Author: Roberta Zennaro

Food and wine experience of Sicily Food and Wine Tours of Sicily - A fantastic travel destination for all seasons and all tastes.  Where the landscape of nature changes into subdued views shaped by mankind.  Testimony to art and history going back in time to almost three thousand years with Greek archaeological sites scattered in the east and west, and not least the splendour of the Sicilian baroque.  You can go to the seaside then on leaving the beach, after a few kilometres you can reach wild woodland or Mount Etna, the great volcano that dominates Catania and all of the east coast …  Sicily has everything to see, while you are travelling and admiring its beauty, stop and taste the speciality of the local food, delicacies that in some cases have gone beyond the boundaries of this island and have become symbols. Like the “cassata” and the “cannolo”, made from almonds and pistachios, brought to Sicily by other Mediterranean populations, giving their best to Sicily. If you want something for breakfast, why not try an almond “granita”, which in the hot summer months goes down really well, and will leave you with all the energy necessary to face your day. An excellent excuse for a Sicilian taste The city markets are a good way of getting to know the flavours of Sicily, in Palermo alone there are three, all different and one better than the other:  Ballarò, La Vuccirià and the Mercato del Capo. The fish market of Catania is certainly not to be shrugged at, it is situated in the centre of the city and here it’s not only fish!  In fact, concentrated in a very small space, you will find everything necessary for the kitchen, you will be intoxicated by its colours and aromas.  From the small

What to do in Catania If you come to Sicily you have to visit Catania, the second most important city in the area after the capital Palermo. Like Palermo, you can get here easily by plane, or by train, a slower method of transport but more interesting as there are many colorful sights along the way. It is well connected to the other parts of the island by a good public transport system. It lies on the east coast facing the Ionic sea and behind it looms Mount Etna with a majestic height of 3,323 meters above sea level. It remains snow-covered for many months of the year and often blows out a dark puff of smoke to remind us that it is still an active volcano, and taking a walk through the streets of Catania it can seem both protective and threatening at the same time… The urbanistic aspect of the city is dominated by 18th-century Baroque which takes its origins from a tragic event. As a matter of fact if the earthquake of 1669 saved the old city protected by a wall, the earthquake of 1693 brought more death and destruction, but gave the architect Vaccarini the opportunity to reconstruct Catania with main roads, squares, churches, palaces and monuments, that we can admire today. Best time to visit Catania The center, and symbol, of Catania is the fountain with the elephant that the local people call “U Liotru” from the Byzantine name Eliodoro, and the obelisk. The elephant is from the Roman era and is made from the dark lava of Mount Etna, the obelisk is Egyptian. Both decorate the beautiful square of the cathedral, which needs time to visit as it contains many treasures. The cathedral was built in Medieval times, even though it was rebuilt after