Sicily

Palermo is a city of so many fascinating layers, that the best way to experience it is to have a savvy local by your side. Here’s where Passage to Sicily comes in. It’s an association that offers  small group tours all over Sicily for culturally curious travelers, led by scholars, writers, and architects who bring their unique insights into Sicilian life and culture. My Roman friend, the wonderful Petulia Melideo of  Context Travel, highly recommends Passage to Sicily–and since my experiences on walking tours with Context  in Rome, Florence, Venice, and Naples have been so amazing, I’m glad to know that a similar organization exists for myRead More →

Finally we’ll explore Palermo—the first place many land in Sicily. What struck me about Palermo the first time I visited years ago was the strong Arabic influence that reveals itself in stunning architecture, colorful mosaics, and delicious ornate sweets. A Golden Day for me in Palermo is exploring La Kalsa, a quiet neighborhood where crumbling baroque buildings, Spanish-Moorish architecture, and artists’ studios blend together in an atmosphere that retains an exotic sense of the Arab port it once was. Take note that Monday is NOT the day for this, as many of the highlights are closed. A good place to start is the Palazzo Abatellis,Read More →

We’ll leave the Aeolian Islands, and head to an elegant spot in Sicily: cliffside Taormina. After Goethe “discovered” this place, it became a hotspot for artists, writers, and glitterati–beloved by Oscar Wilde, D.H. Lawrence, John Steinbeck, Truman Capote, Tennessee Williams, Liz Taylor, Monica Vitti, Sophia Loren…you get the idea. As my Sicilian friend Loredana Grasso says, putting it nicely, “It’s a gem, it’s picturesque, it can be…touristy!” Which is why Loredana is helping me guide you along a Golden Day, giving her insider’s tips. I have had some lovely stays in Taormina, with Backroads and Country Walkers, which is where I met Loredana. She is an adventurousRead More →

I’m always getting asked, “What’s your favorite….?,” which I always find impossible to answer. When it comes to Italy, I call on Goddess Venus, and go according to my mood. For a totally blissful time in the Aeolian Islands, I’d check into La Raya on Panarea, the smallest and most tranquil–no cars allowed! For a livelier spot, I choose Lipari, the largest island, that has a great archaeological museum, busy port, and it’s fun to wander the alleys where little shops, delicious restaurants, bakeries and gelato shops await. Today I’m dreaming of Salina, the greenest of the islands. I took a great hike there, up to Monte delle Felici,Read More →

Buon Anno Amici! To begin the New Year, we’re traveling to the amazing Aeolians, a cluster of 7 diverse islands that lie off the northeast coast of Sicily. We’ll start off with the most dramatic of the group, Stromboli, that rises out of the sea like a huge black cone. Its famous, flamboyant volcano erupts about every 15 minutes. Last October, on a Country Walkers trip, I had the awesome experience of climbing up to the top of the island and watching the amazing show of fireworks. The wonderful Margaret Cowan (aka Mamma Margaret) is also a Stromboli fan. I met Mamma Margaret on-line throughRead More →

One of my favorite memories of Italy 2010 was spending time with Renée Restivo in the beautiful baroque town of Noto. Renée is Sicilian-American, and I loved hearing her stories of Sunday dinners at her Aunt Sadie’s in Astoria, Queens–which is where her passion for Sicilian cuisine was born. She went on to work as an assistant at top culinary schools in New York and Italy. Then, while visiting her Sicilian cousins, she became enchanted with Noto and decided to create her own company, Soul of Sicily, here. Last October, I showed up in Noto and got the chance to sample Soul of Sicily’s cooking classes (deliciousRead More →

We’re sticking around southeastern Sicily–home to those dreamy towns that showcase the Sicilian Baroque. Years ago, I was lucky to ride a bike into Modica, get wowed by the architecture and taste the town’s famous chocolate. The visit was all too brief. Which is why I am so grateful to have found Katia Amore online through her Love Sicily website and blog, which is full of great info about the area and mouth-watering recipes. Katia was born in Modica and grew up amidst  a family of great cooks. After years of working in the UK as a university researcher in ethnic relations, she returned with her husbandRead More →

I first encountered award-winning writer/photographer Jann Huizenga years ago when a friend mailed me one of her beautiful travel articles that was published in the New Mexican. Jann’s story was about the Val di Noto–an area of southeastern Sicily that’s been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. I’d become enchanted with the place while on a Backroads biking trip–oohing and aahing over its fields of wildflowers and herbs, hills of almond and olive trees, and best of all its villages: Ragusa Ibla, Modica, and Noto–which are among Sicily’s many hidden treasures– fabulously adorned with stunning Sicilian baroque architecture. Jann first visited the area in 1990, when it was rundown and virtuallyRead More →

To get to the enchanting island of Ortygia, you cross over a bridge from Siracusa and enter what feels like a way-back machine. Traffic is limited here, so all is slowed down and peaceful. This was the land where the sea nymph Calypso lured Odysseus. A Golden Day here begins at the morning market, that’s not large, yet impressive with enthusiastic vendors and varieties of fish–from glistening sardines to gigantic tuna. It’s also a great place to buy capers or chocolate from Modica to take home. Ortygia’s masterpiece is the Piazza Duomo, rectangular-shaped, flanked by buildings that elegantly showcase the Sicilian baroqoe style. At the center of it all isRead More →

Andiamo…to the island of Sicilia. We’ll begin where I was a short time ago: Catania. It’s the perfect starting point (with an easy airport) to explore places like Siracusa, Taormina, and the Aeolian Islands (all of which I am heading to on a Country Walkers trip–so stay tuned). For many years guidebooks discouraged spending time in Catania, giving it the same treatment as Naples: “ a city in decay, depressing, dangerous, etc.”  It’s now actually a vibrant, youth-filled city  (with a prestigious university), and a Baroque-a-palooza historic center, that’s recently been scrubbed up and restored. Mount Etna rising in the distance provides a dramatic backdrop. And like Naples, Catania is absolutely theatrical–with lotsRead More →