Five Easy Rules for a Fabulous Stay in Sicily
Click here to see the Sicily Page on Purple Roofs
By Bob & Bobby, Click Here for Bob & Bobby's Travel Blog

Five Rules for Getting to Sicily:

Bob and I arrived home yesterday after spending aprox nine days on an Alitalia 777 and one day in Sicily. But it was one fine day.  Seriously, if you ever have to choose between a mule and an Alitalia flight, choose the mule.  The mule will be faster and not as rude.

The only reason we made connecting flights upon our arrival in Rome was because that plane needed to be replaced. Then on the return trip, they cancelled our reservation altogether.  (The “capo” somehow felt it was a revelation when she told me that we were not friends.)

If you plan to make your own travel arrangements to Sicily, these are our words of advice:  1) Do not fly on Alitalia; 2) try to feel more comfortable on Air TAAG, perhaps flying out of Angola; 3) you could choose to disguise yourself as a package and fly FedEx; 4) take a Mediterranean cruise; 5) or give yourself a week to work out the kinks.

The rest of the trip was indeed fabulous.  After finally arriving in Catania, we picked up our Smart Car, traveling the autostrada to Taormina. Only we find Castelmola instead…not to worry, we needed to get there the next day anyway.

Although somewhat late, we find the energy to discover the charming streets of Taormina and dine at a lovely trattoria, having the most authentic spaghetti dinner imaginable. (I would say better than my grandmother, but she didn’t send out many invitations to her table.)  Most of our days are spent discovering the antiquities of Teatro Greco (at one time holding over 5,000 spectators), spectacular Forza D’Agro, the almond wine of Bar Turisi (in the aforementioned Castelmola) and the rocky beaches of the Mediterranean.

By Monday, we were climbing Mount Etna, called Mongibeddu in Sicilian.  Although we are both afraid of heights, we manage to soar as high as they allow, taking some souvenir lava on the way down. Ironically, our “mountain climbing” expedition proceeds smoothly but our return home does not.  However familiar we have become with our adopted town of Taormina, we continue to get lost.  At one point we find ourselves driving down a cobblestone alleyway that is so narrow we are forced to retract our side view mirrors fearing that we will surely scrape both sides of the car.  Happy endings none-the-less prevailed.

Five Rules for Driving in Sicily:

While driving in Sicily, you must quickly learn to navigate your vehicle at 150 km/hour and not be further responsible for the array of people circumnavigating the narrow streets on crutches. I lost count of the number of people we saw with casts. There are no words of advice as there was such a disparity of road conditions throughout. One day, you are driving at record speeds round and round Mount Etna; the next day trailing a procession of about a hundred people walking to a burial site. However familiar with Taormina, it was a daily occurrence to get lost. At one point I found myself driving down a cobblestone alleyway that was so narrow I am forced to retract the side view mirrors fearing that both sides of the car will be scarred for life.

There are five simple rules for driving in Sicily: 1) If you are driving on a sidewalk, one wheel should touch the curb; 2) when passing slow moving vehicles, beware of bus drivers using their ipod; 3) when backing out of a tunnel, you MUST use your headlights; 4) you should be at least nine years old to drive; 5) and if you are drinking the vino, the minimum age climbs to thirteen.

Getting lost in Sicily was sadly a daily occurrence, although no matter where you turned, the scenery was worthy of a painting. Despite my inability to master a foreign language, Italians are invariably willing to give you directions without concern for your incapability to understand a single word.

Five Rules for Italian Phrases Sicily:

Speaking of a lack of direction, unless you fail miserably at Italian for Dummies, it would be very handy to know a few well-chosen words and phrases: 1) Go up the mountain; 2) go up the mountain some more; 3) go down the mountain; 4) watch out for the goats and 5) where am I?

Bob and I do not own a GPS system but normally are not navigating down narrow alleyways or up 10,000 feet in the sky.  Getting lost in Sicily was unfortunately a daily occurrence.

The good news was that no matter where you turned the scenery was worthy of a painting.  The bad news was that a certain driver was getting a bit cranky at his inept navigator.

One day it took us over two hours to find another sleepy beach which was four times the estimated time.  And, despite my inability to master a foreign language, Italians are invariably willing to give you directions without concern for your incapability to understand a single word.

