July 2018 – 2 weeks with the family
This is part of our Italy Summer Road Trip – check out the rest of the trip.
Overview
From Turin, we flew to Palermo in Sicily. Sicily is so large that it can easily be its own destination. We gave ourselves 2 weeks to explore the island and that was definitely not enough time. Our trip got off to a rocky start when Lynn made a car reservation, not for the wrong day, but for the wrong year. We appreciated the service provided by AutoEurope (who we generally use to book cars in Europe) to help us change the dates. But even after sorting out the wrong reservation, it was still a really long wait until we actually got our car. We learned that while things move slowly in Italy, they move really slowly in Sicily. Ahh, memories.
From the tour guide, we learned that the language spoken in Sicily is its own distinct language (not a dialect of Italian) and itself is comprised of about 10 different dialects. Sicilians were the last to join the unified Italy and today generally maintain an attitude that they are Sicilian rather than Italian. We were trying to practice our Italian with the tour guide, but he told us he uses very little Italian since tours are generally done in English or German. And at home, they speak one of the dialects.
While Sicilians have held on to their local language more strongly than others. This is something we did not know before moving here. We never realized how much non-Italian languages are used by Italians. Italy did not become a country in its current form until 1861 (with its first capital in Turin!) and that was when a common language was first embraced. Our impression is that grandparents use both Italian and dialect, but many parents and children only use dialect when speaking with older folks.
As we mentioned, we started in the Northwest corner of Sicily in Palermo and took a general counter-clockwise path around the coastline until hitting the “toe” of the Italian “boot” mainland in the Northeast corner. Although we did spend some time inland, it was generally too hot and too barren to be in the center. Most of the highlights we share here are near the water.
Avventura Favves
Granita – We had to put this first because I don’t think we truly understood what true Italian Granita was before experiencing it in Sicily. And we LOVED it. It is likely the inspiration for Italian ice (or water ice if you’re from Philly) but it is so much better. It is icier than gelato but still creamy. And the ingredients of fresh almond milk, pistachios (particularly those locally from Bronte), and fruit (gelso is so good) are what set it apart. Unfortunately, most places outside of Sicily call it granita but then serve you something out of a machine closer to a slushie. The best was at Pasticceria Artale in Syracuse. It was even better than one of the most famous, Caffe Sicilia in Noto. And, oh yeah, the granita and vibe were amazing at Bam Bar in Taormina. Let’s be honest, it was amazing everywhere. So amazing, that we gave up gelato just for this portion of the trip.
Cannolis – Can you tell our family likes food? The cannoli are second on the list as one of our faves. Don’t miss the Laboratorio Pasticceria Roberto in Taormina.
Sticking with food, we would be remiss not to note that many Sicilians eat granita for breakfast. They combine it with a large brioche for a kind of breakfast sandwich on a hot day. Yum. Note that our picture had gelato in it, which we snagged just before crossing the ferry to the mainland. I guess I lied about giving up gelato while we were in Sicily!
Favignana – This small island off the northwest coast was a gem. We actually stayed a few nights on the mainland in Trapani and took the ferry across to the island for a day of bike riding, and swimming with beautiful views. The 2 rocky beaches in the northeast corner, Scogliera di Cala Rossa and Bue Marino Beach, both have amazing blue water. It was the perfect island for bike riding, even with a 6-year-old who kept veering into the few cars we came across.
Ortigia Island is the historic center of the city of Syracuse. It is an incredible old town, and around every corner is a new discovery. Not only did it have what we considered the best granita of our trip (see above), but the walk along the harbor alone is worth the visit. We were about to turn around and head back when we came upon a beautiful nature park. As we kept going a man began playing the accordion on the street. All we had to do to be entertained was just to wander around and enjoy being lost in the ambiance of this place. We snapped a family photo as it was getting dark in Piazza Archimede in front of Fontana di Diana.
Alcantara gorge hike – I’m not sure if we mentioned this yet, but July in Sicily is damn hot. This hike was beautiful, but not one of our better parenting moments since we ran out of water and were trying the ration the last sips as we were climbing back out of the gorge. Hopefully, the kids only remember jumping and swimming in the cool stream.
Fondo Cipollate Agriturismo – We highly recommend this small family-run hotel near Taormina. There’s a beautiful pool and a hearty breakfast. It was comfortable and clean, and the owner gave lots of excellent daily recommendations.
