What's Cool About Ortigia

Well, I think I gave a nice roundabout look at Ortigia in this blog, since I spent so much time here, but in this post I'll tell you about some of the funny and interesting things I have yet to mention.

Holy Easter Eggs!
We were lucky enough to be in Sicily during the Easter celebration. The Sicilians take this almost week-long celebration very seriously. You can tell by their eggs:





The Sea: (yes, I'm mentioning it again!)
I adore how it teasingly peeks out between the streets



Hand Painted Papyrus Art:



Ortigian things that make me laugh:

This one is self-explanatory and still produces a chuckle



And Mr. Guido Nutrtion whom I jokingly deemed my "boyfriend"



Come on, isn't this hilarious?! His head totally doesn't match his body! (Sorry, Guido!)

And last but certainly not least...

Looking Up:

Ortigia is all about opening your eyes. You risk missing what is around that next turn, at the end of a ronco, down this or that street, what's hidden right in front of you or most importantly, above you, if you don't.

The point being that I was always discovering something new, especially when I looked up! One thing that made Ortigia memorable for me thing was the variety of goulish decor adorning buildings, railings, and hidden in street corners.

Ghouls, goblins, humans about to get their heads eaten, animals, sirens and angels are everywhere:















Absolutely fascinating! I do not know the meaning behind them or how old they are (which I would love to find out) but they are nevertheless very intriguing. So, remember, if you are visiting Ortigia, do yourself a favor and always look up!

April 7 - Ortigia: Arrivederci, my love!

This morning we had the most satisfying breakfast at Corsino’s consisting of due macchiati and (drumroll, please) …. the champion of all cannoli. Corsino's gets the award for cannoli supremacy, hands down. It does not get better than cannoli filled to order, ladies and gentlemen! And to top it off, we even got a choice of pistachio or almond pieces. “Pistachio,” we chimed in unison.

From the first bite to the last, it felt like an musical symphony was composing itself inside of my mouth. In other, more inappropriate words, I'd say it was definitely an orgasmic experience. *wink*

So seductive on the eyes you are, you little cannolo.

Mid-morning, we walked back to the area of Tyche on the mainland and visited the Santuario della Madonna delle Lacrime church. It is shaped like a tear drop to commemorate the statue of Mary that it houses which allegedly wept for 5 days back in 1953 and is said to have bestowed 300 miraculous cures upon the people a few months after.

What’s more interesting about this place is that it was built on top of an ancient temple dedicated to Demeter (goddess of grain) and Persephone (her daughter). Yes, the same Persephone that was kidnapped by Pluto that I wrote briefly about in this post. The cult of Demeter and Persephone was widespread in ancient times throughout the Mediterranean and is considered one of the Mystery religions.

Some foundation remains of the temple can still be seen outside of the church

And some mosaic floors have been excavated

Inside the church, near the pews, is a huge hunk of what used to be probably be a temple wall

As you walk up to the church entrance, to the left there is a real cool art park, I want to call it, with sculptures that inspire faith and spirituality

The Queen and I

The free Papyrus museum across the street was next on our list. It wasn't a huge deal, but worth a visit. On display were tools and minerals used for color, canoes and shoes made out of papyrus and a really interesting copy of the Rosetta Stone.

Inside the museum




Papyrus Sandals

The plant grows in abundance in Siracusa near the River Ciane. This is the only place in Europe in which papyrus grows.

In the afternoon, we walked around the island one last time at what I like to call the Sicilian pace (walking very slow) wanting to savor every last minute of our time here. Here are some random pictures of Ortigian beauty.



An old Venetian palace turned ristorante




At the very end is Castello Maniace (13th century) Ortigia's Fortress built by Frederick II (and closed at the time of our visit)

What I really love about Ortigia, as well as the rest of Sicily, is that it is a total sensory experience. Let me break it down a little bit:

Smells: I love the smells here. Everyday walking along the streets, I smell fresh bread and pastries being baked, espresso being pulled, the fresh air, open green spaces and smell of the sea, along with her enchanting sound which leads me to...

