Experience Sicily

Category: History

  • Sicily’s Salt Pans

    The saltworks or “Le Saline” of Trapani and Marsala have been exploited since Phoenician times (c. 800 BC). The shallow salty waters, high temperatures, and arid winds make for excellent conditions for harvesting salt from the sea. For centuries, windmills mechanized the process of cultivating and processing the salt that is exported to kitchens throughout…

  • Say YES2020 By February 1 And Let’s Go To Sicily

    I’m going to Sicily in 2020 – – and you can too! Amuni’: Let’s go! Say YES2020 when you reserve your spot on a small-group Sicily tour hosted by Experience Sicily by 11:59PM on February 1, 2020, and save an additional $150 per person. Immerse yourself in this fascinating region of the world featuring 3000…

  • Feel Like Royalty In Sicily

    Castles exist all over Sicily. And on our final day of Experience Sicily’s October 2020 Sicily tour, you’ll have time to ascend the stairs of this one at Castellammare del Golfo after we’ll have taken a boat excursion on the magnificent Tyrrhenian Sea. Inside is an outstanding ethnographic museum. When you cross what once was…

  • Sicily Shook On January 11, 1693

    After a magnitude (hypothetical) 6.2 foreshock on January 9, 1693, at 9PM on January 11, 1693 the earth shook in southeastern Sicily for what historians say was four minutes. Etna erupted, and a tsunami struck the Ionian coasts of eastern Sicily and the Strait of Messina. We don’t know the exact scope of the earthquake’s…

  • The Cloisters Of Monreale

    Norman King William II, “The Good” (1153-1189), commissioned Monreale Cathedral in the late 12th century. The cloisters were built in the Arab Norman style in the early 13th century by Venetian artisans. Today, the cathedral is part of the UNESCO site that features nine Arab Norman monuments. Its cloister boasts 128 columns, all possessing different…

  • Be Awe-Inspired By Harmony In Agrigento, Sicily

    The Temple of Concordia is one of seven ancient Greek houses of worship you can discover at Valley of the Temples in Agrigento. It was named for a Latin inscription that was found on a dedication marker unearthed in the vicinity of the archaeological site–i.e., a marker not associated with the temple; however, spirited archaeologists…

  • Antique Pasta Shop in Sicily

    I ate fresh cavatelli pasta made at the “pastaru” (Sicilian for pasta maker or pasta seller) during last year’s Presepe Vivente in Licodia Eubea. Le signore hosting this scene were working hard to feed us hungry guests as we walked through the recreation of their ancient village. You’ll learn how to make fresh cavatelli pasta…

  • The Old Fashioned Barber In Sicily

    Locals acting out how things were done at the old fashioned barber shop during last year’s Presepe Vivente (live nativity scene) presented by the proloco (community board) of Licodia Eubea. The townspeople of Licodia Eubea turned the ancient, abandoned quarter of their village into a living diorama. It’s a fascinating combination of art, theater, and…

  • Live Nativity Scenes In Sicily

    Today is Saint Stephen’s Day, a national holiday in Italy. Sicilians and Italians spend the day with family and friends visiting presepi di Natale, or nativity scenes, like this Presepe Vivente that I visited last year in Licodia Eubea in Catania province, where I’ll be hosting our Life in A Remote Sicilian Town tour in…