Chapter I The Island of Happy Memories
London, 12th of September 2020
I don't know about you, but if someone tells me I can't do something I'd probably do it twice and take a picture. This is how I felt when I was stuck at home for months with very little to do (like everyone else in the world). I wanted to travel! However, my only outing would be food shopping an a walk in the park (thank heavens for the park!). It was around this time I also decided that I wanted to go to Sicily again. I used to go almost every year with my Papa and Mama when I was younger. It was probably the first time I realized I was actually on foreign soil, so very different from the charming and elegant towns of Emilia Romagna and Veneto we used to visit every Summer holiday. My father was born in the north of Italy, in the Renaissance town of Ferrara. So Sicily felt very different indeed! But never the less I realized, even as a child that this place was different and somewhat magical. One of the last times I went to Sicily, the Etna was about the erupt. The sky had a odd cloudiness about it and the air was filled with tiny particles of ash that followed you everywhere you went. We had a lucky escape that time, we departed only hours before they closed all air traffic to and from the island and when we took off we saw the mighty Etna blowing more and more smoke.
Holidaying in 2020 provided us with a different obstacle, namely a virus that took over the world but I was lucky enough to go on holiday at all this year with my sister who has been my trusted travel companion for a few years now. The moment green light for travel was given I booked my tickets and a few weeks later I landed again on the Island Of Happy Memories.
We stayed just over two weeks and planned to go around most of the island. Going to places I used to go to as child but also on to discover new places.
I flew to Catania and when I arrived I was greeted by the customary breeze that makes you feel like you've walked into a very hot oven. Catania looks moody but is buzzing and beautiful. True the dark gray lava stones are probably not everyone's taste and most of the buildings have what one could call a 'rustic charm' about them. But look beyond that and you'll the discover the first traces of that distinctive Sicilian Baroque style. We stayed in a little hotel wonderfully situated behind the Piazza Duomo hidden behind an Enormous door that led to a courtyard and a our rooms on the Piano Nobile.
First things first. Aperitivo followed by supper just off the Catanese fish market and a pistachio gelato. We strolled endlessly through the pretty streets of Catania, with it's churches and its richly decorated facades beautifully lit. Most impressive was the cathedral of St Agatha and even more so when illuminated by a full moon.
Love,
F.
Comments
Post a Comment