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…
Tag: UNESCO
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…
Cooking In Agrigento Province | Stirring Sicily, Day 5
Experience Sicily Stirring Sicily Tour | Day 5 We learned and laughed with Annalisa of GoSicily Cooking Experience during an outstanding cooking class, making fresh Cavatelli pasta, chicken cacciatora, and biancomangiare with almonds. Then we stood in awe of Valley of the Temples with our guide Salvatore while the sun lit the magnificent site. Fortunately…
A Diamond In The Mishmash of Palermo’s Cathedral
When you visit Palermo’s Cathedral, be sure to go around to the north side of it, pictured. To me, the back side posesses the most beautiful architectural elements of the mishmash of styles that make up this temple dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin. The inlaid lava stone designs (AKA intarsias) are from the…
Valentine’s Dinner In New York City
Experience Sicily is hosting a very exclusive event on February 16, 2019 to celebrate Valentine’s Day, Sicilian Style, in New York City! We’ve rented a private kitchen and are so excited to have two outstanding chefs to cook dinner for you: Giuseppe Sciurca, from Termini Imerese, Sicily, and Antonino Elia, from Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Music duo…
Trekking Amongst The Tombs In Sicily
I was blessed again today with the guidance of Nanni Di Falco, who led me through a small part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site know as the Pantelica Necropolis, a gorge cut into limestone by the Anapo and Cave Grande rivers that is dotted with hundreds of tombs from the 13th century BCE. It…
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…
From the Stone Garden
The Parrocchia San Sebastiano in Palazzolo Acreide, Sicily offers a classic example of the elegant, UNESCO recognized architectural design of the “Late Baroque Towns of the Val di Noto.” Palazzolo Acreide is one of the towns that make up the UNESCO site. The town was rebuilt after the earthquake of 1693 that flattened much of…
Justice for The Kingdom
Yesterday, we visited the Royal Palace in Caserta, where the seat of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies (at least in summer) was during the 18th and early 19th centuries. Here, Justice is flanked by Hercules and a woman personifying the Kingdom of Two Sicilies. Note the Trinacria on the disk she holds, on the right….
Gone Fishing
The UNESCO recognized Villa Romana del Casale at Piazza Armerina reveals not only much to us about human life in ancient Rome, but also about the abundance of wildlife in the region 1600 years ago, when it was constructed. The mosaic tile floor in the semicircular, porticoed atrium, which was designed to catch rain water,…