Now until March 10 is the annual Sagra del Mandorlo in Fiore (Almond Blossom Festival) in Agrigento. The festival is a 10-day extravaganza of events, the heart of which focus on folk music from around the world. I’ve yet to attend the festival that attracts everything from Mexican Mariachi bands to Japanese drummers. During this…
Tag: agrigento
Topsy-turvy Carnevale in Sicily
Today is the final day of Carnevale! My cousin Francesca was in Sciacca this past weekend and took this photo. Sciacca boasts one of the leading celebrations in Sicily and Italy. Locals will tell you it’s been presented for centuries. Carnevale is the last hurrah before the planting season and before Lent, when many traditionally…
Scraping the Sky: Teatro Andromeda
Scraping the sky of the Sicanian mountains, Teatro Andromeda is a modern sculpture created by artist and shepherd Lorenzo Reina. Although it feels ancient, the theater, which sits 1000 meters (3280 feet) above sea level, was built by Reina one stone at a time over the past 30 years. When you talk with the Lorenzo,…
Meet Aldo In Sicily
In May, during our Myths and Mysteries of Sicily: As Above/So Below tour, we’ll be spending a day with Aldo on his farm in the mountains of Sicily. Aldo is an herbalist, artist, masseuse, healer, spiritual soul, and … these words just completely fall short of who he is! I’m going to stop trying with…
Pizza In Napoli And So Much More
Join me, Allison Scola of Experience Sicily, and Danielle Oteri of Feast on History for 10 days of beyond-the-ordinary Italy that includes savoring authentic Neopolitan pizza in Napoli! During Southern Secrets: Campania and Sicily’s Hidden Corners, we’ll spend five days south of Naples in Campania and five days in Sicily sparking your senses and immersing…
Stir Things Up In Sicily With Us In September
Extended! Stirring Sicily, our hands-on cooking in Sicily tour, will take place from Sept. 19-26. Co-hosted by Chef Nino Elia, we’ll have classes with Annalisa Pompeo of GoSicily and Giuseppe Sciurca. You don’t want to miss it! Contact me to sign up by Jan. 25, and I’ll extend to you the $300 early registration incentive…
The Days Between Christmas And Epiphany in Sicily
In the days between Christmas and Epiphany (January 6, also known as La Befana or Three Kings Day), Sicilians spend time with family and friends and often enjoy festivals and presentations featuring the nativity scene–both performed live with actors or in diorama form, like this one created by Zio Lillo (Uncle Lillo) in Sant’Angelo Muxaro.
Embracing The Longest Night
As we observe the winter solstice, the darkest day of the year, I recall how beautiful the UNESCO site Valley of the Temples in Agrigento, Sicily is at night, when the the monuments, like this, the Temple of Concordia, are lit. Even in ancient times (Concordia was erected between 440 and 430 B.C.E.), it was…
Otherworldly In Agrigento, Sicily
Close your eyes and imagine yourself at the foot of the remains of an ancient Greek temple from the 5th century B.C.E., like the Temple of Castor and Pollux, pictured left. After learning about the thriving civilization that built Agrigento in the centuries before the common era from your archaeologist-guide, you’ll then savor a picnic…
Teatro Andromeda Is Out Of This World
When my co-host, wellness practitioner Tony Allicino, and I were planning the itinerary for our May 2019’s Myths & Mysteries of Sicily: As Above/So Below tour, planning a day at the Teatro Andromeda, one of Sicily’s hidden gems, was an absolute must. So, if you join us, from the top of the mythic Sicani mountains…