- Taormina -
We had no real plans on what to do with our time in Catania other than a trip to Mt. Etna if the sky was clear enough to have decent visibility. Unfortunately the forecast called for rain and overcast skies so, at the apartment owner’s recommendation; we decided to head off to Taormina after a lazy start to the day and breakfast in a bar near the station. We were a little too lazy to catch the 10:00 bus and we didn’t want to wait until noon, so we took the train which stops at the bottom of the hill far below Taormina. 15 Euros total for a 40 minute train ride for 2 adults and 2 kids. I love Italian transport.
However, when we got off the train there was no one around and no indication of what to do next, so we stood there looking stupid until a bus rolled past us and then stopped. As we got on, the driver chastised me (I think) in Italian and told me that he really shouldn’t have stopped, and that if I wanted to get picked up I had to wave down the bus. At least that’s what the old Sicilian man on the bus who seemed eager to practice his English said. The old man proceeded to give us a running commentary on Taormina, Sicilia and Yoo-rope as we climbed the hill and took in the beautiful views up and down the coastline with the mainland of Italy in the not-very-far distance. If he’s right and tectonic plates determine which continent you are on, we were in Africa for a couple of days. I still say I haven’t been to Africa yet.
Taormina is our kind of town, especially as quiet as it was on a Thursday well outside the tourist season. It is a perfect mix of ancient, old and new and small enough to easily walk everywhere, with coastline, mountain and ocean views every time you turn a corner. While 2 days in Paris was plenty for us, I would love to spend a week or two in Taormina which is saying a lot given my extreme case of destination deficit disorder. Views of and from Taormina:
It’s all Greek to me.
Kids acting out in the Teatro Antico
The clouds lifted off of Mt. Etna for just a few minutes. If I knew how to use a camera this shot would look really good…
Thanksgiving dinner part 1
Thursday was also the warmest day we would see – in the 60s all day in spite of being overcast. I would say it was my favorite Thanksgiving day. I definitely spent a few moments being thankful for all the helpful folks on Flyertalk and various blogs that made this experience possible! I didn’t get to see any of it, but just for good measure the Cowboys even won.
We got back to Catania just before dark, picked up some chicken at the grocery store on our way back to the apartment and made it, along with the pasta the owners had left us, Thanksgiving dinner part 2.