Sicilian Holiday (Part 4): Noto - Day 5

We continue to travel south and from the Greek-style Syracuse we head down to the Baroque Noto.
Noto is the finest example of Sicilian Baroque style and for this reason it has been included by UNESCO in their prestigious, coveted World Heritage List. The city is about 32 km from Syracuse and by Bus it should take maximum 40 minutes.

Noto strikes you immediately due to the extraordinary homogeneity of its town-planning: it was built to an octagonal plan and is crossed through by the main streets. This “stone garden”, as it is commonly called come, contains a never-ending number of Baroque monuments that appear on the streets and squares. The material most commonly used is limestone, which creates an extremely spectacular effect at sunset, when the sunlight brings out a pinkish hue from the majestic façades.

What to see/do:

·        Piazza Municipio: with its wonderful staircase that takes you up to the Cathedral of San Giorgio, surrounded by imposing Baroque buildings such as Palazzo Vescovile and Palazzo Landolina di Sant'Alfano.

·        Palazzo Ducezio: now the seat of the Town Council. An admission fee of €1 admits you to one of the reception rooms within, the Sala degli Specchi ('hall of mirrors'), a palatial room with mildly interesting 19th Century frescoes;

·        walk along Corso Vittorio Emanuele and Via Cavour to admire the masterpieces of the late Baroque period

·        Palazzo Nicolaci: where chubby beasts and cherubs stare down at Via Nicolaci. This is a masterpiece.

      Spare the afternoon (or at list a couple of hours) to visit the Natural reserve of Vendicari. It's a bliss for the senses. So secluded and quite and the sea is really Carribean style. Please note that if you go in the summer months when Italians are on holiday, you will have to share the beach with other locals. It is still well worth a visit. Fishes are very friendly as they are not scared of humans. It's a really nice experience!

      Where to stay:

1. B&B Noto: http://www.venere.com/bandb/noto/bandb-noto/?ref=2960#overview

2. Villa Dorata: http://www.7roomsvilladorata.it/ -

3. Eremo della Giubiliana: http://www.eremodellagiubiliana.it/

Next week we write about the last part of the 1 week Sicilian holiday. Don’t miss it! Enjoy.




Above article inspired by: http://www.nozio.com/europe/italy/sicily/syracuse/itineraries/syracuse_:_noto.htm


www.trisori.com

Sicilian Holiday (Part 2): Catania - Day 3

Catania - Panoramic View

Last week we wrote about 3 days in Sicily if you are not Berlusconi.
Where to go if you have 1 week?

Let's recap the basics: you landed in Catania Fontanarossa and spent two days relaxing in Taormina. You might have visited Mount Etna if you have been brave enough to dare the heat of a Sicilian summer.
Now that your batteries are fully recharged, go south please!

You will see the less beaten track of Sicily and the landscape, architecture is truly remarkable.

Transport:
Take a bus from Taormina bus station (it's close to the cable car station) and head to Catania. The trip should take around 1/1.30 hour and it should cost around 10 EUR.

Let's continue on our 7 days trip to Sicily....

Day 3: Catania

"U liotru"

Catania is the second largest Sicilian city and it's a vibrant and buzzing place, full of cultural things to do (although mostly in Italian), amazing architecture and fun night life. Start your sightseeing from the Elephant.  The symbol of the city is "U liotru" in Piazza Duomo. A lovely elephant made of lava stone which holds a marble Egyptian obelisk. This lovely fountain is from the Roman time (circa 1693) and it's worth a stop.
 

 

Close by is the Cattedrale di Sant' Agata, an exquisite  example of the difficulties of being a "Catanese" (person from Catania). This church has been rebuilt several times following volcanic eruptions, earthquakes etc. and it stands magnificently on the square - for the time being.

If you still have energies, you can visit

- Piazza stesicoro (Roman archaeological site)
- Piazza Università (pictured below)

- Villa Bellini (a small urban park)
- Castello Ursino

 

Shopping:

 

The shopping mecca is Via Etnea for Sicilian high street fashion (pictured on the left hand side) or Corso Italia (high end and more expensive).

Despite common belief, Sicilian are really fashion conscious and you will see the under 30s sporting the coolest trends on the hot and black lava ground.

 

Eating:

You MUST try an arancina and a cannolo siciliano.  You just cannot go to Sicily and not try it.

It's the first thing that every Sicilian does when they go back: Local bar, order an Arancina, be happy, go home. It's a ritual.

If you are from London, I can assure you that it's totally different palatal experience from what you tried in Notting Hill or Bayswater.

 

 

Arancine Sicilian

 Arancina is a delicious rice ball (savory), the cannolo is, literally, a Sicilian cannon made of pastry full of sweet ricotta cheese. They are both delicious.

 

Head to Savia for the top of the pop in Sicilian street food (no, no, you will not catch a disease because it's street food. It is professionally made at Savia):

Pasticceria Savia
Via Etnea, 302/304

Kiosk - Stop by for drinks!

Drinks: 

If you are thirsty during your sightseeing experience in Catania, stop at one of the local kiosks for a refreshing drink. The most famous is Orzata (lemon based) or Acqua e Zammu` (Anice based). Personally, I prefer the Mandarino Verde one (Mandarin based) which is stronger and more refreshing. There is no alcohol in them as temperature is so high in the summer that it would be madness to drink an alcoholic bomb during the day!

Whatever you choose, just pick one: they are an institution in Sicilians' everyday life and you can't leave Catania unless you tried one.

For the vastest choices of Kiosks, head to Piazza Vittorio Emanuele III - They look like in the picture on the left hand side.

 

 

Finally, for who is able to understand Italian, please find below the description of Sicily made by one of the most illustrious Sicilian writers: 

 "...Vero è che le Sicilie sono tante, non finiremo mai di contarle. Vi è la Sicilia verde del carrubo, quella bianca delle saline, quella gialla dello zolfo, quella bionda del miele, quella purpurea della lava..." Gesualdo Bufalino

For the rest of the trip, follow this blog next Friday!
Love, Trisori

www.trisori.com

Sicilian Holiday (Part 1): Taormina on a budget

Recently, a friend of mine asked me where to go in Sicily if you are not Donald Trump.
What a wonderful reason I have to publish a post in the blog about my lovely part of the world!

First of all, get yourself a bargain and grab a flight from London to Catania Fontanarossa. If you are lucky, you can get a return flight for less than 150 pounds with Easyjet. Alitalia does not fly direct and you don't want to buy an indirect flight: it takes forever to arrive to the final destination.


Now that you have your return flight to Sicily, where do you stay?

If you have 3 days
Rent a car at the Catania Fontarossa Airport and head north to Taormina. You need to be a good driver as Taormina has tiny streets, people drive like lunatics and parking space is impossible to find. If you are not, don't despair, you can take a bus from the airport directly to Taormina.


Once there, if you are on a budget, the wisest thing to do is to stay in Castelmola. which is a little town above Taormina. It's really close and 30% cheaper and hotels offer shuttle services to and from Taormina.
Book at Hotel Villa Sonia: Click here for the website of the Hotel which is nicely located and not too expensive.


You can spend 2 days relaxing in Taormina and 1 day doing an excursion to see Mount Etna.
In all honesty, with such a beautiful scenary and amazing hot temperature, you deserve a medal if you manage to go all the way up to Mount Etna in the summer! Every hotel organises trips to the surrounding cities/ natural reserves, just ask at the reception.


If you have a week or for something more luxurious, follow this blog next Friday!


Enjoy