It's more than an island! Discover Sicily and discover the world. The world's first multicultural society, Sicily is Italy's (and Europe's) most historically cosmopolitan region, having been ruled by Asians, Africans and Europeans. Sicily is black and white and a million shades of gray. There's no other place on Earth like Sicily. The island is an unique place full of art, archeology, history, folklore and breathtaking scenery. And, of course, great food. Sicily is almost a nation unto itself. The enchanting land where Archimedes taught and Saint Paul preached was a Greek colony, a Roman province, an Arab emirate and a Norman kingdom. The Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Swabians, Angevins and Aragonese made Sicily their own, leaving behind an eclectic history that you can still touch today. And Sicily will touch you. Sicily is Europe, Africa and Asia on one island. Greek tyrants, Arab emirs, Norman knights, Byzantine bishops and Holy Roman Emperors made Sicily the place it is. Experience their legacy in Phoenician settlements, Punic cities, Greek temples, Roman amphitheatres, Norman Arab castles and Aragonese churches. Thirty centuries of history expressed in the Classical, the Romanesque, the Gothic, the Baroque...
Sicily is Italy's largest island and the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. It's also a geographical and political region of Italy, famed for its beautiful beaches, cuisine, and fascinating history. Because of its strategic location, Sicily was invaded over the centuries by many armies, and was once the site of Roman, Greek and Phoenician colonies. For history-buffs and interested tourists, remnants of those cultures remain to this day. Sicily's economy is based largely on agriculture, fishing, mining, and of course...tourism. Many visitors to the island use the dependable ferry service from the Italian mainland to Messina. Also there is ferry or hydrofoil service to Palermo from ports throughout the central Mediterranean.
Facts
Population 5,132,000
Capital City Palermo (680,810)
Latitude/Longitude (Palermo) 38º 08' N, 013º 23' E
Languages Italian
Official Currency: the Euro
Religions Catholic, others
Land Area 25,706 sq km (9,925 sq miles)
Landforms Most of the island is a mountainous plateau. The highest point, Mt. Etna (an active volcano), rises to 10,902 ft. (3,323m). The central plateau slopes to coastal lowlands and some fertile areas drained by many small rivers amd streams. The significant rivers include the Salso and Simeta.
Sicily Cities:
- Agrigento
- Catania
- Palermo
- Ragusa
- Siracusa
- Taormina
Art and Culture
Through the centuries, Sicily has been rules by the Greeks, Byzantines, Arabs, Normans, Swabians and Spanish, who all built cities and changes the people’s habits and traditions each time they were conquered and taken over. Visitors to Sicily’s cities today can still see the ancient Greek-Roman buildings, the easily recognizable Arabic-Norman fortresses, the imposing Baroque style buildings, and the churches with their amazing interiors covered in Byzantine mosaics such as the famous Palatine Chapel in Palermo, and many others too.
The Greek-origin cities are mostly on the west side of the island, where we can find Selinunte, Segesta, Siracusa and Agrigento, with its fantastic Valley of Temples. Architecturally speaking, Eastern Sicily is much more influenced by the Sicilian Baroque style, used to build monuments and buildings after the terrible earthquake of 1693. The worst hit area was Val di Noto, which was completely rebuilt at the end of the 17th century. The area includes the cities of Ragusa, Modica, Scicli, Ispica and Noto, wonderful “stone gardens” that are remains of the Sicilian Baroque ear and which are included in UNESCO’S prestigious World Heritage List.
The island has some other fabulous towns to visit, such as Taormina, the “pearl of the Ionian Sea”, Enna, “Sicily’s belly button”, Piazza Armerina, Caltagirone “the ceramic town” and Catania, with its Baroque palaces in black and white and its irresistible nightlife.
Sicily is fascinating for its thousands of years of history and for its cities of art but also for the countless natural beauties on the island. Nature here changes deeply, from the majestic sight of Etna to the gently sloping hills, full of olive groves, vineyards and citrus fruit groves, from the fine sandy beaches on the Vendicari Reserve, Pozzallo and Isola Bella to the steep cliffs, the amazing Gole dell’Alcantara and the islands, buzzing or quiet, such as Pantelleria, Ustica, Lipari, Stromboli, Favignana, Salina and Panarea.
Sicily has a massive amount of world-class art, ranging from Greek to Roman, Byzantine, Arab, Norman, French, and Spanish, and some of it enjoys the most astonishing setting, abandoned on a hillside or nestled into a deserted cove where you can come upon it so naturally that you almost think you’ve stepped into a time machine.There is something very ancient about Sicily, more than in Rome or Ravenna or Pompeii, and the thing we like the most about it is its unpretentiousness, the matter of fact, day-to-day atmosphere that turns all this history into a landscape as natural as a prickly pear blooming alongside a country road.Sicily has often been a glorious imperial capital during its surprisingly rich history.Sciacca is a city in southwest Sicily famous for its ceramics and its Carnival.