Sounds: I also love the clanging sounds of the piattini (saucers), spoons and espresso cups being placed down on the bar. I love the sound of the musical language, the people laughing and joking around, the shouts of the market vendors reeling in customers, and all of the characters, who remain faceless, that pass by our door each night in Ortigia.

We are on a ground level, so we can hear everything. There is one guy who I deemed “The Bird Man” who whistles very strangely everyday and night. I believe he is talking to somebody in the way that he whistles. It reminded me of something I saw on one of Andrew Zimmern’s shows in Turkey where the people have an entire whistling language, instead of words. I hypothesized that he was either doing that or practicing some kind of bird mating call…

Tastes: I love the taste of fresh cannoli and with a buttery-smooth macchiato (espresso with a bit of steamed milk) and the pure, rich flavors of the cheeses, fresh fruits and vegetables (especially the greens). The vino is absolutely first-class and very pleasing to the pocket. And the mineral water, what can I say? It tastes so different than back home and makes you feel like you're doing something good for your body. Did I mention limonata? It's a new favorite drink of mine - Lemon Soda. While I don't drink soda while I am in the States, I have also taken a liking to Coke Light, Europe's version of Diet Coke. Even that tastes so much better than the American version.

Sights:Read: This blog

What's on the menu for tonight:
Pasta with butter, olive oil and pecorino pepato and a saute mix of spinach, carrots, onions and pine nuts.

Yum.

After dinner, we did some stargazing by the sea. The moon was just about full and we saw a shooting star. Can you guess what my wish was? (If I tell you, it may not come true....)

As our time in Ortigia comes to an end, I know I will truly miss her and our little 'hood, err, Ronco, but I know I will be back... I must go to the Paolo D'Orsi Archaeology museum, after all!

Tomorrow we'll be taking the early morning bus to Palermo and from there we are train-ing it to Cefalù.

What's Cool About Catania

10 Things I Love About Catania

I find that Catania is very similar to Rome minus the huge tourist attractions like the Colosseum and such. She has a mixture of everything – ancient ruins, a huge outdoor flea market, the fish/vegetable/fruit market, mass public transportation, supermercati, tattoo shops (a plus in my book) and something Rome does not have...

1. Mt. Etna: While we didn’t make the walk all the way down Via Etnea to get close, we saw her from afar. She was tipped with snow, even though it was about 65 degrees outside. I did manage to get a few nice shots from the train:



Check out the abandoned castle in the foreground!



Not too shabby for train shots, eh?

2. "Everyone's an actor," as they say of Rome:
In Piazza del Duomo, Catania’s most famous square, we saw Superman, leaping from the Duomo into the square.



He was looking for money so I told him if he could fly that I would give him some. No such luck.

3. The Esoteric Bookshop: I found one, to my surprise and delight, off of Via Etnea (Catania's main shopping street) and wished that I had an extensive Italian vocabulary in order to understand their content



Tarot Cards: in the window of the book shop



4. Souvenirs: Catania also has a well-rounded selection

Pupi Siciliani (Sicilian Puppets)


Decorative Ceramics


Sicilian Carts


5. Architectural Adornments: These guys adorn the Post Office building



6. Lava Stone Buildings:



7. My favorite scent: Dolce & Gabbana for men (the one with the navy blue cap) wafts freely through the streets, adding to my enjoyment of this wonderful city. (That scent is a woman magnet no matter what the man looks like) And that's a hint from me, fellas ;)

And last but certainly not least...

8. Dolci
Pasta di Mandorle (Marzipan)


9. Dolci
Biscotti (Cookies)


10. And more Dolci!
The bottom center pastries are representative of St. Agata's mutilated breasts and eaten heavily during her feast in February.



Yes, it's true: Even though my time here was short, I am one of the people who absolutely fell in love with Catania.

