August

I seem to leave it awfully long to blog again but here we go, what has been happening in August?

Well, work, work and more work, and the students were just getting more and more weary as the term went on because basically no one else is at school so why should they be? It did seem increasingly difficult to keep them motivated and who can blame them? By the end of term it was quite impossible. But I saw a different side to one or two of them and it was all a bit emotional for them leaving their friends after becoming so close in such a close-knit environment.  There is no work for me there next term, as numbers in September are lower. I have turned down 3 months in the Ukraine, as my plan is to stay here now and not delay finding what I want here. I'm happy with that, I just need to start looking.

Going back to job hunting is as depressing as it was last time. I applied for a bog-standard kind of position as a vets' receptionist/animal assistant - I have experience in both reception duties and working with animals. But they had over 200 applications for it - from whom, I cannot imagine. So if this is the sort of competition... However, can't give up and I have had a look today and found some things to apply for, even if they are not amazing and challenging careers. It seems that the job market today has changed and it is no longer possible to just find a rewarding and well paid job that suits your skills and qualifications. Seemingly you have to have experience in everything (but who would go from the same job to the same job all the time? It doesn't even make sense). I saw one for a copywriter for a website but you had to have a proven interest in lingerie (er, how?) I will have to approach it all more creatively and perhaps have several ways of making a living instead of one. I have advertised my English tuition services so hopefully with the start of a new term, some students might want help with things. One person has replied so far :) It is very time consuming looking for jobs, before you've even applied for them.

In other news, well I will blog about that separately. Needless to say that I am missing the warmth of the Sicilian sun very much in this English climate, and still missing the coffee, boys and Etna.

Back again

It hasn't seemed worth blogging until now about being back in the UK, but here I am again. It's been 6 weeks and the things I miss most are the coffee, sunshine and Jo. And nice looking ragazzi. And some of my students. And the food. But at the moment, mostly the sunshine and coffee, it being cold and rainy here. A day of ceaseless rain on Friday is enough to make anyone head to the easyjet website.

However, I don't think that is the answer right now. A recent birthday was my annual time for reflection (maybe I should have these more often) and perhaps I should think about what I want from life a bit more and actually take action to get nearer that. Running back to Italy is tempting (especially when Jo has been talking about returning to exotic locations), but there are things here that I could be focussing on. We will see.

I've been in touch with some of my students and occasionally heard from the nice floppy haired Back to the Future fan, so I have some sort of connection with the land of lovely Etna. (I failed to say I miss her but I do, very much). It is currently pushing 37 degrees there, which is too hot even for them, what a shame, but I dare say they prefer it to what we have at the moment.

Here I am experiencing a new part time summer job at a small international school which prepares students for UK boarding schools. They are mostly from China, Russia and Japan, with a sole Italian boy who I make read in class so I can hear the lovely accent. It is different to what I was doing in Italy and I hope to learn a few things about teaching while I am there. The teachers are all nice and supportive and the kids are pleasant enough, very polite and really just typical teenagers, who'd rather be sleeping sometimes than working. But what's new. I have enjoyed working with one smaller child and encouraging him with his spelling and reading. Another bonus is having tea breaks and a hot lunch all together. But boarding school life with its regulations and so on is quite a different thing but I think I've got used to it now and the children seem happy there. It's nice that everyone knows each other by name and they all look after each other.

Aside from that, it will be back to the job hunting again and also thinking of long term plans; where do I want to be, who do I want to be there with, etc etc. Meanwhile work and feeling generally knackered seem to get in the way of more exciting things like Fonting and writing and finding a way out of having to work.  But some fonts have been visited (yey!) which was a great relief and helped establish equilibrium again. More on those to come. And if it is all too much here, then I know Etna is only a 3 hour plane trip away, even for a quick burst of sunshine and a much-needed caffè.

Changes

So time has caught up with me and all of a sudden, it is time to go home. I don't know how we have gone from having 5 long months ahead of us in January, to now when there is only one week left of my life in Sicily. To say there are mixed emotions is an understatement - who would have thought this would be the case back in January when I really wanted to go home.

It shows how you get used to something and how things become normal. I've made a list of things I will miss and things I won't miss, and surprisingly they are equal. This week is our last week of teaching and it is strange, something of an anti-climax, as we say goodbye to students for the last time. Those who you think might have turned up didn't always, and those who you least expected to see showed up. My FCE class were lovely and we had a nice last lesson, doing word games and so on, and then we went to lovely little Acitrezza, with its three rocks in the sea, and memories of happy granitas, and we had a pizza in a lovely restaurant overlooking the sea. In fact it was a place Shona and Gab took me and Jo in the first weeks so it kind of felt like things are coming full circle. I had pizza norma, (pasta alla norma is a traditional Catanese dish with aubergine and ricotta salata. The pizza is a version of this). My lovely class gave me a very nice book on Catania, full of beautiful pictures to remind me of everything. It's quite heavy though so I will just have to make allowances in my suitcase!

So mixed emotions - I will not be sad to leave certain things like the noise, the graffiti, the honking of horns, not being able to understand everyone or communicate very well, working in the evening and eating at night, ... many other things. But I will miss granitas, the coffee, Etna, the sunshine, Italian, beautiful looking men and Italian style. I won't miss the mosquitoes, they have been making the past few days hell.  I will miss Jo, but she too is going back to the UK so of course we will stay in touch. Students have all been asking (ok, not all, but the nice ones haha) whether I am coming back next year. So far I can only say I don't think so, I don't know. I really want to see how I feel about things. I think no. And I don't think it would be the same without Jo - the experience is now and a new experience lies ahead somewhere else.