So far south that it is practically in Africa, Siracusa is one of the great undiscovered treasures of Sicily and of Italy. One of the most beloved traditions in Sicily is the St. Joseph's Table.Sicily is an autonomous region of Italy. Of all the regions of Italy, Sicily covers the largest land area at 25,708square kilometres (9,926 sq mi) and currently has just over five million inhabitants. It is also the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. In addition, several much smaller islands surrounding it are also considered to be part of Sicily. Along with Sardinia, the island is officially classified as a region of Insular Italy.Throughout much of its history, Sicily has been considered a crucial strategic location due in large part to its importance for Mediterranean trade routes. The area was highly regarded as part of Magna Graecia, with Cicero describing Siracusa as the greatest and most beautiful city of all Ancient Greece.It is in the center of the Mediterranean Sea and was in the history always be named desired because of its strategic position and the comfortable climate. The island is subdivided in 9 provinces, the capital city is named Palermo and lies at the west coast of Sicily. The city has ca. 750000 inhabitants, and offers really pretty buildings out of old times. The second largest city is Catania with 420000 inhabitants. There is a little Italian proverb that said: Palermo grandeza, Catania belleza. This proverb purported that Palermo have the larger City, but Catania the beauty of Sicily.
Although today Sicily is a region of Italy, the island was once a city-state in its own right, and as the Kingdom of Sicily ruled from Palermo over southern Italy, Sicily, and Malta. It later became a part of the Two Sicilies under the Bourbons, a kingdom governed from Naples that comprised both the island itself and most of Southern Italy. The Italian unification of 1860 led to the dissolution of this kingdom, and Sicily became an autonomous part of the Kingdom of Italy.Sicily has its own unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, cuisine, architecture and language. The Sicilian economy is largely based on agriculture (mainly orange and lemon orchards); this same rural countryside has attracted significant tourism in the modern age as its natural beauty is highly regarded. Sicily also holds importance for archeological and ancient sites such as the Necropolis of Pantalica and the Valley of the Temples.The Mediterranean's biggest island is separated from the mainland by the strait of Messina. A mountainous spot, Sicily's coast and its small islands sit at the foot of volcanoes, including Etna, Stromboli and Vulcano. The Greeks, Romans, Normans and Catalans all left their mark on the island in the form of Byzantine palaces, Gothic castles and Baroque flourishes in capital Palermo. Most larger towns offer interesting museums, but Etna and the Hellenic temples in Agrigento offer particularly unique sights.
Islands of Sicily
Sicily comprises a number of satellite islands and archipelagoes of high tourism importance.
The Stagnone Lagoon
The Stagnone Lagoon covers an area of 2,000 hectars between Punta San Teodoro and Capo Lilibeo. It consists of a small archipelago composed of four islands, namely Longa, Scuola, Mozia (or San Pantaleo) and Santa Maria.
Mozia
Mozia, set off Marsala’ s Stagnone Bay, was inhabited by the ancient Phoenicians. With its characteristic salt-pans and wind mills, the island is a major goal of tourists.
PantelleriaPantelleria, in the Trapani district, is among Sicilian major tourist destinations. It is well-famous for its dammusi, naturalistic riches and sites, like the Montagna Grande (Grand Mountain), pine woods, the Gibele volcano, the favare and several archaeologic sites, like the Monastero catacombs and the abandoned village of Mueggen.Pantelleria boasts remotest origins: relics of lava stone artefacts from the Phoenecian Age are scattered across the Island; among these are the noted Sesi – tombs where the important members of the community were buried, made from lava stone blocks – and the ruins of a pre-historic village. Visitors may take splendid excursions on horseback along the island naturalistic spots and boating tours of the many bays and bathing spots. The Ballata dei Turchi, the Tracino, the Formaggio are just a few names. The island is especially beautiful in the spring and autumn when the climate and a slower flow of tourists afford a more relaxing vacation, away from mass tourism.
Ustica
Ustica, belonging to the Palermo province, has such attractive and renowned natural bays as the Cala Santa Maria, the Bastione Monte Guardia dei Turchi, the Cala del Camposanto, the Punta dell’Omo morto. As much impressive spots are provided by the natural caves of the Grotta Azzurra and the Pastizza. The only village on the island, mainly living on fishing and tourism, and the fine Bourbon tower are other major features of this enchanting place.The island boasts an important history; it was inhabited by the Phoenicians and the Romans, the latter calling it Ustum, meaning “burnt”. Since 1986, it has been a marine protected reserve.
Aeolian Islands
The Aeolian Islands, within the Messina province, are situated off Milazzo coast. These seven volcanic islands are a favorite destination for tourists from across the world. Their uncontaminated landscape marked by striking colour contrasts is host to a wide range of wildlife including several kinds of migratory birds and rare sea-gulls.
As other Sicilian archipelagoes, the Aeolian is one of remotest roots, the earliest settlements here going as back away as 4,000 years. It seems that the main Lipari has accommodated some Greek colonies. There is a fine and well-known museum tracing, through a rich display of artefacts, the islands’ history starting from the very Paleolithic age when the islands are reckoned to have emerged from the sea. Today, tourism constitutes the islands’ main income.
