Sicily is the largest Italian island, divided from the peninsula by the Strait of Messina.
It offers nature, history and tradition and evokes the ancient splendors of Magna Graecia.
The Mediterranean sea is certainly the protagonist, together with the islands surrounding Sicily: Aeolian, Egadi, Pelagie, Pantelleria and Ustica.
The provinces are Caltanissetta, Enna, Messina, Ragusa, Syracuse, Trapani, Palermo (capital), Agrigento and Catania.
Catania, a baroque city with Via Etnea which is one of the oldest streets rich in monuments (churches, patrician palaces and squares) and the longest and widest in Europe (3 kilometers), the Cathedral, the Benedictine Monastery, Palazzo Patrizi .
The Zingaro Nature Reserve is a naturalistic oasis rich in animal and botanical species, characterized by numerous coves and steep cliffs overlooking the sea within which there are various nature trails , three small museums on the environment and local traditions and the Center of Environmental Education ” Terra Magica “.
Palermo with its museums, monuments, churches, gardens and villas.
The Cathedral, the Norman Palace, Monte Pellegrino, Teatro Massimo, the Botanical Garden, the International Marionette Museum, the Church of Santa Maria dell’Ammiraglio, Taormina offers a lot both from a historical-cultural and landscape point of view, with such as Isola Bella, the Greek-Roman Theater, the Villa Comunale and Piazza Duomo.
Syracuse , a colony of Magna Graecia with the Greek Theater, the Ear of Dionysus, the Ara of Irone, the Tomb of Archimedes, the Euryalus Castle.
The Island of Lampedusa is an ideal destination for those who want to relax by the sea: the places are splendid and the water is crystal clear . A must is the Isola dei Conigli with a catamaran tour of all the splendid coves.
The extra-virgin olive oils , the sweet blood oranges, the Canicattรฌ grapes, the Pachino tomatoes and the Pantelleria capers, the prickly pears and the Nocellara del Belice olives have all obtained all the DOP and IGT brands.
The DOC wines of Sicily are also excellent: Nero d’Avola, Bianco d’Alcamo, Cerasuolo di Vittoria, Etna, Moscato di Faro, Marsala and Malvasia delle Lipari.
Typical Sicilian cuisine is rich and varied. It starts with the appetizers : rice arancini, cazzilli (exquisite potato croquettes), crispeddi Catania (pancakes), to get to the first courses that have eggplant as protagonist (caponata, pasta alla Norma and parmigiana).
The fish-based dishes are: couscous alla trapanese, pasta with sardines or ‘cca muddica, tuna, swordfish, hake and dogfish. Delicious meat dishes are the badduzze (meatballs) and the beccafico ‘nna cipudda.
Sicilian pastry is famous all over the world with ricotta and almond paste which are the protagonists: cannoli stuffed with sweetened ricotta, pistachios and candied fruit, cassata, sponge cake covered with ricotta cream, Martorana fruits (fruit-shaped almond paste pastries) up to the famous pignolata, a typical dessert of the province of Messina of the Christmas period.
The sea with its coasts (San Vito lo Capo, Mondello, Cefalรน, Marina di Ragusa, Taormina, Aeolian Islands, Pantelleria, Lampedusa, Ustica) offer relaxation on the beach or the possibility of exploring the wonderful seabed or even windsurfing or kitesurfing . .
For lovers of the mainland, you can go trekking in the itineraries of the naturalistic parks or visit them on horseback or by mountain bike .
For golf enthusiasts we remember the famous Sicilian Open.
Relaxation and spa treatments await in Syracuse, with the famous S. Calogero stoves, with caves where the steam is at a temperature of about 40 ยฐ c , or at the Acireale Spa, where the underground waters of the sea mix with those of the springs. sulphurous of the Etna volcano.
