In our neck of the woods near the Nebrodi Mountains deep in the province of Messina in the North west of Sicily we are usually blessed by the bounty of fresh Porcini mushrooms at this time of the year. Last year it was pretty dry so we didn’t get to taste the meaty flesh of…
Continue reading ➞ Mushrooms, mushrooms everywhere!
It’s the end of August which means the end of summer is here. The reign of warm sunny days is beginning to lose it’s hold over the seasons as intense storms usher in the autumn and eventually winter. The ancient culinary rites which once symbolized the preparation for the harsh winters have already began. Tomatoes…
Continue reading ➞ Gathering wild fennel
Since a picture is worth a thousand words I thought I'd share some random picture from my holidays, when I get a moment. Here is the warm welcome Messina gives to it visitors arriving on the ferry, an open armed statue of the Virgin Mary greeting and blessing every visitor as they pass into the…
Continue reading ➞ Postcards from Sicily: Welcome to Messina
I recently met a lovely Canadian lady who was complaining about the lack of air conditioning in Sicily. I had totally forgotten why Sicilian’s and Italian’s in general are so anti artificial cooling systems in the summer. I have passed through so many humid summers it must have fried my memory when it comes to…
Continue reading ➞ Why do Sicilians fear Air conditioning?
The Mount Etna volcano is a dominant force on this island of Sicily and is a living part of the Sicilian landscape. Etna’s sixty by forty kilometre base is the heart of the island and its three thousand three hundred metre tall shadow has given birth to this fertile Sicilian land, rich in mythology. The…
Continue reading ➞ Etna’s flatulence
Summer has finally arrived here in Sicily, even if it’s been a chilly summer so far with overcast mornings and rainstorms. We’ve only just been able to put away our long sleeves but they are still within our reach as we are frightened to get a chill. I’m defiantly a lover of the summer and…
Continue reading ➞ First day at the beach
The coastal city of Patti isn’t exactly a typical sleepy little Sicilian town, in the summer it is a buzzing tourist centre and is secured of its importance thanks to the many government offices and organizations that are located there. Patti’s vicinity to other big cities makes it a significant point in the map of…
Continue reading ➞ Secluded Sicily: Patti
My journey into sleepy Sicilian places began with my current home, Sinagra. It is the town that my husband and his family adopted as they gradually moved towards the coast away from the once agriculturally rich mountain regions whose decline began after the post world war two period. Sinagra is one of those ancient towns…
Continue reading ➞ Secluded Sicily: Sinagra
Italy is a country with an abundance of water, where you find beautifully refreshing water fountains with drinkable water for everyone even in the biggest cities. The result is the beautiful art work that is used to celebrate the gift of water which we can see throughout Italy. The water fountain becomes an elaborate altar,…
Continue reading ➞ The humble water fountain
As you get older I think you begin to appreciate the smaller details of things. I once used to look at the big detailed elements of a work of art like a statue or a church to become absorbed in the whole. It’s easy to become mesmerised by the art work in such a historically…
Continue reading ➞ Beauty in the details
I recently looked over some old pictures I took one summer along the coastline in between Capo d’orlando and Brolo in the province of Messina, Sicily and I’ve suddenly had a yearning for the summer. Look and see if you don’t feel the same desire to dive into the waters of summer in Sicily.
It is very Sicilian to say someone is as good as bread.There is nothing better or pure and simple as freshly baked bread. Lui e’ buono come pane means he is as ‘good as gold’ as Australians say. Sicilians are less materialistic in their turn of phrase, history has made them humble and appreciate the gift…
Continue reading ➞ Buono come’ il pane : As good as bread
I took a few pictures of my local town Sinagra from a different point of view and of a building that is hidden, tucked deep within the breast of this maternal little town in the province of Messina. I want to share with you these photos that make this sleepy little place seem less haggard…
Continue reading ➞ Sinagra from a different perspective
I’ve always loved Castles as a symbol of European history, grand monuments of emperors, popes, Kings and nobility. There aren’t any Castles in Australia as we are relatively young to European culture so we may have many grand ancient geological monuments and some modern architectural beauties and recent monstrosities but there are no real castles.…
Continue reading ➞ Castello Nelson di Maniace, Bronte
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