The cone-shaped Alicudi, the farthest island – along with Filicudi – from Milazzo coast, has characteristic lava stone houses and a richest flora mostly composed of prickly pear, caper and broom. It is endowed with some beautiful beaches, crystal-like waters and very interesting architectural sites, such as the churches of the Carmine and St. Bartholomew, the Montagna, being a settlement dating back to the 18th century, and the village of Castello, set on a hill sloping down to the sea. The neighboring Filicudi is also very attractive. Remnants on the island provide evidence for human presence there since Antiquity: the ruins of a pre-historic village dating back to the Bronze Age and the sites of Rocca Ciauli, the Montagnola, Capo Graziano, Monte Guardia.
Not to miss is the boating tour of the island, enabling visitors to enjoy every natural side of this magic place.
The major places are
Stromboli
It is especially renowned for its active volcano, is a popular tourism destination.
Salina
With its richest flora and its distinctive two-humped profile – consisting of its two peaks Monte dei Porri and Fossa delle Felci, is the second largest of the Aeolian Islands.
Vulcano
It is the southernmost of the Aeolian islands and the closest to the Sicilian mainland.It results from t the fusion of four volcanoes.
Lipari
It is the largest and by far the most popular of the Aeolian islands; the visitors can enjoy numerous attractions, finest sand beaches and the charming town’s old centre.
Island of Panarea
It is especially appreciated by Italian and International VIPs. Outstanding are the Cala Junco green bay and the ruins of a prehistoric village dating back to the Bronze Age.
The Pelagian Islands
This beautiful archipelago is made up of the renowned Lampedusa, Lampione and Linosa islands; and belongs to the Agrigento province.The Islands are at a considerable distance from the mainland, what has helped preserving their primeval environment.
Lampedusa, by far the most famous island in the Archipelago, is home to archaeologic remnants from Phoenician, Greek, Roman and Arab ages. It is endowed with beautiful naturalistic sites; worth-mentioning are the Cala Spugne, the Cala Maluk and the Rabbit island.
Linosa, known as the “black pearl of Sicily” due to its volcanic origin, has uncontaminated environments and sea-beds with plenty of grottoes, caves and wildlife.
Lampione, also known as Scola dei Portolani, is a smallest desert island closest to Lampedusa.
The Egadi Islands
The Egadi Archipelago lies a few miles off Trapani shore and comprises the three main islands of Favignana, Levanzo and Marettimo, plus aa number of tiny islands among which stand Asinelli and Formica, home to remains of a tuna-fishery and a lighthouse.
On Marettimo, there are remains of ancient Roman settlements, namely the grand Grotta del Cammello (Camel Grotto) and the rocky peak of Punta Troia, where lie the ruins of an ancient Aragonese castle. The island is endowed with splendid naturalistic riches, uncontaminated sea-beds, like that by the Cala Bianca, the Bombarda grottoes and several interesting hilly areas like Pizzo Falcone and Pizzo Capraro. Favignana is the major and the most frequented island of the Archipelago. Levanzo, with its characteristic small bays, grottoes and prehistoric remnants, is a beautiful island in the Egadi archipelago.
The area around Catania posses a large variety of flowers and the sincerity of its habitans is impressing. Also Goehte knew about the beauty of this Island, Taormina and the area around that vulcano etna to appreciate.
The volcano itself is the largest throughout Europe. and one of the most active fire mountains of the world. It is ca. 3450 meters high and impressed 2002 on 2003 entirely Catania and the remainder of the world. It was altogether four months especially active and appeared of a new side. The islands Lampedusa and Pantelleria are between the tunesic coast and belong to the warmest because they lain at the most southern Part of Sicilia. Pantelleria can be reached by Trapani out of with the ferry or the airplane. The island is an special recovery zone and who don´t like the normal tourism can escape on this dreamfull island.
Lampedusa lies 205 km of the sicilian coast and only 113 km of the tunesic coast. The island is more closely at Africa than at Sicilia but nevertheless Lampedusa belonged it geographic seen to Italy. Lampedusa possesses an area of ca. 20 square kilometers. From East to west the island measures 9 kilometers and from north to south only 3 kilometers, You can make your investigation-Trips also well on foot.
On this island is produced a special wine named "Marsala", the wine gets its name by the city near Trapani called "Marsala". This wine is made of premium raisin with small and sweet grapes. Sicily’s food is similar to its architecture, a meeting point between East and West: this “contamination” from different cultures has produced daring, successful mixes of tastes that make traditional Sicilian cuisine a fascinating, unique experience for the senses. Fish, the main ingredient used, is prepared in a thousand different ways, mixing it with the unusual, strong aromas of herbs and spices such as mint and wild fennel. Sicilian cakes, from cassata to frutta martorana, deserve a special mention, and so does the island’s wines, especially Nero d’Avola, a quality wine that is rapidly becoming famous overseas too.
Sources:
www.worldatlas.com
www.bestofsicily.com
www.travelplan.it
www.initaly.com
www.tripadvisor.com
www.isole-sicilia.it
www.sicily-etna.com
en.wikipedia.org
