Even though Messina battles the usual problems of a big city in Sicily, it is much more cosmopolitan and laid back than the other provincial capitals. What attracts me most to Messina is the unusual mixture of mythology and legend, which intertwines with the city's history to create an intoxicating and alluring tapestry. As is…
Continue reading ➞ Messina: the city of mythology
Randazzo sits under the feet of Mount Etna; a gigantic menacing shadow is constantly over the city. It is a place born out of the volcano and at its mercy. The wide lava streets of Randazzo create a sense of ancientness, the shades of grey sketching out the city in the deep depressing tones of…
Continue reading ➞ Randazzo: at the feet of Mongibello
Capizzi is clumsily spilt on a high hill; its stone houses have been plucked out of the Middle Ages. The streets are made of tightly paved stones and tiny dwellings like huts huddled together to create a mosaic in different shades of charcoal. The road snakes up the hill to Capizzi reaching a peak at the head of…
Continue reading ➞ Hunting near Capizzi
The last two years have been tough on everyone. Our lives were disrupted, and we were forced to scale down our lives. Many people lost friends and family. Others are still suffering from stress, anxiety and depression. I don't want to harp on the negativity, but I, too, have been struggling. I have had problems…
Continue reading ➞ Creativity and mental health
Sometimes, well, Italy is an awkward fit for me. Actually most times, which is ok, as I am generally self-conscious in everyday life. It is strange to think that someone genetically 100% Italian would find life in Italy to be uncomfortable. I would be a sought-after show pony if there were a pedigree for Italian-ness.…
Continue reading ➞ Fashionable English
An old Sicilian mantra says in Sicily there are only good or bad seasons. In a place of few subtleties, there is only the bountiful or frugal and little in between. Sicilians are born out of their land and are shaped by the seasons the landscape creates. A Siciliano will hibernate in winter and interact…
Continue reading ➞ The Fertility of Sicily
Lately, I've been feeling a little tired, frustrated and burnt out. At the beginning of the year, I'd set myself the goal to post every day either on this blog or my creative writing blog. I've been maintaining this practice and have made a routine of preparing three posts here on Sicily Inside and Out…
Continue reading ➞ Burnt out and frustrated
Sicily is such a beautifully textured place; many layers of history have been placed, one on top of the other. Each period of history leaves spaces and gaps where you can see the remnants of many different stories. These fragments are intriguing as they lead you towards many histories, stories, and endless possibilities. Each place…
Continue reading ➞ First and lasting impressions of Palermo: Louis Vuitton
I use my camera like I’d use a notebook. recording little details and notes, things I’ve noticed or want to remember. I photograph small things that catch my eye, a particular design or pattern, something that is unusual to. It could be a texture that catches my eye or the way the sunlight hits a…
Continue reading ➞ Colours and tales from Sicily
In every paese, there is an energy filled with the spirit of young & old paesani Every paese has its old palazzi, a Chiesa Madre held together by the tenacity of the parish priest. In every paese, children run to catechism bounding, yelling and jumping as youthful innocence and impatience do. Every paese has…
Continue reading ➞ Poetry from Sicily: In Ogni Paese
My blog posts are slowly transform into a journal where I share my photography together with my thoughts. It's great to share my creativity, and it is becoming quite therapeutic to get some things out of my head. It gets crowded in my monkey brain filled with random ideas. I'm happy you are here to…
Continue reading ➞ The art of sharing things
Sicilian details: people
I love taking photos of walls and signage; they have the same quality as an old postcard, like a memory of an ancient time. I took a photo of a fragment from a poem on a wall at Monreale. I liked the dirty paint, the lettering seemed like something from the Fascist period, and I…
Continue reading ➞ Sicilian details: signs
While accompanying my husband on his work trips to Catania, I noticed how many little water pools dotted the harsh lava landscape. Since I spent most of my time standing out in the sun to help by holding up one of those measuring poles you see surveyors using on the roads, I didn't get much…
Continue reading ➞ Sicilian Details from Catania
Walking around Taormina, one of my favourite places to visit in Sicily, I came across an impressive lawyer's office. It was a few hundred meters down the road from the Anfiteatro; the ancient greek open-air theatre still used today for summer concerts. I imagined the lawyer closing his office late one summer night and strolling…
Continue reading ➞ Sicilian details: Taormina
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