The deepest side of Italy
SICILY
Sicily is a land full of contrasts, an island rich in history and
culture, lively and captivating cities of art, small fishermen's
villages where time seems to have stand still and where people live
surrounded by amazing natural wonders and beautiful sandy beaches. The
island was conquered by many different tribes who left permanent traces
of themselves in the island's culture transforming Sicily in a place
unique in its kind.
The first known settled tribe was the Siculians who not only named Sicily after them, but also introduced agriculture and animal husbandry already in the 3rd millennium B.C. The Phoenicians came afterwards but they became fundamental for this land because they founded numerous commercial centers and started intensive utilization of the forests to build houses and boats.
The Greek arrived between the 8th and the 3rd century B.C. founding numerous colonies and developing commerce and agriculture while the Romans, the next colonizers, made of Sicily the granary of the empire. Furthermore they built new roads and enforced the already existing settlements and agricultural and commercial systems.
From the 827 A.D., Sicilian inhabitants were repeatedly attacked by Arabic pirates and they were forced to promptly fortify and enlarge Palermo's port. The city itself was rebuilt several times due to a blooming period of growth and expansion.
The Normans and then the Germans inhabited the Island bringing continuous improvements but the trend stopped and got even worse under the succeeding dominations: the Angevin, the Aragon and the Spanish one. These conquerors parceled the land into large estates characterized by low productivity.
In the 19th century the small islands started being well known all over the world when Mafia, the famous criminal organization started to rule and when in 1860 Sicily became a part of the newly born Italian state they took a real control of the Island and somehow of the whole Country.
At the end of WWII the Italian government implemented a program of economic development; ample estates were parceled into smaller plots, and the coastal areas reclaimed and transformed into cultivable fields. The development plan included even the construction of new roads and railways, industries and above all the tourist industry that widely helped to improve the islanders' quality of life.
Sicily is a land full of contrasts, an island rich in history and
culture, lively and captivating cities of art, small fishermen's
villages where time seems to have stand still and where people live
surrounded by amazing natural wonders and beautiful sandy beaches. The
island was conquered by many different tribes who left permanent traces
of themselves in the island's culture transforming Sicily in a place
unique in its kind.The first known settled tribe was the Siculians who not only named Sicily after them, but also introduced agriculture and animal husbandry already in the 3rd millennium B.C. The Phoenicians came afterwards but they became fundamental for this land because they founded numerous commercial centers and started intensive utilization of the forests to build houses and boats.
The Greek arrived between the 8th and the 3rd century B.C. founding numerous colonies and developing commerce and agriculture while the Romans, the next colonizers, made of Sicily the granary of the empire. Furthermore they built new roads and enforced the already existing settlements and agricultural and commercial systems.
From the 827 A.D., Sicilian inhabitants were repeatedly attacked by Arabic pirates and they were forced to promptly fortify and enlarge Palermo's port. The city itself was rebuilt several times due to a blooming period of growth and expansion.
The Normans and then the Germans inhabited the Island bringing continuous improvements but the trend stopped and got even worse under the succeeding dominations: the Angevin, the Aragon and the Spanish one. These conquerors parceled the land into large estates characterized by low productivity.
In the 19th century the small islands started being well known all over the world when Mafia, the famous criminal organization started to rule and when in 1860 Sicily became a part of the newly born Italian state they took a real control of the Island and somehow of the whole Country.
At the end of WWII the Italian government implemented a program of economic development; ample estates were parceled into smaller plots, and the coastal areas reclaimed and transformed into cultivable fields. The development plan included even the construction of new roads and railways, industries and above all the tourist industry that widely helped to improve the islanders' quality of life.
ART AND CULTURE
The "contamination" from
different cultures coming from a number of invaders that deeply changed
the people's habits and traditions produced on the other hand a
exclusive and successful mix of architectural beauties, tastes and
scents that made Sicily a land unique in its gender.
Visitors today can still visit
the ancient Greek-Roman buildings, the Arabic-Norman fortresses, the
magnificent Baroque style buildings, and the churches such as the
Palatine Chapel in Palermo whose internal walls are covered in stunning
Byzantine mosaics.
On the west side of the island we can find Greek stamp, well marked above all in cities such as Siracusa and Agrigento with its phenomenal Valley of Temples
Architecturally speaking, the Eastern Sicilian cities were influenced by Baroque style, used to build monuments and buildings after the earthquake that affected the land in 1693. The cities of Ragusa, Modica, Iapica, Noto and Scicli, were completely destroyed and rebuilt at the end of the 17th century and the wonderful "stone gardens" ruins that testify the Sicilian Baroque beauties have been recently included in UNESCO'S prestigious World Heritage List.
Other wonderful and enchanting
places to visit are Taormina, the "pearl of the Ionian Sea", Enna,
"Sicily's belly button", Caltagirone called "the ceramic town" and
Catania, with its black and white Baroque palaces.
THINGS TO DO
Sicily in its beauty could seriously become an unique experience for the senses. Not only for the thousands of years of history left in every single corner but also for the endless natural beauties, for the warmth of Sicilian people and for the way they can enjoy life.
Nature here changes deeply; the majestic sight of the Etna volcano to the sloping hills, loaded with orange, olive, citrus groves and the vineyards from which the precious black nectar is produced. The fine sandy beaches are crowded with people most of the year; the mild temperature give the visitor the fortune to enjoy the warm beaches of Vendicari Reserve, Pozzallo and Isola Bella from March to November and the smallest islands of Pantelleria, Ustica, Lipari, Stromboli, Favignana, Salina and Panarea.
Sicily in its beauty could seriously become an unique experience for the senses. Not only for the thousands of years of history left in every single corner but also for the endless natural beauties, for the warmth of Sicilian people and for the way they can enjoy life.
Nature here changes deeply; the majestic sight of the Etna volcano to the sloping hills, loaded with orange, olive, citrus groves and the vineyards from which the precious black nectar is produced. The fine sandy beaches are crowded with people most of the year; the mild temperature give the visitor the fortune to enjoy the warm beaches of Vendicari Reserve, Pozzallo and Isola Bella from March to November and the smallest islands of Pantelleria, Ustica, Lipari, Stromboli, Favignana, Salina and Panarea.
A whole lifetime could not be enough to enjoy Sicily!