Now, ritorniamo a Ortigia! (Let's return to Ortigia!)

April 6 ~ Catania

A brief history of Catania:
Katane (the city’s ancient name) was founded by the Greek Chalcidians in 729 B.C. Her history is like most of Sicily’s in that she was occupied by various forces including the Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Normans and Spanish. The entire city is overshadowed by the powerful volcano of Mt. Etna. In 1669, Mt. Etna erupted, killing 12, 000 people and destroying the entire city. An earthquake followed in 1693, further devastating the land. The following year Catania was reconstructed with Baroque style construction, breathing new life into the city. The lava stone from Mt. Etna was utilized as a building material for many of the new buildings' exteriors, imparting on her a unique and rich visual mixture of what I like to call "Catnian chiaroscuro".

I have read that you either love Catania immensely or hate it and want to leave as quickly as possible. I was one of the people who pretty much fell in love and found nothing but beauty in her grimy opulence.



At 7:30am we were on board the train from Siracusa to Catania in order to make it in time to witness the big event of La Pescheria, the famous Catania Fish Market.

We entered the market through Porta Uzeda and had no idea what to expect upon entering the belly of the beast.

Porta Uzeda


Our first looks at La Pescheria


To witness La Pescheria is to witness a total event in itself! There is so much energy flying about – vendors yelling out prices, trying to outsell each other and enticing people to buy from them, and customers bargaining to "fare buoni affari" (get good deals) on the numerous sea creatures, fresh vegetables, fruit and cheese on parade.



And into the belly...


Not being big fish eaters, we ended up fishless, but I did purchase 200 grams of ricotta al forno, or baked ricotta, from the lunch meat and cheese truck for an afternoon snack.



We headed back through the Porta Uzeda, which divides the city from the port, into the main square of Catania, Piazza del Duomo. The 11th century Duomo, also known as the Cathedral of St. Agata, is absolutely the most beautiful that I have ever seen! The impressive façade, with its grey lava wash, contains two columns taken from the site of the ancient Roman Amphitheater. The exterior also boasts many baroque style sculptures, adding to the chiaroscuro effect that I mentioned above.



A closer look at the Duomo


St. Agata is the patron saint of Catania. In 250 AD, she was horrifically mutilated (her breasts were hacked off and she was rolled in hot coals) because she refused the advances of Quintian, a Roman prefect. She was martyred after her death and the cathedral was dedicated to her as protectress of the city.

Also in Piazza del Duomo is la Fontana dell'Elefante (Fountain of the Elephant). Constructed in 1736 from the lava stone of Mt. Etna, Liotru (as it is called locally) dates back to the Roman period and supports an Egyptian obelisk. Its original owner was Eliodorus, a magician who made his living by turning people into animals. And thus, the Liotru became the prized symbol of the city because it is believed to have magical powers that calm the activity of Mt. Etna.

Liotru, or la Fontana dell'Elefante


On our walk back to the rail station, I witnessed a totally unexpected gem – a huge fountain depicting the Rape of Persephone. A very, very short summary of this myth: Pluto, god of the Underworld kidnaps Persephone (daughter of Zeus and Demeter) against her will to reign with him in the Underworld. For a much more detailed version of this story, I’ll make a post on my other blog, Venerating Antiquity, in the future, so stay tuned! (and subscribe to that for updates)

La Fontana di Proserpina


Holding up to my promise of trying a cannolo in every city we visit, we purchased the best cannoli we've had up date at Caffe del Duomo, right in the square. We took it portare via or “to go” and ate those bad boys while we were sitting at the rail station, awaiting our train back to Siracusa.


Picture perfect!

It was 7pm when we got back to Siracusa. As tired as we were, we managed to cook dinner. Hey, I never said red wine didn't give me a second wind ;)

What's on the menu for tonight:
Roasted chicken and potatoes, sautéed spinach with carrots, onions and pine nuts, fried eggplant, ricotta fresca (my new love) and pane integrale (whole wheat bread)... and yes, more vino!



