Tag: sicily

Week One: The Adventure Continues

rletteri /

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A little more than a week ago, I never could have imagined we would see and experience some of the things we have in the last few days. Eating octopus and swordfish, exploring two-thousand-year-old ruins, wandering through cities and hiking mountains… it’s been an amazing adventure! Italy is such an incredible country, and almost every day we’ve been here has been better and more beautiful than the last.

We’re still in the “classical” phase of the trip, so the sights we’ve explored have mostly been from ancient Greek and Roman history. Last Wednesday we left Agrigento for Syracuse, and on the way we stopped at a 4th-century Roman villa with the largest collection of classical mosaics anywhere in the world. In Syracuse and Taormina, we visited crumbling temples and enormous Greek theaters. This country has such an amazingly rich history, and I’m finding it fascinating to actually visit the places and monuments we studied in class earlier this semester!

Now that we’ve gotten over our jet lag, most of us are adjusting to the slower Italian pace of life. In America, many people seem to rush through their days and their lives, seldom taking the time to just relax and enjoy the day. Here, businesses close at midday, and people take a few hours just to eat, rest, and enjoy their time with the people they love. A few days ago, a few friends and I gave it a try. We sat outside at a restaurant by the water, talking and eating, barely noticing the three hours that passed us by. This entire lifestyle is truly incredible, and a part of me wishes me never had to leave!

For me—and, I know, for many others—the highlight of the trip has been Taormina. The city was built into the side of a mountain, and our hotel had the kind of view poets used to write about. Mount Etna towers over the horizon, covered in snow, almost too beautiful to be real. As the sun sets, stars and city lights burn against the darkening sky, and the Mediterranean Sea spreads off into eternity. It is the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen, and words and pictures can never begin to capture it. Honestly, I don’t think anything can ever top that experience… but I’ve said that before on this trip and been proven wrong. I just can’t get over how amazing this country is! Now, we’ve left Sicily and arrived in mainland Italy, and I can’t wait to see what adventures await us in the days and weeks to come!

– Brian
Blog Team
Italy 2012

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Ciao from Sicily

rletteri /

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We’re on our second day in Italy and I think we’re already getting the hang of this world travel thing! Today we are journeying to the southeastern coast of Sicily to hang out in Siracusa for a day or two. But yesterday, we toured the ancient world of Agrigento… Here’s a little summary of that adventure!

After tasting some Italian breakfast, we boarded our private motor coach and took a short drive to the Valley of the Temples. Our tour guide, Giovanna (fluent in at least 4 different languages!) showed us around the site of four large temples dating back to around 500 BC. The first is traditionally known to have venerated Juno (or Hera in Greek). We sat as we listened to Giovanna explain the rituals surrounding this archaic spot and were shocked to discover that our seats were actually the ruins of a giant sacrificial altar! The second temple, traditionally associated with Concordia, was the most complete of the ruins we viewed. Giovanna even showed us a human skull buried in the dust and history of an area that has not yet been excavated! Then we walked to the Temple of Heracles and had a chance to explore the ruins on our own for a bit, before moving on to the Temple of Zeus. This final site, though the largest of the four temples, was in near complete ruin, but still sparked our interest as visitors to the ancient world frozen in time.

Giovanna also showed us a few natural “sculptures” that overlap the ancient and modern worlds: trees! Valley of the Temples is home to several olive trees that have survived since times of old. The descendants of these trees can be found all over Sicily, spanning the gap between past and present. Also in bloom during the winter are the beautiful almond trees dotting the entire valley. These must be related to the cherry trees we love back home in the South, with the same white and pink blossoms we see every spring! A festival celebrating the start of almond blooming season occurs in early February, so we came just in time to see the peak of the season! The valley also holds both male and female pistachio trees. Though out of season right now, Giovanna told us how the two species of the same tree need each other to survive. The male trees fertilize their female counterparts and don’t attract bugs, while the female trees produce fruit and keep the pistachio population afloat amidst the attacks of nature.

All in all we learned a lot about the history of Sicily yesterday! In addition, we had our first authentic Sicilian pizza experience and got to explore the city after lunch. We all agree that the four-course meals and obvious language barrier might take some getting used to… but so far, Italy has been treating us well! We’ll write more soon, when we can take our eyes off the beautiful Sicilian countryside! Thanks for reading and as always, comment below if you have questions or comments!

~Rachel
Italy Blog Team
2012

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Safe and sound!

rletteri /

Just a quick heads up that we’ve made it to the hotel in Agrigento! We’re all slap happy and tired and more than a little bit haggard, but we’re all here (and so is all of our luggage!). More details to follow as soon as one of our staff writers can form a semi-coherent sentence.

-Italy 2012 Crew