I won't have had time to see and do everything I wanted to see and do, but this is mostly because it turned out that without a car it is impossible to get places here - public transport is ok but only to main towns and cities. Even then it still takes ages. There are amazing mosaics I wanted to see, and we wanted to go to the top of Etna, and see her erupting and go to see the mummies... Never mind.

The experience has been amazing, learning how to be a teacher - I am amazed that I actually can say I love my job without it being too far from the truth. I do love doing it, it's rewarding. I have now got a new job in England, teaching English to students in a college, for summer. They are foreign children who want to go to a school in England for their entire schooling - and not just any old school but the elite ones including places like Eton and Harrow. The college is for up to one year, so they improve their English quickly and learn about British culture, including our sports and day trips to cities etc. So they will be prepared to go to their new school. I was surprised to be offered the job so now I want to make a go of it and I think the college looks like a supportive place to work and to learn.  It is near my sister so at least I will be near part of my family again.

So I have booked my flight today (after a fun time in the post office transferring money) and it is for a week today. I think it will be a big adjustment after so long here - as I say you get used to things don't you, so it's like any change. But things end and new things start. I couldn't stay here long term, for a start it gets too hot from now onwards, and then there is the whole thing about fitting into a culture. I think here it would take simply ages to be let in to their culture; we still don't get the whole living at home til you're 40 thing or the mummy's boys, or the dress sense, or any of it really haha. But it has been a great experience to live somewhere else and if I need any confidence in myself then this should have given me plenty. Yes I like the Italian boys look and yes I will miss that too but Sicilian men, they're not for marrying or hanging on to I don't think - too many issues :)  I don't understand them. Let's hope the English ones are a bit easier now. At least there won't be the language barrier.

OK, so granitas all round. If I could stuff granita, chinotto, arancini and Etna in my suitcase, I would... but I'm going to have a hard enough time packing what I have accumulated anyway! See you at the airport... I'll try and bring the sun. x

Catching up

I can't believe it is 4 weeks since I last posted something, as I can't think what I have been doing since then. Just work, work, work mostly with lots of preparation for the students' exams, which are next week.  Luckily we are not involved in running those, so now we can only cross our fingers and hope that at least some of them pass. Some will do well, I am sure. We have been involved in running extra listening practices and extra speaking practices; it has been quite nice to meet other students during the speaking. Some of them are very good. It's also meant a little extra money, which is good.

Right now I am trying to find summer work and it has sent me into a depression. (That, and it's raining today, for some reason). Seemingly all TEFL work in the UK over summer is for summer schools for teenagers, and most of the roles include supervising activities and day trips as well, some even include living on site and helping with day to day things like mealtimes. It means a long working week, whereas I would prefer to find something which is mostly teaching like I have been doing here. It is typical that the one job I have found which I actually like doing is not a job you can do easily in the UK. It's not just me saying this, I was looking on a EFL forum and people all say the same. Pay is also not very high, which makes living in nice places like Bath or Oxford (where they have the schools) quite difficult. I had forgotten how much it costs even to rent a room there. Rent here has been reasonable.  If I wanted to go back abroad to teach then of course there are many opportunities. I'm just not sure that's what I want to do.

Etna spitting out cloud

Jo and I have been making the most of the sunshine and visiting the sandy beach which is outside Catania. Sadly it is not within walking distance, being past the port and near the airport, so the roads are too big and busy to walk along. That's ok because there is a bus - it could be a really good shuttle bus route, going there and back in 10 minutes, but no, it's once an hour and so we stand and wait for it at the bus station and then we always have to wait ages for it to take us back. Yesterday after a relaxing day on the sand (despite a really awful dj or perhaps it was someone's uncle playing music and talking over it at the lido), we took 2 hours to get home, even though by car it would take about 15 minutes.

Etna has been spitting out ash so we watched her yesterday as little white clouds appeared over the top, often changing, it was quite entertaining (for me anyway).

We are both now looking forward to returning because it has been a while since we saw family etc, but we will also miss things like the sun, the coffee, granitas etc. I went for a granita with a local lad a couple of weeks ago, which was nice because he was encouraging with my Italian and having to speak in Italian really helped me to practise. He spoke clearly and he understood me so I don't know why some of these people in shops give me such strange looks when I try to speak to them. He had the typical Sicilian hairstyle, longer on top, that Jo doesn't care for, but I don't mind, I've grown used to how they look now and I fear I will find all Englishmen scruffy, pale and unattractive. I have managed to go a little browner (by my standards, not by anyone else's) and have dyed my hair darker, (to fit in?). It's too late to go for a Sicilian romance, not that it's an option, you realise, but it was nice to meet up with this lad a couple of times because it's what I should have been doing for ages, and what I should keep doing, having fun. He loves Back to the Future too, as much as I do, which was fun. In the English version, where Marty's dad is in the coffee shop, he says to Lorraine, "You're my density" when it should be "destiny." I was delighted to find out that in the Italian version, instead of "destino" he says "delfino" which means "you're my dolphin"! I thought this was perhaps even better.

It will be sad to finish teaching some of my students, we've had a nice time in some classes. I have made sure that I have told them the most important things like to pronounce their "s" on the end of third person verbs (they just don't), and many other common mistakes that come from Italian being their first language - our students all say the same things.

some sort of courgette?

