Trip to the "soccer ball" (Sicily) Part 1

Lyle calls Sicily the "soccer ball" off the toe of Italy. I found it to be more than that.....a beautiful island full of variety in the Mediterranean.

Our friends, Mark and Kathy, came for a visit from St. Paul. After a few days in Paris in somewhat-typical cloudy, autumn weather, we all headed for some sun in Sicily. After some research on the computer, we thought Taormina would be a great October destination, a resort town on the eastern side of the island. We rented a 2-bedroom villa on a cliff overlooking the sea, only to discover...........

.......STEPS! Around 90 of them to get to the door of our 2-level villa with a terrace. This was going to be a good workout for the next 5 days! Ahhh.....but the view outside of our bedrooms was worth it!

The villa proved to have an A+ view, even though it was sparcely furnished. We, at least, each had a bathroom with a small shower, and we began the holiday with Sicilian wine, cheese and olives on the terrace above, another flight of steps up a circular stairway!

Taormina is a town with two levels (at least). Our villa overlooked the lower level where there were pristine, calm beaches on a small bay (our villa is up on the top left).......

......but we had to either walk up ANOTHER thousand or so steps or take the funicular to the main part of the town. Okay, we will spend 3 euros for the round trip!

The town of Taormina is a quaint resort town, full of winding cobblestone streets, steep alleys leading to shops and restaurants, and a destination for tourists from all over Europe and the U.S. October, though, is a good time to come because it was not overly crowded, even though the town was certainly hopping!

Being the adventurers that we are, we had a number of sights on our list. First, another hike up the huge hill to the top where there was a medieval castle overlooking the city. More steps, of course.....

....and after walking up 150 meters above the town, through 14 "stations of the cross", and looking over the city at spectacular views......

......we finally arrived at the top shrouded in a cloud, only to find the gate locked to the castle! Well, on the way up, I did spot the Greek Theater at the edge of the city, so that was our NEXT destination.

Taormina was settled around 400 BC by the Greeks and there are remnants of both Greek and Roman civilization throughout the town. I didn't have to go to GREECE to see ruins! The Greek theater was built in the third century BC, expanded by the Romans, and it has lasted on this peaceful hillside, in spite of volcanic eruptions from Mt. Etna nearby! I was thrilled to see it!

Did we have enough climbing for the day? Well, how about a walk DOWN? Yup.....Lyle and I walked down the 300 meters, through steep alley-ways, past villas and soccer fields, to finally plop down and catch our breath before enjoying a fine dinner of fish and pasta.

The next day? How about more climbing.....Mount Etna?