Mom’s restaurant (Le Mamme Del Borgo Comune di Motta Camastra) in an old town where some of The Godfather was filmed. The husband had to come to get us because the little stairways and alleys between the houses are a maze and there’s no way we would have found them. This was one of the cooler experiences we have had. Years later, we are still trying to replicate similar “in-home” dining experiences (we had another great one in Israel). We enjoyed a homemade meal prepared by the women of the town with local wine and digestifs. The cost was something like 20 euro per adult. When you do look for an experience that is somewhat off the beaten path, you also tend to meet other interesting travelers. With the help of some wine, we got to become very good friends with a Scottish family (see the picture of Joy!) At least for a night!
Mount Etna – We booked a day long excursion and took a 4×4 up. After an awesome hike on the volcanic sand, we stopped at a winery. The Nero d’Avola red grape makes intense and tasty wine.
Sicily also has the incredible Aeolian Islands, including Salina and Vulcano with their own erupting volcano. We did not have time that first summer because we didn’t want to rush through everything, but luckily we returned for a visit a couple of years later.
Other Things We Liked
Stair of the Turks – These dramatic white cliffs off the southern coast are worth a quick break on the drive from the western side of the island to the eastern side. We had lunch in a cafe with a rooftop deck and spent a short amount of time walking on the smooth white rocks.
Trapani – We stayed in a winery just outside of town here and went into town each night. We really enjoyed the atmosphere once the sun went down. There were beautiful sunset views, and bustling piazzas where we ate some good food while enjoying the world cup – and yes – had a few gelatos.
Palermo – Palermo is really more of a city, than a charming town. It is the capital of Sicily but despite its charms, quite frankly for us, it seemed too hot to walk around in the heat of summer. But since we insisted that our kids do it anyway, we took a few pictures in front of Piazza Pretoria, a beautiful building with fountains. Did I mention it was hot? Very hot.
Noto – Noto was a cute town to explore, and. best of all, it has a gorgeous town hall (Palazzo Ducezio) just next to the infamous Caffe Sicilia. Our kids enjoyed a short nap on the painted streets after a delicious meal at Marpessa. And we experienced one of our first “Aperativos” here. Suffice to say, we were hooked.
Agriturismo Stallaini near Syracuse – This super inexpensive, inland Agriturismo was worth the drive. They had a huge pool for the children, and great meals (we had breakfast every morning and dinner there one night), featuring lots of fresh fruit products from their trees. We stayed in an old tower with a lot of charm, but without air-conditioning. I would recommend one of the main rooms! The owners were very nice and accommodating.
Taormina – This hilltop town is super unique but a little complicated to visit. We were confused as to the best way to get there because you can’t drive into it. Eventually, we figured out how to take up the gondola (but there is very little parking near the base, so we had to street park very far away) and then just walk around the town. It has a fun square with great views, Bam Bar for some excellent granita, StritFUD for some delicious arancini (deep-fried rice balls with various fillings, a Sicilian classic), and pizzas, and Laboratorio Pasticceria Roberto for the best cannoli in Italy.
Side trips from Taormina include Le Gurne dell’Alcantara – Not far from the town of Taormina is this beautiful cold stream that’s worth the quick hike. We visited a picturesque winery called Gambino Vini, with a really nice woman who gave us a tour and tasting.
Logistics and Miscellaneous Notes
- You really need a car to explore Sicily – and you need to allow plenty of time. There is much to cover and it should not be rushed.
- Accommodations with pools were essential, given the heat at this time of the year.
- Sicily is rocky. There are very few sandy beaches so bring some water shoes and be prepared for a bit of hiking and climbing if you want to enjoy the coastline.
Next Time We Go
- If we had more time, we would visit the Valley of the Temples to explore our Greek heritage
- We would make time for other islands near Favignana (such as Levanzo, Marettimo).
- We would be sure to try skiing on Mount Etna in the morning and swimming at the beach in the afternoon – all on the same day. What a great experience in contrasts!
This is part of our Italy Summer Road Trip – check out the next stop on our trip – Puglia
Have any questions or suggestions for Sicily? Post them in the comments below or contact us at LewinAvventura@gmail.com.
The Avventura 