I still have to find a job, book a flight and sort out the rest of my life (all without granita and coffee, this is going to be hard. For those of you who think that's all I eat, I deny it - I bought some lovely fresh salad from the market last week, and also a lovely melon (there were a million on sale). The trouble is I've been having to eat salad with things every day since as you just can't buy a little bit of anything there. I saw watermelon bigger than your head. And weird long courgettes. And round ones. You have to be subtle taking photos if you don't want to look like a total tourist.

Days out

I have got behind with blogging as I'm sure there are lots of things I wanted to blog, but have not got round to.  For example, I spent a lovely couple of hours at the Botanical Gardens (finally got there) and enjoyed looking at the fat cacti, the palms, and some pretty flowers. Naturally there are lots of photos for the family to sit through when I am back (get some comfortable cushions, we will have to do the photos in a few sittings haha).

botanical gardens

from Giardini Naxos 

Jo and I have been escaping Catania at every opportunity with our favourite getaway being Giardini Naxos, which is the beach before Taormina. You can be there on the coach after about 45 minutes. I say that but yesterday's getaway was not so straightforward. It was the May Day bank holiday so, in Bank Holiday tradition, most people had had the same idea and were heading to either Giardini or Taormina. The first coach sailed past, full. We waited for an hour for the next one. Luckily we were by a cafe.  The next coach let us on but it took ages to get there as you've guessed it, Bank Holiday queues meant we went at the pace of a snail.
Anyway the beach wasn't that full and we began our now obligatory "Dolphin Watch" - a couple of weekends ago we were lucky enough to see some fins poking out of the water - Jo spotted one first and I was a bit doubtful until I saw it myself. But then, to the accompaniment of loud squeals, one dolphin came tantalisingly close to the beach and we could see its grey skin and we knew beyond doubt it was a dolphin. That was very exciting. We're hoping to have a repeat of it one day.

So today we also fancied a trip out, but having looked at all the options, we decided to stay local. It is one of the downsides of Sicily that public transport is not that great (you might like to guess why). Trains are apparently very slow and although buses are okay, they don't go everywhere. I really want to go to Palermo again to see the mummies and some other things, but a bridge has broken on the main route and so the bus has to go on a massive detour. A trip of 2 and a half hours now takes 3 and half to 4. Neither Jo nor I fancied spending our entire day on a bus.  I would love to go and see some really amazing mosaics not too far from here. We can get to Enna on the bus. But the mosaics are in a town 5km from there. Not even in the town. So there is no easy way to get there. Buses are not regular and taxis apparently cost a bomb and as we are all trying not to return to the UK penniless, it doesn't seem an option. We don't know people with a car, or at least, not to ask to ferry us around Sicily. It really is a shame, but it's too bad. Even flights to nearby Malta are extortionate (although I've not heard a good word about the place).

Etna again but from Taormina

So today we thought - the beach near Catania. (The coast near us is all volcanic lava). The beach with sand is out near the airport. The airport bus! we thought and headed onto Corso Italia. Turns out it doesn't stop there after all. So a woman at the bus stop suggested Acicastello. That has a beach, she said. We waited for a bus for ages without any luck and eventually walked to the train station. Apparently trains don't go to Acicastello, so back to waiting for a bus. We encountered an English couple at the bus stop, just arrived in Sicily for ten days - they had had the same idea and the same problems as us. Eventually after we'd told them our story, the bus came and we all clung on for dear life as it hurtled to our destination. So Acicastello doesn't have a beach after all. Just lava rocks. But it does have a castle (hence the name).  We clambered over the crocodile-skin-like rocks (they really hurt) and sat near the water, which was a lovely turquoise near the edge. There were little rock pools and we were delighted to see little dark crabs scuttle out into the sunlight and then hastily run back into a crack in the rocks. No dolphins though, but there was a weird cloud in the sky, which must have come from Etna.

the castle

cacti garden

Once it got too windy to sit there, we gave up and went back to the piazza for a (by now) essential
coffee. By coffee I mean espresso - they are so dark and rich and addictive, we both think we'll miss them and actually have withdrawal symptoms back in the UK, and both say we don't sleep properly. But there's not much else to do apart from sit and have coffee at the cafes. Of course, we saw the English couple there doing the same thing. I managed an ice cream (melon and peach). There was even grass and kids playing, something you don't see in Catania.  The castle is quite old but it looked a bit dark and as though there would only be a few damp walls to look at. But we had a pleasant surprise! It had a friendly ticket man and he promised us there was a garden there. Lo and behold, through a doorway there was a lovely secluded cacti garden with some fabulous plants and a great view over the sea, with swifts swooping overhead. There was also a great view out to Acitrezza (where a giant threw the rocks into the sea, apparently) and over the rooves of Acicastello. So a nice end to the day, and the ticket man even told us where to get the bus back.

Acitrezza from Acicastello castle

Easter - Ipsica and Modica

I know it is a bit late to be blogging about Easter but we had a nice trip to south east Sicily, based near Pozzallo, a quiet seaside town, with a rather nice waffle shop where we enjoyed many waffles opposite the seafront.  We stayed in a small self catering apartment, in a Mediterranean looking complex - it was deserted when we arrived but the next day hoards of Sicilians descended for an Easter get-away and it turned out to be similar in nature to a Butlins, with organised entertainment for them (which, luckily, we were not included in).

the apartments

Pozzallo

We got in a lovely morning's sunbathing by the swimming pool, when it was still empty. The water was freezing, but being a true Brit, I pretended it was fine and immersed myself to get the shock over quickly.

