La Sicilia

Ciao amici e famiglia,

Last weekend I visited the very (in)famous region of Sicily. Because I am of very distant Sicilian descent and have always been curious to visit it, I jumped at the opportunity when my friend Allyce suggested we go to Palermo after finding very affordable tickets through Ryan Air. So after Thanksgiving, Allyce, Jessica and I took a very early flight (6am) to the capital city of Palermo.

In all honesty, I could not wait to visit a city that would be in the mid to high 60s (Fahrenheit) the entire weekend. This Florida girl was ready to go!

Friday, Day 1: 
Because we finished our Thanksgiving festivities so late, Jessica and I agreed it was best not to sleep because we needed to catch a taxi to the airport at 4am by Allyce's house. Needless to say, by the time we reached our hostel in Palermo (after arriving to the airport and taking the 40-minute Prestiae Comande bus (6,15 euros) into the city), at about 9am we were extremely exhausted.

We were able to check-in right away, but our room would not be ready for at least another hour, so we were told we could leave our bags and begin exploring. Instead, the three of us fell asleep on the bright yellow couches in the hostel lobby.

Fish market in Palermo!

After finally taking our things to our room, which was in a separate building than the hostel lobby, but only a few feet away, we took a much-needed and more comfortable 2-hour nap in our room. We awoke at about noon or so and began our Sicilian adventure.

Hungry, but not intending to enter a sit-down restaurant until dinner, we went to a nearby outdoor market that sold vegetables, shoes, cleaning detergent and even FISH! It smelled splendid, to me anyway. I loved being so close to the sea and the anticipation of having a fresh sea food dinner only increased. 

We each bought some fruits, which were fresh and delicious and walked around the city a bit more. Further into the market, I ate an arrancine (a fried rice ball) that is famous in Sicily and it was delicious! This one was stuffed with prosciutto and cheese.

We later returned to the hostel to freshen up before heading to a NY Times-recommended bakery, called Pasticceria Alba, where I ate a delicious vanilla cake topped with fragoline (small strawberries). It was only about 1,40 if I remember correctly and it was one of the most delicious cakes I have ever eaten. It was also very decently-sized. We remained in that bakery for some time, where I had the opportunity to eat yet another arrancine, this time filled with meat and mushrooms. It tasted gourmet compared to the one I had eaten earlier that afternoon. It was an excellent experience.

For dinner, we walked a long way to reach yet another NYT-recommended restaurant called: Bellotera. I have had some memorable experiences with risotto in this country and it happened again in Palermo. I ate a risotto with parsley cream sauce, cod and shrimp -- making it one of my favorite dishes yet. It cost 14 euros, decently-priced for a sea food dish and was worth every single penny. Allyce's dish had salmon eggs in it, I always told myself I could never eat caviar, but I'm glad I did -- it was an incredible explosion of salty flavor. The girls and I paired our sea food dinner with a bottle of Pinot Bianco wine from Venice and had a wonderful evening full of conversation, laughs and good Sicilian food.

Saturday, Day 2:
We awoke early the next morning to set out on our first excursion in Sicily. We walked the 20 minutes from our hostel to the main bus station and bought a 1,30 euro ticket to Monreale. We were on the bus for about 30 minutes (because of an incredible amount of traffic) before reaching the quaint mountain-top town.

Duomo di Monreale: Santa Maria Nuova

Our first quest was to walk uphill toward the Duomo, apparently famous for having the largest organ (in Italy/the world? I'm not entirely sure). This Duomo was breathtaking and actually different from the other churches I have been in. Sicily has so much history of Arabic, Greek and Spanish invasions, that every piece of architecture and art has a complex history/story behind it.

The rest of the day trip was spent walking around the small town. We had about 2-3 hours to kill before the bus would come again, so we simply walked through residential streets as women carried on their domestic duties, walked through the market admiring the scarves and jewelry and finally reached a beautiful garden where we just stood in awe at the beauty that was Palermo's mountain/sea landscape. I have seen ocean views before, but never alongside some incredibly massive and somehow graceful mountains.

In the afternoon, after eating some lunch at a cafeteria-like restaurant that I was not incredibly fond of, we walked what felt like a while toward Palermo's CATACOMBS. I was extremely excited when I first learned that I'd be going, but I was not prepared for what was the utter and sheer fear that entered my body upon seeing my first real skeleton. Allyce and Jessica really enjoyed themselves, reading about who these people once were and how old they were when they passed. But for me, they were all staring at me wanting to give me nightmares. I remember thinking it was an incredible and unforgettable experience once I was safely out of the catacombs, but I will never forget how afraid I was inside. To my dismay, we spent what felt like forever in there, as well.

For dinner, we went to a local pizza place and it was quite delicious. Of course, I haven't had a bad pizza experience in Italy yet. (knock on wood!)

Sunday, Day 3:

That's me enjoying the warm(er) weather!

We went on yet another excursion on our last full-day in Palermo to a different city entirely. We took a pretty cheap train (about 12 euros round-trip) to Cefalù, a city famous for its coast. We found the Duomo pretty easily and it was interesting to arrive in the morning on a Sunday because there was an actual mass going on when we arrived. 

I'm not Catholic and I didn't want to be disrespectful, admiring the stained glass windows while people were attempting to hear their priest, so I focused on admiring the old church from the outside and even taking a picture in front of it!

Our next adventure would be trying to find La Rocca, Cefalù's ancient ruins. We walked alongside the church before finding the path that would get us there. That was when we started hiking up a mountain, which proved to be intense in TOMS, but it was worth it once we reached the top. 

La Rocca in Cefalù

At the very top of the mountain (which meant more hiking for this girl that is used to flat land and below sea level), we reached an ancient castle that overlooked the sea. It was of the most incredible views I have ever seen.

Jessica picked out what was her room in the castle many moons ago as I contemplated how I was going to hike back down that very rocky path.  Let's just say, I slipped a lot and had to wash my TOMS when I got home. 

Of course, I don't regret any single moment of it. How many people can say they hiked up a mountain in skinny jeans, saw wild goats and stood inside an ancient castle?

Our day concluded with dinner at Pasticceria Alba where I ate my first authentic cannolo (singular for cannoli), ate another arrancine and ate gelato in a bun! This bakery is actually famous for it and it is exactly what it sounds like. They put any number of flavors of ice cream you'd like into a soft round bun. They call it a gelato brioche and it was WAY to much food for these three American girls. I'm really glad we were brave enough to buy and try it, though. Basically became one of those unforgettable moments I'll be talking about for years to come.

Monday, Day 4:
We awoke early to catch our 8:25am flight back to Bologna. I am only writing about this day because Ryan Air made me very angry by telling me that my legal-sized carry-on was too large and forced to be check it. I paid 60 euros when the exchange rate was not the best, but it taught me a valuable lesson: It doesn't matter how many days I am traveling, I am always only flying with a bookbag.

Most of all, this vacation was an excellent conclusion to travelling during my first semester abroad. Now, I head home in about 3 weeks for Christmas and then return to this splendid country for some more adventures!

I'll be sure to write again when I embark on my next adventure, the first of 2013!

The dock in Palermo. Gorgeous, right?

Arrivederci <3

Hostel Review: "A Casa degli Amici" on via Volturno 6
It was clean and very well-priced. We got a 3-bed dorm style room for 17 euros/night each. There was no wifi in our room, but there was free wifi access in the lobby. The staff was very enthusiastic and genuinely nice and were also very helpful with day trips and restaurant suggestions. 
4/5 stars because of the lack of wifi and the fact that our room was in a separate building than the lobby. But, I do recommend it!