppe on the magnificent Piazza IX Aprile and Duomo di Taormina that both way surpass this.
• With a morning to spare on a clear day, the views from the tiny medieval village of Castelmola high above Taormina make for a worthwhile trip. The steep and winding drive past stunning hotel properties adds to the wonder of the excursion and the town centre square offers a delightful selection of taverna, bakeries, and gelato shops.
• If you’re a fine dining foodie, avoid clashing with the Taormina film festival scheduled annually for the last week of June. It becomes near impossible to secure a reservation at any top-rated restaurant. I fancied visiting highly recommended Tischi Toschi and was also tempted to splash out for the tasting menu (and incredible views) at St George and was probably fortunate to luck out. Instead, I trundled downhill on the furnicular to Villa St Andrea for an elegant evening seated on their beach or better still, stay a night or two.

Inland to Mount Etna

I continued my journey south towards Mt Etna late one afternoon with the intention of hiking to the allowable summit limit to enjoy the sunset. Unfortunately, I missed the last cable car and my guide after getting rerouted around a traffic accident. What I could see on the winding ascent was dramatic anyway. I felt like a midget in an oversized landscape where someone had set about on a massive digger ploughing great channels up and down the mountain sides. These huge chunky corrugations are in fact quite recent lava flows, and the remnants of a burnt-out house is a reminder the risks around here are real. Mount Etna is closed to visitors more frequently than one might imagine as volcanic activity threatens.

Since I never made it up the mountain myself, I’m linking an excellent guided tour here. You really do need sturdy footwear and remember it is cold up there no matter how hot it may feel anywhere else at the time.

Because I was behind the wheel of a car, I never made it to any of the wineries at foot of Mt Etna but a day tasting the great Sicilian wines of the region is seemingly a magical experience. The following were recommended to me by a local; Gambino Vini, Murgo, Donna Fugata and Cottanera.
I’ve checked them out as best I can from afar and his selections seem to hold up but it might also be fun to join a guided tour of the vineyards.

Syracuse and Ortigia

Continuing south, I spent a lovely day wandering around Syracuse and Ortigia, popping into galleries, churches, shops and even an ancient library.

The Neapolis Archaeological Park with its large ancient Roman amphitheatre and the nearby huge echoing limestone cave called The Ear of Dionysius need a minimum of two hours to explore fully and it’s best to get there early before the heat ramps up.

I found the town centre of Syracuse quite ordinary except for the outstanding limestone Piazza del Duomo. My ambivalence may have had something to do with a long and hot 20-minute walk to see a much hyped Caravaggio hanging in the otherwise nondescript church of Chiese di Santa Lucia. In typical ‘church fundraising’ fashion, a coin payment was required to have the painting lit up to view it. Since I didn’t have one on me and it was hung far beyond me past the alter, this proved a disappointing diversion. If you’re keen on Caravaggio’s rather visit the National Gallery in London or the Uffuzi in Florence where it is possible to decipher what’s on the canvas.

Ortigia at the very southeast tip of the town limit is where you want to spend your time. There is a carpark on the left soon after crossing the access bridge which is how I came across the Ortea Palace luxury hotel and spa. Something unusual about this striking building drew me in and it turned out it was the old Syracuse post office that had sat abandoned and derelict for years until a wealthy businessman purchased and restored it over the following decade. It is quirky but quite fabulous and most rooms have great views.

Walk a couple of blocks from there to the Syracuse markets. The clamour, colours and variety of fresh produce had me lingering longer than I expected and left me almost wishing I was self-catering. Make a note to stop here first as these markets are closed in the afternoons.

At the far of the market lies the ancient ruins of the Temple of Apollo, and then beyond that wander further to enjoy the usual leisurely loops though alleyways to discover the specialty shops, fabulous galleries, gorgeous churches and fortress outposts.

Ortigia is vibrant, crowded and busy all day but as the sun sinks towards setting, the pace briefly slows as young and old gather at the seafront to laugh and laze in the fading glow. Order your Aperol Spritz cocktails and settle in. Bellisimo!

Noto, Modica and Ragusa

There are eight UNESCO heritage towns in south-east of Sicily, so designated because of their unique town planning and exquisite Baroque architecture resulting from their rebuild following the devastating destruction of the 1693 earthquakes. Noto, Modica and Ragusa are the most popular and any of these beautiful locations are a great choice of base to explore the surrounding areas. Beyond the towns themselves, there are numerous nearby beaches, tons of fabulous vineyards, or perhaps enjoy an easy hike through the Vendicari Nature Reserve.

While in Noto, I knew I would only use my accommodation to sleep for a few hours each day so I elected to book a reasonably priced room at Palazzo Tasca. It turned out to be a central, spacious and stunning apartment owned by a delightful lady who baked enough to supply a small village every morning. Give it a go if you’re not seeking five star luxury.

I was given dining recommendations for Manna and Dammuso too and many other rated restuarants were already fully booked or closed until Wednesday ( I was only in Noto Monday and Tuesday) Luckily, this made me wander a little off piste and the chance discovery of Retablo resulted in a warm and wonderful evening chatting to the owner, Katarina, who has mastered four languages and is a customer charmer. Like most venues around here, she is proud to offer only Sicilian wines on her menu and, unlike many other countries, wine by the glass is seldom torrid plonk.

Modica is gorgeous. As usual, it is a town with dozens of churches but even if you’re fed up with yet another one by now, the Duomo di San Giorgio and Chiesa di San Giovanni Evangelista are exquisite baroque treasures that will fill you with awe.

Modica is also famous for its crumbling, heavily flavoured Sicilian chocolate. Specialty shops along the main street offer generous tastings to assist your purchase selections and, if you’re really obsessed, there is an annual festival every November celebrating all things chocolate.

The best 5 Euro I spent there was a ticket for the open hop on/hop off tourist trolley that, depending on where it got stuck in traffic, trundled along for about 45minutes past all the main sights. The ‘tour’ itself was a non-event but the ride provided relief from the heat and endless uneven stairs. (you’ll find these ‘rescue rides’ in most tourist villages in Sicily)

Being a side street explorer, as I exited the Duomo di San Pietro looking for lunch, I stumbled across Radici Restaurant. It overlooks Via Clemente Grimaldi, the main street, but its entrance is up several stairs off a pretty alleyway. My meal and their wine list were sensational. Other recommendations I noted for Modica were La Gazza Ladra and Trattoria da Fabio.

I moved on from Modica to Ragusa via a winding back road that was so stunning I had to reduce my speed to a crawl to take it all in. Ragusa developed into a town of two sections following its rebuild after the 1693 earthquake so the spectacular views on approach of this densely packed village sprawl across two steep hillsides. A deep valley divides the ‘old’ and new’ so once again be prepared to climb hundreds of steps to view Ragusa from the gorgeous church of San Giorgio before returning to the historic centre of Ilba to explore the riddle of its narrow streets and the lovely Piazza Pola square that is overlooked by the magnificent of church of San Giuseppe.

Navigating around Ragusa is a little more confusing than other the towns so consider joining a guided walking tour to get a better grip of the place. I didn’t indulge in a meal here but Ragusa is well known for its great array of restaurants. Again, advance reservations are essential in summer for the rated and fine dining options like Locanda Don Serafino and Ciccio Sultana but there are many festive and fabulous alternatives that don’t require dressing up or thrashing your wallet. An additional recommendation shared with me in passing was Ristorante Il Borrocco – it may be worth a try.

I then moved on to the west and then north of Sicily (again, you can read about it here) but if Catania Airport is your departure point, it’s a manageable two hour return drive from Ragusa.