I will always have this mental image of an adorable daddy trying to balance his equally adorable baby boy on his shoulders while giving us directions for the mosaics.  We also spent the better part of a day to discover that my Dad’s town of Santa Ninfa was destroyed in an earthquake in 1968.  And so it went…

And, can you imagine that even getting a parking ticket becomes a unique Italian experience?  On the day we traveled to the picturesque village of Forza D’Agro to see the ruins of a Norman castle and play pinochle with our paisan, we inadvertently parked in a resident’s spot.

The signage was complicated (in Italian, imagine…) and the size of a postage stamp.

Fittingly, we were later told that we could pay our fine at a post office if we could figure out the process.

Later in Taormina, we discovered that every resident and employee in the local “l’ufficio postale” was willing to help our cause and become our friend for life.  Asked about our day, we would answer that we had a great time - we paid a parking ticket!  (And it gave us more to talk about than the mummies of Savoca.)

Five Rules for Eating Out in Sicily:

When dining at the many trattoria and pizzerias in Sicily, you may want to 1) steer clear of shrimp as Italians seem to confuse this word for crawfish; 2) experiment with the surprisingly fine local wines; 3) taste lots of the local fish (more than likely, one of the area fishermen has just delivered his catch in a plastic bag); 4) order many of the regional pasta dishes and expect nothing less than “al dente”; 5) meet and talk to the friendly people at the next table.

This was an excursion of exceptional dining.  I have often said that there is no such thing as a bad meal in Italy and I still mean it.

The tomato and mozzarella salad that I devoured at a café at the Capo San Marco simply was the best I ever had.  We enjoyed a delightful but expensive meal at a restaurant in Taormina called Licchio’s where we dined with acquaintances from our B&B and quickly befriend an entire soccer team at the next table as well as two guys named Angelo.  The chef, Antonino, couldn’t wait to stop by and tell us that he used to work in New York City.

In Sciacca, we enjoyed the amazing fresh fish caught daily and brought in from their expansive port.

A particularly sensational dining experience was had at an establishment called Hostaria Del Vicolo, quite possibly Sciacca’s premier restaurant.  Their business cards claim “il gusto dell’eccellenza mediterranea”.

Keeping it simpler, our breakfasts were comprised of fruit bought from a former kick-boxer at her sidewalk stand and bread and cheese bought from a delightful young man with piercing hazel eyes.

Most nights, we would meander around the glistening stone streets, stopping for gelato at the Bar Olympia, where you can garner the best sweets, liqueurs and definitive soccer scores.  Is it really about the food or the whole pleasurable experience?

Five Rules for Great Sites in Sicily:

Although we traveled from Taormina to Savoca to Mount Etna to Piazza Armenia to Sciacca to Agrigento to Santa Ninfa to Palermo, what we will remember most are the people...beautiful smiling faces, big hearts and generous spirits.  

However, if pressed to come up with the most memorable sites, I think we would have to say at the very top, Mount Etna, the largest and most breathtaking volcano in Europe.

Then, the Valley of the Temples in Agrigento would be next.  What remains of this splendid Greek city, founded in the sixth century has been described as “the most beautiful of the mortal cities where the inhabitants lived their life as if they were going to die tomorrow”.

Our third choice would be Teatro Greco in Taormina, built by the Greeks and extended by the Romans for Gladiator events.  Obviously realty entertainment prevailed over serious drama even in the Hellenistic period.

Next would be the Villa Romana at Piazza Armerina, where you’ll see the large mosaics from the fourth century undergoing a flurry of restoration.

Lastly, our final “must see” would be the Palazzo de Normanni in Palermo, truly splendid in culture and history.  This is the crown jewel of a city that is an urban paradox.  Exquisite buildings like this royal palace as well as the Palatine chapel, the cathedral and the fountains of Quattro Canti coexist in a dirty, garbage strewn city that rations water and is the most polluted in Italy.

Our stay in Sicily ended with an enchanting dinner at a noisy trattoria filled with locals and their bambinos.  Once again, we were impressed with the fresh and finely prepared dishes, recommended by friendly servers.  We were mesmerized by all the gregarious people eating, gossiping, ordering more mineral water and reprimanding their children; all with their eyes glued to the soccer game as they cheered for Roma, Roma, Roma!

Hope to share more experiences such as these with all of you.  The diet can start tomorrow…

--Bob & Bobby 

---