Last evening, in anticipation for today’s Feast of the Madonna, I made a pilgrimage to Tindari to see the procession of the Madonna Nera, the Black Madonna of Tindari. I’ve been devoted to this Madonna for many years, so to finally be able to attend the feast with other devotees was special for me. Tindari…
Tag: sicily travel
Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny Was Filmed In Sicily
“Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” was filmed in Sicily in fall 2021. The day they shot this scene at the Ear of Dionysius, my tour group was scheduled to be at the Neapolis Archaeological Park in Siracusa too. Well, you can guess how that went! We explored the early Christian Catacombs instead, which…
NY Times Travel Publishes 36 Hours In Palermo
This weekend’s New York Times Travel features “36 Hours in Palermo” (A New edition, since the last one that was published in 2015). It offers ideas for some off-the-beaten-path things to see and do in a city that I love and that I spend a lot of time in each year (I even wrote and…
Kingdom of Sicily 1130 – 1266: A New Treatise To Know
Congratulations Louis Mendola and Jacqueline Alio on their latest treatise, Kingdom of Sicily 1130-1266! I am in awe of the detailed research that was completed to write this book that will be a consistent reference for me for years to come as I continue to transmit how the history of Sicily offers humanity endless lessons…
A New Film Version Of The Leopard
Back at the end of May, when I was in Palermo, I was fortunate to witness the filming of a new version of Il Gattopardo (or The Leopard), the novel by Giuseppe Tomaso di Lampedusa for Netflix. The Visconti original from 1963 with Burt Lancaster as the nobile Prince Don Fabrizio, will be hard to…
Ten Years Of Experience Sicily
Post 3000 of Experience Sicily! Today, I celebrate 10 years of posting about Sicily on Instagram, Facebook, and WordPress! Yes, I started this adventure ten years ago. For me, it starts here: Bagheria and Porticello, my ancestral towns – – now, my second home (But I now often wonder of it is actually my first…
Feel Something Special This July During Secret Sicily
You’re busy: Your job, your family and friends, your household administration… There’s so much to do! But you need a vacation. You want to do something fun, engaging, and out of the ordinary. You want to get away. You want to do something that makes you feel… Feel joy! Something that inspires your soul and…
Lentini, Sicily’s Feast for Sant’Alfio
Attending the Feast of Sant’Alfio in Lentini last week during Photography in Sicily was very moving. The annual ritual they practice is called “I Nudi,” the nudes. Devotees are barefoot and only dressed in shorts (women wear shirts) carrying flowers in one hand and holding their other hand at their backs. In this posture, they…
Heritage Visit To Valguarnera Caropepe
One of my favorite things is to connect my clients to their heritage. Even better is when we can unite someone with a distant relative. Yesterday, thanks to our local insider in Valguarnera Caropepe, Paolo, Maryann met Franca, her third cousin for the first time! They share the same third greatgrandparents. Tears all around! Just…
Flying Into Sicily: Palermo Or Catania?
When traveling to Sicily, plan to fly into one airport and out of the other. That way, you don’t lose a day going back to where you started. For example, if you arrived in Palermo and you will be here for more than 7 days, then I recommend that you leave from Catania after traveling…