On the first morning we had a rather fortuitous trip to the airport to hire a car (lucky because we ended up not being able to hire a car there, and found a cheaper and much nicer one in Pozzallo, and because I had a chance meeting with a former student).  Etna looked stunning from the airport: she is still snow-covered and sometimes takes your breath away. I swear she sometimes has a hand in things. Perhaps I've been here too long.

We went on several day trips to towns not that far from Pozzallo. It's the area where Montalbano is filmed, with the Baroque towns of Ragusa, Modica and Noto that attract tourists. We went via Ipsica to Modica. Ipsica was a rather appealing little town with several churches - everywhere has as many churches as English villages have pubs. It is quite surprising to see them all on every corner. Ipsica was all done up for Good Friday - there were lights rather like we have at Xmas, and a rather disturbing centrepiece depicting Jesus carrying his cross and being led by a black man. Ella was less than impressed as it's hardly a positive image. Inside the church we were simply befuddled by the bizarre decorations: aside from the usual blue and gold gaudy decorations, there were lots of flowers laid down in front of a carving of Jesus and whoever else, like at a funeral or wedding. But even stranger, along the walls there were freaky looking dolls hanging staring down at you. But not even that was the weirdest thing - hanging among the freaky dolls were what seemed to be plastic bits of limbs such as knee joints, a hand, a foot.

What!? For me, (not a phrase, I know, but it is now that we hear students use it so often) - For me, the weirdest thing, hanging near some dolls, was a bunch of carrots. A bunch of carrots. Jo swore this was for the Easter bunny. Oh and on the ceiling, a carved picture of someone hammering a nail into someone's head. We got out of there pretty fast.

Modica

Modica is a larger town and famous for its chocolate. Except none of us actually like the chocolate as it's quite strong and kind of grainy - you can taste the sugar grains. Modica was sweet though and we climbed up the hills to "Modica alta" (high Modica) from where we had a super view across the town.

All trips were punctuated by regular stops for coffee (espresso), to which I am sure I am now addicted. It really is so good here. I'm sure it's how they keep people here, as how can you go back to England when the coffee is nothing like the same.

beach near apartment

apartment pool

Palermo

For a while we (the housemates) have been planning a trip to Palermo. It is the capital of Sicily and about two and a half hours' drive away on the north coast. There is enough there to explore for a few days but in the end we decided to make a day trip of it, rather than stay overnight.

We somehow all managed to get up and get on the 9.00am bus, which was a miracle, but then had a two hour forty minute journey with the air conditioning not working. It was a lovely sunny day so it was quite warm. As we left Catania there was the most amazing view of Etna - I know I go on about her, but she has a lot of snow at the moment, which comes quite far down the slopes, so the white makes her stand out against the pale blue sky. She looked stunning and somehow you can't take your eyes off her, even when you get a crick in the neck from staring out the window.

I knew from having flown over the island but was still surprised to see how hilly the centre is. We even passed some snowy peaks when we were near the north coast. I saw a few birds of prey flying overhead in the sun.

The north coast looks pretty and my housemate recommends Cefalu, which is a pretty coastal town. She had lived near Palermo so fortunately she knew where to take us and what to see. The streets seemed wider, cleaner and brighter to me, although in a similar style to Catania, so I decided I much prefer Palermo to Catania. There are, according to my guidebook, many churches of note to see, with mosaics and fancy Arabic influence. But I think a return visit to Palermo is a must, to take in particular sights. As it was, we were able to see the main piazzas, the duomo (quite impressive from the outside but not very exciting inside), horse drawn carriages for the tourists (always a winner) and "The Fountain of Shame" which my housemate said had been designed for Rome but rejected on the account that there was too much nudity. Clearly Palermo didn't have a problem with that.

I don't know if it was just being out of Catania but I thought the place was less noisy, less dirty and the people seemed all right too. Maybe it was just having a change!

I liked the seafront, which seemed more open and accessible than the lungomare, and also had a lovely view of Bagheria, between two hills. There were hills all round the city which meant that looking down streets you caught sight of a hill, which was very nice. I also thought there were more green spaces, one where we saw two huge trees with cool trunks. There is also a botanical garden which begs another visit, although I think it was only small.

We finished our day with a trip to a tea shop that had every sort of tea, and the most amazing coconut cake and handmade shortbread. All very nice. I would like to go back to Palermo as there are other places to check out including the very macabre sounding catacombs, where the preserved dead bodies are on display.

Lungomare

First view of the sea

It is nice to be on the coast, as who doesn't like to look out to sea, even on a day where there's no sun? It takes about 5 minutes, if that, to walk down to the lungomare, where everyone walks or jogs up and down. Couples strolling along, kids with families, dogs on their walks. I have tried to do some walking every day recently, to keep the endorphins hanging around and to keep cheerful. Couldn't the other day as we had a terrific storm with lots of hailstones that looked like snow on some roads, lightning and torrential rain, and thunderclaps that shook the doors.

Where is Etna? Hidden from view

But back to the lungomare, where you still have to tread carefully thanks to careless dog owners, and where you can walk alongside the sea until you reach a spectacular view of Etna. Last post you will see her rising above the city. Last weekend, however, she was nowhere to be seen, hidden behind grey cloud, as if she wasn't there at all. Yesterday you could only see some of her and there appears to be more snow, following the storm.

