The Little Island off the Coast of Italy

Sometime Mid-December

My friend Ursa and I took the ferry from Naples into Palermo on the west coast of Sicily. When I planned on venturing to Italy for my two month getaway, I knew I would spend some time in Sicily. I have always been intrigued by this island. Its dark past, its corruption and ties to the mafia, as well as the nature and beauty it possesses.

Even though Sicily is part of Italy – one man from central Italy actually argued with me that Sicily is a country of its own, that it is practically Africa. I just gave a little head nod. That’s interesting, people say that about Texas. That it’s like being in a whole different country. I knew immediately I was going to like Sicily! But, when it comes to practically being Africa I definitely had to argue with him on that one. Although, interesting enough, Sicily was a 13 hour ferry ride for us off the bay of Naples (In Italy) but from Sicily I could have jumped on a ferry to Tunisia (In Africa) for only a 6 hour ride. Sicily sits on the Mediterranean Sea and is a bridge between Africa and Europe. How lucky!

The boat we came in on

Our 6:30am arrival into Sicily had us a bit disoriented and stumbling around at the port in Palermo. We found the port bar/cafe (everything in Italy is a bar/cafe) and went for a coffee or two or three with all the men about to head into work. This is when it happened. My breakthrough with Italian coffee that is. You see taking coffee in Italy is like nothing I had ever experienced before. There are about 1000 different ways to order your coffee.

Secondly, no one sips coffee, or has small chat, or even says “hey would you like to meet for coffee” because having coffee in Italy is literally like a 10 second game of who can take drink their coffee the fastest. You get your coffee, or espresso rather, because that is really all it is, and you shoot it like a 21 year old shooting tequila on their 21st birthday. This is having coffee in Italy. And, at this time, I had been in Italy for almost a month and a half, and still had to order my coffee “long” which means coffee and milk (more milk than coffee it was so strong) or a couple of times I even went as far as to ask for an American coffee with milk to take away with stares like I was a bit crazy. Takeaway coffee is just not in the Italian vocabulary, but it was still in mine. So, while on the coast I made friends with the barista at the coffee shop up the street and he got used to me. Therefore, I only got the crazy look like the first two times instead of every time. But, arriving in Palermo after a 13 hour ferry ride with little sleep, I decided today was going to be the day I took my coffee like an Italian….well almost. Coffee machiato please. And bam I took it all at one time in 2 seconds just like everyone else. Okay so machiato means a little bit of the milk foam at the top, but close enough!

Sicily is where I spent Christmas and The New Year, and truly learned the hospitality of Sicilians.

And, don’t take call them Italians! They’re Sicilians NOT Italians!

It is said the farther south you go in Italy the nicer and crazier the people become. Northern Italians say those in the south are unrefined, lazy, and don’t worry to much about anything. Southern Italians say Northern Italians move too quickly, work to much, have too much stress, and everything is chaos! Hmm this mentality sounds familiar.

Here is a map of our Grand Tour of Sicily. Starting on the west coast of Palermo making our way all the way along the coast to the east of Sicily to the bottom of Mount Etna.

Initially, we spent several days in Palermo couchsurfing, taking long walks around the city, and hiking the pilgrim path of Santa Rosalia. We then made our way down south to the charming little town of Agrigento. We had no plans and no place to stay. We jumped off the train and just walked around inquiring at places on the street as we passed by. Ursa speaks decent Italian so just by asking around we stumbled upon the cutest little apartment in the town center on the main street and we rented it for two nights for only 20 euros each….about the same as a hostel room in most cities. Agrigento was founded by greek colonist and is mainly known for its Valley of The Temples where the Greeks used to celebrate their Gods. But, Ursa and I found the town to also be lively and pleasant and spent more time wandering and mingling with the locals than at the temples. Although the long walk to the temples on the outside of town taking in the view along the way  I would consider one of my great walks in Sicily.

The View of Palermo from The Path of Santa Rosalia

We decided to take the bus from Agrigento to Catania. You see it’s not easy to get around in Sicily. Buses and trains mainly leave from the main cities (only 2) on the island and then you have to get everywhere else from there. Also, no one seems to ever know what is going on with the buses. So, we constantly drag our bags around and ask ask ask. Of course, getting different answers every time. So, we keep asking. The bus however ended up being the perfect choice. Spacious, two level, and great views of the Sicilian countryside for our 3 hour ride.  I think I spent an hour just looking out the window taking in the scenery and admiring the beauty. Rolling green hills, mountain tops, cactus…lots of cactus,houses spattered about with colored roofs, and of course sporadic views of the coastline.

Bus rides are also the perfect time to be with thoughts. Thoughts of the yesterdays, the todays, and the tomorrows. I get lost in my thoughts constantly on bus rides and train rides. Something about staring out the window watching the world pass me by puts me in a trance.

Catania and Beyond

Catania is the other large city on the island besides Palermo, and it more of a hub for travelers as it sits at the base of the famous Mount Etna. It is also a great base for exploring the eastern coast of Sicily. We spent a lot of time in this area because of the ease to either explore the north or south on the coast. We spent several weeks playing in Catania as well as spending time going up and down the coastline exploring all the nature of Sicily. There is so much to see here that we focused on the coastline but when I return the next time, I will spend time doing the inner countryside of Sicily. The thing with Sicily, to be able to see all of the countryside it is a must to rent a car. At this point, Sicily just does not have the transportation to get around the Island via buses or trains to be able to explore all its beauty.

Here are some photos from Sicily:

A Traditional Sicilian Pizza Place

My New Hippie Car!

A View In Syracuse

An Italian Favorite....Soccer on The Beach

Ursa and I had so much fun just wandering around the island without too much of a plan. Here are some short video clips of some of our wanderings and goofiness! As you will hear me say several times in these video clips we also spent lots of time waiting for buses and dodging vespas. It was an everyday game, to see how many times we almost get plowed down by a vespa!

If you can’t see the video below, please click here to view