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.