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With its checkered history dating back more than 2,700 years, Palermo is a melting pot of history, architecture and food. For many, this is a jumping-off point en route to Cefalù, Ragusa or Taormina, but fascinating Palermo has plenty more to offer. Strategically located where East meets West, Sicily has been invaded by everyone from the Phoenician...

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Mondello Beach is Palermo, Sicily’s most popular seascape, replete with clear waters, granita stands galore, and an unparalleled view of Monte Pellegrino. Thanks to its large crowds and proximity to the Sicilian capital, however, it often gets a bad rap relative to the island’s more glamorous beach towns. Think: Cefalù, Taormina’s Isola Bella, and...

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If you are thinking of taking a trip to Sicily to discover the beautiful landscapes and history of the island, you absolutely must know all the food tours to include in your trip! There are many food tours in Sicily that allow you to immerse yourself in the most authentic Sicily and discover, in every dish, a piece of history, the culture of a plac...

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Italy has always been the cradle of art and culture: over the years have been built several historical theaters famous all over the world, which have hosted great musicians, dancers, singers and artists of all kinds. There are several Italian architects who have designed and built some of the most beautiful historical theatres, so let’s find out to...

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The historic cafés of Italy aren’t just places for drinking coffee; having retained the atmosphere and traditions of times gone by, they represent the memory and identity of those times and, therefore, of a part of Italian history. Not that the coffee and treats they offer should be overlooked. They are just as popular for their identity as they ar...

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“The Old Man” or the Genius of Palermo appears in pictures, statues, and bas-reliefs all around Palermo appears also on the dust jacket cover of Jeremy Dummett’s new book on the Capital City of Sicily. Dummett goes on to tell us that this bearded man, wearing a crown and holding a serpent to his chest, “represents fertility and the creative life fo...

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The site represents the perfect example of socio-cultural, artistic, and religious fusion among the occidental culture, the Islamic and the byzantine one. It concerns nine historical buildings (two palaces, a bridge, three churches, one cathedral in Palermo plus other two cathedrals in Monreale and Cefalù, two little villages near the country seat)...

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There’s an old saying in Palermo: “Se, quannu i balati ra Vucciria s’asciucano”. It loosely translates into: “Sure, let’s touch base again once the Vucciria’s walls are dry”. This saying indicates something that will hardly ever happen. The origins of this saying are here, in this market called Vucciria, one of the oldest in Palermo and in Sicily,...

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Once upon a time, there lived a brave general, feared by the very most because of his political and military ability. We are in Roman times, when the power of Scipio Africanus, fresh from his resounding victory over Hannibal during the Second Punic War, raged across Sicily. The city of Palermo was a precious ally in the war against Carthage, so Sci...

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The cities, the archipelagos, the volcanoes and the monuments of the island have been inserted in the World Heritage UNESCO as testimony of the artistic and natural beauties of Sicily. From natural beauties to spectacular monuments, from archaeological areas to picturesque old towns, Sicily has many reasons to be defined as a World Heritage Site an...

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