Mon 03.Jul.2023
Taormina, Sicily
Imagery April 2023
Yow! Pictures have piled up already from Germany, Slovakia, and three cities in Czechia, and here we
are, still on Sicily!
Sicilia is too good to just skip the rest of it, so here we go!
A popular destination - that is all I knew about Taormina. The next thing to know
is that the town sits high on a ledge of a steep seaside cliff.
If "taking the stairs" is a healthy activity, Taormina is arguably a very healthy place.
People for whom stairs are a show-stopper may want to re-target to someplace else.
That said, it is a spectacular place, with plenty of tourist infrastructure. Accomodation,
restaurants, souvenir shops ... everything but good public transport. An infrequent bus runs from
the (seaside) station up to about 500m from the city gate. From there it is still a hefty hike
into town, and up or down to your digs. Or a cab ride. On departure, I just taxi'd the whole way down
to the station.
Piazza IX Aprille, Taormina's central square.
Looking over the rail at Piazza IX Aprille.
Strait of Messina
On the right is the mainland Italian province of Calabria.
Homer's Odyssey tells that Odysseus sailed between the rocks of
Scylla and the whirlpool of Charybdis, out there in the narrows.
Enough of this ancient Greek theater is still intact, that events are held here.
A friend tells me he saw a memorable performance of Wagner's "Lohengrin" there.
Wagner's music is better than it sounds
- Mark Twain
Etna (a frequently active volcano).
A small but exuberant car!
From Taormina, there is still more hill above. The little village at that spectacular summit
is Castelmola.
I braved the sometimes-hair-raising ride up to Castelmola late one afternoon. The tour bus stops
at this decorated little plaza, with a panoramic view over the Strait of Messina and much else.
If you were a happy couple, about to commit holy matrimony, wouldn't you consider doing it in a
picturesque Sicilian town high over the Mediterranean?