With all that vino in my system, I forgot to use flash! Oh well, you get the jist.

April 5, 7:30PM ~ Ortigia, Cannoli Quest & My Alpheus...

7:30PM, Pre-dinner cannoli quest

My mom and I wanted to get our cannoli on before we ate dinner so we went back to Corsino, only to find they were fresh out of cannoli! (Damn!)

So instead we headed down to Piazza Duomo and each had coffee and shared a cannolo at Antico Caffe Minerva on Via Minerva. Some guy was playing the accordion and church bells were ringing, it was really the perfect Sicilian setting to enjoy our pre-dinner dessert over.



Afterward, we walked around the alleyways of Ortigia, down to the Marina and browsed some of the shops. On the walk back to the apartment, some guy passed us and goes, over dramatically, “Ciao, BELLA!” I caught him out of the corner of my eye and started laughing and we just kept walking.

We stopped in front of Apollo’s temple remains (from 6th century B.C.)



to bask in the antiquity of the site for a minute



when my mom turned around and said, “Let’s go, he’s across the street coming this way.” (Turn off #1 - Never follow a lady if she's not interested)

Lovely. Now we’re booking it down these little alleyways of the old city and all of a sudden behind me I hear, “Senora, senora! Posso parlare con te?” (Can I talk to you?)

I turned around and caught sight of the most beautiful blue eyes. He wasn’t bad looking at all with his dark, curly hair, tan skin and those Ionian blue eyes. So, I talked to him. His name is Samhet he's from Morocco.

“Darn, he’s not even Italian,” I thought, silently amused. (Why is it that I meet every other ethnicity when I come here, but never manage to meet an Italian?)

Everything was going well until he flat out told me that he needs a girlfriend (turn off #2) and asked if we could go have a coffee and talk. After 5 minutes of his persistence, I asked if I could just give him my number so he could call me tomorrow. I didn't see any way out of the situation besides this. So, of course I gave him the wrong number. In hindsight, I felt a little bad about because I don't like doing that but, hello, dominating!?!

Now, you may be saying, "Why didn't she give him a chance?" Well, while I'm touched, being pursued for about one city block is a little unnerving and downright scary. Persistence is not an attractive trait and neither is not getting the hint. Plus, I am not even a smidge interested in finding a boyfriend on my vacation, I am here to explore and enjoy time by myself :)

And so I have discovered drawback #1 of living in a small village.

April 5 ~ Ortigia, Palm Sunday

I am really starting to like it here, Ortigia has really grown on me.

This morning we had absolutely gorgeous weather and fulfilled our promise of trying the cassata. We bought two cassatinas (small version of the huge cassata cake) and oh my goodness, they were absolutely scrumptious! So fresh and soft! The outside is made of marzipan and inside is filled with cake and cannoli cream. There are also bits of candied fruit pieces in it. Delizioso! And not overly sugary at all, like the one I had at Dagnino’s. Right on, Lynn! (I was so anxious to try it that I didn't take a picture, shame on me)

We only have 2 days left in Ortigia and tomorrow we are going to Catania so we wanted to enjoy the sea as much as possible before we leave. On our walk down by the Fontana Aretusa, we came across a procession for Palm Sunday. There were children singing and holding flags, a man holding up a cross, and a priest chanting and blessing everyone (including us), all taking place in front of the sea.



Even though I am not a Catholic, I had an intense emotional experience with it. Being in the middle of it and feeling how powerful these peoples’ faith and devotion was combined with the joyous singing of the children, it was overwhelming… in an intensely good way. I almost cried. Good thing I had my sunglasses.



We were tempted to follow it



but then decided against it because we thought we might end up somewhere clear across town and then we wouldn’t have our time with the sea, as planned. I love the sea.



I keep saying to my mom, “I’m so happy. I’m so happy here.” And she keeps spontaneously breathing sighs of exhilaration. It’s so awesome.



