You’ll see majolica pine cones like this one I photographed in the ceramic center, Caltagirone, all over Sicily and southern Italy. It’s a significant symbol. As a botanical, the pine cone is a reproductive organ. Female pine cones hold seeds. Male pine cones hold pollen. From ancient Greek times, the pine cone recalls the Greek…
Tag: shopping
I Want To Be Your Sicily Travel Hero
Today is National Travel Advisor Day. Given the current circumstances that we travelers face and the complexities of what travel may look like in this post-Covid-19 world, when things go wrong, I ask you to remember that working with a small tour operator such as Experience Sicily (That’s me, Allison Scola, owner/curator of Experience Sicily,…
Shopping For Ceramics In Caltagirone
Speaking of shopping… You’ll have time in Caltagirone, Sicily during our October Stunning Sicily tour, where you’ll find hand-crafted, one-of-kind ceramics of items you didn’t know where possible to make from earthenware. The UNESCO recognized Baroque town of Caltagirone boasts a rich ceramics center with artisanal shops every few feet. Navigate to Via Monsignore Saverio…
Wearing Sicily
For a unique gift for the Sicilofile in your life, stop here! Gelsomino Imports carries handmade paper jewelry inspired by Sicilian art, landscape, and lights produced by The Foxies. This bracelet is made from the 1154 planisphere of the Mediterranean (specifically Sicily) drawn up by thinker and geographer Muhammad Al-Idrisi (1099–1165). Known as the Tabula…
Shopping in Sicily
Taormina is a shopper’s dream. On Day 2 of our May 2018 Myths & Mysteries of Sicily tour, enjoy time on your own to explore its boutiques that feature both international brands as well as local artisans’ products, such as this typical bag, pictured, inspired by the decorations seen on Sicilian carts. Be charmed by…
Form and Function with La Vucciria
If I rode a scooter in Sicily, this is the helmet I would want: One that has Renato Guttuso’s (1912-1987) renowned painting La Vucciria (1974) imprinted on it. I saw this one not far from the entrance to the famed Vucciria market on Via Roma in Palermo.
Until the Next Time!
This evening, my cousin Giulia and I strolled down Via Maqueda in Palermo. It was a perfect evening, my final one for this trip. Bitter sweet as always… Arrivederci Sicily! Alla prossima!
Critical Consumption
Speaking of shopping… When visiting Sicily, please patronize stores and restaurants that display the sign (pictured), Addiopizzo. When you do, you are supporting a business owner who refuses to pay “protection money” (i.e., extortion money) to organized crime. When you support such businesses, you are expressing an anti-mafia position and helping dis-empower criminal organizations that…
The Windows Woo Me
And then, there is shopping!
Stroll through Taormina
A view of Taormina’s main shopping street, Corso Umberto, from the Church of San Giuseppe on Piazza IX Aprile We’ll wake up here on Day 9 of this September’s Savoring Sicily tour. Contact me at AllisonScola@ExperienceSicily.com to learn about the special offer I have going on right now.