There is a little harbour area with boats: I even thought it looked nice yesterday so I must be feeling more cheerful this week. There is also a little building with a sign saying it was a Spanish defence post, or something, from a few hundred years ago. It doesn't look that old to me and has graffiti over it so I didn't take a picture.

Quite pretty for Catania

Last weekend the weather was grey and the sea was being blown by the wind. I stood and watched the waves hitting the rocks; always quite mesmerising. The surf was being blown up in tiny droplets, into my face. It is normally much calmer.

January blues? And how to buy shoes

I haven't blogged since I returned, because I have been finding it difficult since I came back: the inevitable result of two weeks back home with Christmas films, snack items and the family.  But I am back into the teaching rhythm now, and this week's lessons mostly went well. I was focussing on pronunciation with one level, which was rewarding, and another group made some nice comments. I have some new students this term which has changed the dynamic in some classes.

The sailing boats

Coming back to the sun is one good thing, although even that was missing when I first arrived. The last two weekends have been warm and sunny and so I have taken to walking along the lungomare, the sea front, and then sitting for half an hour or more to soak up some vitamin D and warmth. I took my coat off last weekend (it was way too hot) but many of the Italians still feel the need for an added layer and they can spot that I am foreign and ask if I am not cold. Today I walked up to the end and I think I saw two cormorants fishing in the sea. There were some boats on the water, as last Saturday; I think they are people having sailing lessons.  At the end of the lungomare Etna rises above the city - she really does have some strange hold over people. You can't help but stare. There is always wisps of smoke at the top (last week grey, today white) and a bit of snow on the side.

See what I mean? You can't take your eyes off her

The sea is about 12 feet or more below the road so don't get the wrong idea, there are no nice beach walks. The most we have is some scrappy bit of grey sand and these enormous boulders - you look in the sea and there are more round rocks there too. There's also some weird, huge concrete blocks in two places. Ella, Jo and I sat on one the other day and listened to the waves.

The round rocks

The sun on the sea is dazzling, and one night last week it was the moonlight that looked beautiful on the water.

It is harder than I ever expected to live somewhere else, specially not speaking Italian well. I am determined to improve - which is not helped by the fact the promised lessons have not materialised - but I have got books and people willing to help and I have been practising as much as I can. Today a really nice girl, one of my students, helped me; we talked about how to buy clothes and then mooched around some shops and she made me speak to the shop assistant...she'd make a good teacher!

I want to meet more people my age. My housemates/fellow teachers are all lovely, but I am not into the same things. There is a conversation group that meets when I'm teaching plus there are people who want to meet for conversation exchanges so I will see what happens.

Sun on the water

It being Sicily, you expect romance, what with all the dark, good looking men. But by their own admission, Sicilians are not the best choice. Too many jealousy issues, affairs and men living with their mothers. My January blues involved affairs of the heart. I really liked someone, he really liked me, but for simple reasons it's a no-go. One second it was yes, the next, no. And it has been hard because we can't communicate well. So I'm afraid I let it send me into a gloom. But that's life, I guess, and it is not a stupid film where love wins the day. But I have had some invaluable support from people back home and for that I am very grateful.

Perhaps it's because it's an island, but most Catanese love Catania and have no interest in venturing outside it. It feels a bit claustrophobic. I have just finished watching Sue Perkins's trip up the Mekong River - what a wonderfully interesting and thought provoking series. She really challenged her own and the viewers' perceptions and learned so much from visiting such different places. Totally recommended viewing and a welcome reminder that there is life outside Sicily.

Finally, I am hoping today won't be my last blog - I have a bureau in my room where the lid falls open if you don't lock it. I was bending to clean (of all things) when it fell open and whacked me hard on the head. There's a small bump there and it's still sore even now.

This morning there was a surprise outside on the main road: some drummers and trumpets, with some men whirling flags. There was a classic car event (it was all a bit random) with some classic cars along the road, men staring at them, and near the cafe was a large white horse and a painted carriage. The horse was dressed in all sorts of finery, and in the carriage were 3 men in traditional costume playing the rather nice whistle/flutey/pipe thing that they have here. I like it. The cart was painted all over with figures and flowers - on closer inspection there were pictures of people slaying each other, so who knows what that was about. I couldn't help thinking the horse looked like it was dancing as it was moving back and forward a little but probably it was just uncomfortable having to stand there, when it would probably rather have been in the parade, or looking at the classic cars.

 

The drums were cool, they went right through you, but strangely enough the road hadn't been closed so cars were driving past and the men sometimes had to get out of the way. It was a nice change and after watching from the balcony I went down to see the horse and look at the cars.

Jo, Beth and I had to abort a trip to Taormina because it turns out the bus timetable has changed for winter - but on the way to the bus stop we saw a fabulous view of Etna between two roads. The galling thing is, the view of Etna from Taormina will be absolutely amazing at the moment because the sky is so clear - the snow on the peak must look incredible. Oh well, another time.

The Christmas present situation is looking good; I have now sorted most things for my flight, and I just have to figure out a few things for the other end now.

More looking around

This week has gone fast and finally there is only one week to go. I think lessons went well this week. I had to give some of them a short test to see how they are all progressing. Everyone seemed to do well, in my opinion, so I hope they will be encouraged by what they have achieved so far.