The Marina



Ragazzi collecting clams



We enjoyed cappuccinos by the sea, lingered in the moment and then walked around the mainland of Siracusa, trying to find a supermarket that was open so we could get some milk and water. In our long, enduring quest we came up with … niente! It’s SUNDAY. Hello, self! Duh.

The area surrounding La Fontana Aretusa


The bells on the Duomo are ringing right now as I am writing. I love it. It’s 5:15pm.

Piazza del Duomo



We went to use the internet today because I totally forgot to email my boss! You can see where my head was not.

There was this real hot Indian guy at the café from Cashmere, India. Since he saw our passports and knew we were from America, he started speaking English to us, I figure probably because it’s not often that he has the chance to. Anyway, he ended up not charging us to use the internet! Totally a surprise! I have to so go back there one day when I’ve showered and flirt with his fine a**. :)

Domani (tomorrow) we are going to Catania, or Katane, as it was called in ancient times. I’m uber-excited!

What’s on the menu tonight?
Well, after our we eat our pre-dinner cannoli (don't fret, folks, the cannoli post is a-comin!), we’re making pasta with olives and carciofi (artichokes), sprinkled with some pecorino pepato (peppered pecorino romano cheese). Oh, and vino, of course! (1, 59 euro a bottle). I’m making the sugo!

The results of our concoction


Now, why would we go out to eat when we could cook a wonderful meal like this for under 10 euro?!

April 4 ~ Ortigia

This morning we went to the Ortigia market.



Lots of fresh fruit and vegetables and many types of sea creatures that I have never seen. I saw a huge, live octopus in a bucket of water waiting to be purchased and yes, the huge swordfish heads...



Amazing! I have yet to try the swordfish but hear it is the best.

I didn’t buy anything however because I always feel so overwhelmed at these markets, not knowing what to get from who. Stall after stall of all this stuff can put my little head in a whizzy!

The colorful olives looked very good though



As did the fresh herbs & spices



With our indecisiveness, we took the bus from Ortigia to the Maxi Sidis supermarket instead where we spent a good 50 euro on food for the rest of our time here. Finally, we can get to cooking! Again, I will say that shopping in foreign supermarkets is a big highlight of any trip for me. I love seeing what types of stuff they have and much rather cook my own food and get a genuine cultural cooking experience rather than go out and eat all of the time. Plus, I get to live/shop like a local.

After we dropped our groceries off at the apartment, we headed back over the bridge onto Corso Umberto to have lunch. I spotted the Arabian place our first day there and just had to go back and try it out.

Tile detail from inside Arabian Kebab Mediterraneo



It was very cute inside, and the guy at the cassa was even cuter!



I ordered us two falafel paninis, and they were delicious



The cute guy smiled at me when I was paying. Damn, how I wished I was up on my Sicilian dialect!

We tried to do some shopping on Corso Umberto but we were there at the wrong time because everything was closed. This is the life, man! The stores open from 9-1:30, close, and then reopen from 3:30-7:30. I’m down, I definitely could get used to those hours!

Since everything was closed, we walked back to the apartment. At our moment of arrival, we decided to become true Sicilians and took a long siesta, err, nap. We slept until about 6pm and then got ready for our drink appointment with our charming landlord Lynn. What a great lady she is! She’s from Africa and lived in Florence for many years before moving to Ortigia, after her husband passed away.

We all had some wine and chatted about food (she has her own cookbook), sewing (she makes all of her own clothes), the mosquitoes in Florence (and how we can’t stand them), things we love about Sicily, our families, and just life in general.

She recommended that we try the Sicilian Cassata at this pasticceria called Corsino’s near the Fountain of Diana. I told her I a cassatina once at Dagnino’s in Rome but didn’t think it was a true cassatina. It was quite gross as a matter of fact.

She told me, “No, you have to try the real thing. You cannot say you've tasted cassata until you've actually had it in Sicily.”

And so, that’s what we'll be doing for breakfast...