I managed to get through subject/object questions without further confusing my intermediate group. They are nice, just three girls, one of whom turned out to be an excellent actress last week when I asked them to act out a phrase on a card. She was just brilliant and it was easy to guess what she was doing. This week we were talking about Britishness and they also did some quiz questions on Italy for me.

I actually had fun in the kids' class. I've made several trips to a local stationer's shop which is run by a woman and her two sons. The sons are helpful because they know I can't say much in Italian. It turns out "glitter" is the same word when used in the context of "glitter glue" which came in very handy for some reindeer the kids made. They drew around their hands so the fingers form the four reindeer legs and the thumb makes the head. Everyone found it hard cutting out antlers, so I ended up doing lots of them, but they all enjoyed decorating the reindeer bodies with glitter glue, even though it was in such quantities it did not dry in time for them to take the reindeer home. They're supposed to be tree decorations. We also sang Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer - well, I sang it to them and they made an attempt to sing what they could - I suppose we will do it again next lesson and they might pick up some more. We did actions, which they all followed very attentively. Yes, I've warmed to them a lot recently and had a bit of a soft moment when they were all calling for my attention as usual (Bet-han, Bet-han, because no one can pronounce the "th" properly). How nice it would be, I found myself thinking, to have someone calling for you like that. Except a kid of your own would hardly call you by your first name so that isn't quite right.

We went over to Darcy's flat yesterday and then on to Aci Trezza. I can't do the whole late night and drink thing any more so I was trying my best to drink as slowly as possible and it seemed to work. I am already missing the Australian woman being here, because she was nearer my age.

This morning, inspired by Deanna's exhortation to find things out for myself, I took her guide book

with me and headed into town to try to find the other amphitheatre. I found it in a spot that I have passed frequently and never realised it was there, beneath the level of the road, in a pit. It was huge in its day but is now just some arches and columns. I don't know what it is about Catania but even when you read or hear about things that are supposed to be good, they always seem a bit disappointing. Anyway - one thing that was just the opposite today was Etna. There is a long street where you can see Etna at the top - today she was clearer than I have ever seen her while I've been in Catania. She looked amazing - you can't see the top or the whole outline but just one slope and you could see the snow and it seemed like she was really near. It was so impressive I kept turning round to stare.  Ella and Beth went to town later and Ella knew of a hotel where you can get a panoramic view from the top - so she came back with an amazing photo of Etna over Catania's roofs.

the swordfish is on the table

I decided to check out the fish market, la pescheria, as this is a well known feature of Catania (we are right next to the sea). I did not realise but it's right behind the elephant square. It was quite impressive in a fish-markety sort of way - bearing in mind that I don't eat fish and inwardly was wholly unimpressed by the display of marine carnage. Seeing such beautiful creatures (including poor octopuses) set out on the ice is not my idea of a nice view, but I did want to experience this very Catanese thing. Poor swordfish, who are enormous, were on many stalls, with their heads there to look impressive or something - their swordlike noses are so long.  Luckily there was one nice thing to look at; the Catanese fishmongers weren't too bad looking, but you know I'm not obsessed - it is just nice to observe different looking people and some of them are quite arresting. It made me smile because Sophie and Rickard, who I met in Taormina, always joked I would marry a fisherman (or pescatore).

Next to the fish market are some meat stalls, which I hastened past. I had been warned by the guide book and I did see one of the things it mentioned, which I will spare you, because it was something out of a nightmare. There were also some more fruit and veg stalls - the produce is really fresh and always looks good.  I had the nicest avocado today, it was so creamy and delicious. I don't think it was Sicilian but it was lovely.

The idea was to get some Christmas presents today, but I have resorted to doing it all online and I can't even decide what to get some people. It doesn't get easier to think of things. I honestly can't wait now, it feels so close. I suppose coming back will be hard after going home but at least I have one or two students who I will feel motivated to come back to.  So this final week I am going to either finish giving tests or return the marked tests, and then sod work, we are going to do Christmassy things - learning about what we Brits do on Christmas Day (basically open our presents, eat sprouts, ignore the Queen, watch a film, squeeze in some trifle). It seems like they don't have a special meal they all eat here, they just have pasta or something. I was asking my student friend, who I met for a coffee and our Italian/English practise last weekend. He just gets a few days off, like most people, which is a shame as he seems stressed by work, so I am lucky to get two weeks off.  His class and I are going for a pizza on the last day (we have the last lesson on Monday 22nd) so that will be nice, before I go home on 23rd.

Beautiful Taormina

Freaky aliens in palm tree?

Last night we had a welcome change to pasta, as our workmates took us to a thai restaurant. Most of the customers were Americans, who live on the airbase near Catania airport. Apparently it is the biggest base in the Mediterranean because of the strategic site of the island and its proximity to the middle east. Or something. Its full name is Naval Air Station Sigonella and you can read about it here.  It was not surprising as I think the Sicilians prefer their own food.

Today Jo and I took advantage of the fact it is still mild, and we can just about still go out without a jacket for most of the day. We headed off to Taormina in the sun, and arrived around lunch time. Wow, what a difference it makes to Taormina when the tourists are gone, but what a nice change! We were able to freely wander along without fighting through crowds of people and we could actually see the Corso Umberto clearly; even I noticed little shops and places I did not remember so well. Sadly for us, Crazy Crepes was closed, as were a lot of the shops, but many places were still open and so we had a crepe near the back of St Catherine's church which is at the top of Corso Umberto. I had Nutella on mine - seemingly a whole jar. An English woman and her husband came to the cafe so it was quite nice talking to them for a while.

Squirrel jumper, Corso Umberto

We had a leisurely wander down Corso Umberto and began to think about what it is practical to take back at Christmas, as gifts. Most food items are a risk as who wants to pack a jar of pesto and then realise it has oozed oil and pistachios all over your entire wardrobe. Plus everything in Taormina was Taormina prices so we will have to see if we can find something nice in Catania. Jo still has the option of the packed-out ceramics shop from which to choose something but I realised I have already done this gift option, in June.

Rather cool door handle, Corso Umberto

We reached the piazza from where you can see the mighty Etna. Today she was obscured by cloud but you could still see the snow-capped peak peeping through. She looks absolutely amazing with snow on and we are both waiting for a clear day for Jo to see the Teatro Greco, from where you get the most amazing view of Etna.

Etna is behind me with snow....under the bit of cloud.

Being in Taormina was a real treat today, as we both felt the need to get out of Catania at weekends, because it is such a busy and noisy city, it is a constant low-lying level of stress. Taormina was so peaceful and relaxing by contrast; there were no cars, no car horns, no stupid traffic. It was a real joy. I relaxed properly for the first time in ages, just as I had the last time I went. We lamented that it is actually harder to get work there because there is no English school, but I think we should at least investigate alternatives to the city we are currently in. As Jo pointed out, everything in Catania feels like a struggle; nothing in Taormina could be a struggle in that way, and it certainly presented no problems in June.

a seltz

We had a great view of the mainland today, which renewed my interest in going to visit. It would be interesting at least from an anthropological point of view to see any difference between the mainland and Sicily. I tried my first "seltz" - a lemon (or mandarin) flavour drink with salt in, which I think is for when you need a pick-me-up - it was a bit like drinking aspro clear but the taste grew on me. Jo's face, after taking a sip, was a picture.

We headed off at the end of the afternoon when it was beginning to go cooler. I could really do with a duvet now, it is going cool at night. But I do have blankets. We are both looking forward to Xmas, and despite the run-up being non-existent to very quiet here, we found a small Xmas shop and both can't wait to go home. Foodwise, I am craving toast here and baked beans would be good too. They do not have proper bread for toast, not that I have found, anyway.

Digging my (new) heels in

I have been wondering, with all the little things that were going wrong, if either Etna or Sant'Agata (patron saint of Catania) was trying to dissuade us from staying here. I can't work out which and that is probably the problem, that I have been trusting in both of them and they are historically in conflict with each other. Or something. I know Sant'Agata "stopped" the lava flow. I expect she didn't really.

Despite thinking we were safe to use the "second" sink in the corner of the kitchen, until the landlord can come to fix the main one, I went to make myself a cup of tea and found myself paddling through water. Oh, I'll just mop that up, I thought, it must be from last time. I opened the door to under the sink. The bucket was full to the brim with water. How is that possible, I thought. It turned out Jo had used the washing machine, which was connected to the same pipes I suppose. I opened the door to the corridor, where the cleaning stuff is kept (it is a large flat) and joy, the water was sloshing all over the floor, in the little room. Definitely don't want to be a plumber now.

Yesterday I checked out the local Sunday market. Far from finding a light duvet (it's getting colder) or any house-y things, it was only veg and cheese. But everyone was there, jostling at the stalls, and the veg was fresh and cheap. I have more broccoli than I could ever eat for €1 and I bought a large pepper and a fennel for 80 cents together! I made some rather delicious pasta with broccoli and a ricotta nut sauce (out of a jar). The freshness of the broccoli was amazing. Very tasty, and with vitamins literally going straight into my bloodstream with every mouthful.

On the way back from the market I passed some religious types who were doing the old Sunday call for other religious types, trying to save you at the roadside with a microphone and a guitar. There was some painful singing. You could still get the general gist, I mean you know what these people say in English so it was quite easy to pick out all the stuff about Jesus dying so you can live, etc etc. I walked on by.  Reminded me of a picture of Jesus we saw in the ice cream parlour back in Giardini Naxos. He looked quite handsome. Jo remarked at the time that even Jesus had to look good for the Italians, and that if there was a "sexy Jesus" at the church, she might be persuaded to go herself.

Today things are looking up: the landlord and his dad fixed a growing list of small things that needed fixing, so everything in the flat should now be working! Jo went to the gym, finally, after trying to join for 7 weeks, and came back on some sort of endorphin-high. Thank god she loved it. I had a nice lunch with my workmate and her Italian boyfriend who was quite encouraging when I tried to say a few things in Italian. Best news of the day, my phone is back on (hooray!!!!) and I bought some small boots, and another purchase, that are like an Ian Dury song :)  The only downside is having confused the pre-intermediates about the past continuous. I knew I would.

It's still warm here. Still not coat weather. We were sat outside having lunch. Madness.

Chestnuts and Etna

On Saturday we went to Trecastagni, which is not far away and had some nice winding streets and a church high up with a fantastic view (it was night) across the city and up towards Siracusa (Syracuse). We went to see a festival where there were some traditional singers, one playing the accordion and one singing in Sicilian. There were some huts like you have at German markets, with crafts and fruit and vegetables and other nice things. There were supposed to be some horses with traditional Sicilian carts, but sadly they were not there on that evening. Perhaps another time.

The next day we went on a trip by car to the places on the slopes of Etna - I'm not sure exactly of our route but I think we basically drove a long way around the volcano and took in lots of different places. There are lots of local food festivals taking place at this time, so it was very busy - the Sicilians obviously enjoy celebrating their produce and good for them - we saw some lovely olives growing, citrus fruit, and we have seen lots of lovely sweet chestnuts growing on the slopes of Etna.

Since it rained last week and has gone colder, Etna's peak is covered in snow! It looks so amazing. We went to the valley of the Alcantara river - Gab told me there are very few rivers in Sicily. This was amazing because the rocks there are (of course) volcanic and look exactly like something from a film set - the light grey colour and the "blocks" of them look like they are plastic or manufactured. It was quite distinctive and quite unusual. We clambered about over them, with Whiskey the dog leaping around with the usual agility of someone lucky enough to be on four legs when we are teetering on two. There were also many interesting plants including wild cyclamen, wild artichokes, wild fennel and some things which Jo and Gab had fun sticking to each other's backs. There were some amazing stripy leaves that looked like they had been painted. I also saw some black beetles - and the ants seem larger here.

This was west of Taormina, and north east of Etna. We also went to the the village of Lingua Glossa, where there were some nice paintings on many of the walls, and a nice cake / pastry shop.

Afterwards we drove higher up the side of Etna to a place where there were many sweet chestnut trees - most of the chestnuts had already fallen to the ground and been taken by people or creatures - we had fun trying to get them out without stabbing our hands. I have just been eating some and they are very nice. We saw a massive four hundred year old tree (not a chestnut?)

I finally got to have a prickly pear fruit - they have soft, watery orange flesh with big seeds in. They were okay - an acquired taste maybe - not unpleasant but they would be better without the seeds. They were not unlike watermelon, that is the closest I can think of.

If you squint you can just see the snow on the left...?

Sicilian Adventure

The Time Is Now will be taking a break from fonts and tympanums for a while, but instead reporting back on a new adventure in Sicily. While I will miss standing in cool churches (even more so while I battle with the heat here), my sister will still be visiting and finding new and fabulous designs to draw, so I will be keeping up by proxy, through her blog.

I have come to Catania on the east coast of Sicily, at the foot of the impressive Mount Etna, to try my hand at teaching English to Italians. After two and a bit weeks I have settled in and am getting used to preparing and giving lessons. I have one children's class, two teenagers' classes, and four adult classes. All except the children's class meet twice a week.

In addition to adjusting to a new job and a new challenge, I am getting used to Sicilian ways. At first the noise of the city overwhelmed me - it is not Taormina, the small and beautiful town where I spent June at Babilonia language school, a Sicilian paradise. I am sharing a flat with another new teacher, who is confident and positive and we are tackling the idiosyncrasies of Italian life together. We have had several things to work out including how to get internet, tax codes, the possibility of bank accounts and so on. Our flat is palatial and we have a living/dining room that reminds me of rooms in the books of Jane Austen. The flat is like all those around here: eight floors (we are on the third), with balconies. The main road is noisy and has a constant stream of traffic, including emergency vehicles, and Italians beeping their horns for the slightest reason. How they don't all crash into each other is a miracle as they have no road sense or sense of danger. Crossing proved traumatic for me to start off with, as I had no idea how you were supposed to get to the other side. But they do actually expect to stop at the crossings and wait for you to go over. You just have to be careful to remember to look both ways, for although it is a one way street, sometimes buses and taxis are coming from the other direction.

I have found a nice little cafe (pasticceria) on the corner between us and the language school (we are a few minutes away). It has the most enticing little cakes and pastries and the man behind the counter has helped me to learn what to ask for. Everyone knows you are English from the milky whiteness of your skin and the overall scruffy cut of even your best clothes; and of course the painful English accent when I attempt to speak Italian.

I am hoping to set up a conversation exchange with a handsome Italian boy (why not kill two birds with one stone, although I hate that phrase!) So far I have not met anyone but they are all keen to practise English, even by email. I have seen countless handsome men so that is one bonus of being here; it is visually very pleasing. But they do all seem to go for the blond look and while I am with my housemate all interest is directed towards her.

Our manager and her husband have been very hospitable and are keen for us to experience Sicily. The first weekend we went up to the lowest bit of Etna where we could see old craters and lava flows, which looked very weird like muddy rocks. Their little puppy provided loads of entertainment. We also sampled chestnuts, local wine and cheeses.

  

My housemate and I found the market in Catania which was very interesting: lots of fresh and large vegetables, with huge peppers, aubergines, etc. Again, local cheeses (the man on the cheese counter was very nice) and the usual market fare. It seems cheaper than shopping in the local food stores. You have to weigh your own vegetables which took me ages, because you need to identify them in order to print the price label. I was keen to try a prickly pear fruit (from the cacti) but forgot to weigh it so the guy put it to one side at the checkout.  My best buy was a mosquito plug in as they have been feasting on me in this continuing hot weather. It is crazy that it is still warm in October.

We have had a granita and brioche in a cafe in the centre of Catania and had a wander round. There does not seem to be lots to do (and no parks!) but there are a few things to explore at some stage like Roman ruins and the cathedral (home of Sant'Agata, the patron saint of Catania). I have been meaning to pop in but it was closed for the siesta time. There is an elephant statue in the main piazza that is rather nice and I have to find out the significance. The siesta lasts four hours here. Shops close at about 12 and reopen at about 4. This is the best time for crossing the road, as it is quiet!