November 3rd and 4th
Our last 2 days in Taormina, the time has flown by, but we have accomplished most of what we wanted to do…today we are going to check out Isola Bella considered to be Taormina’s most beautiful beach.
Before we start down to the shore, we must say a word about the ceramics, Taormina is chock full of stores selling ceramics, and many items are really quite beautiful. However although ubiquitous we found the ceramic heads to be really neat pieces …unfortunately packing them in our luggage is not an option. The original folk tale behind the ceramic heads comes from Palermo and tells of a Saracen merchant who falls in love with a beautiful local girl. Together they start a passionate love affair until the girl discovers her lover has a wife and children waiting for him in his homeland. In a fit of jealousy and rage, she murders him in his sleep, cutting off his head, so that her lover would stay with her forever. The girl uses the head as a vase to grow a beautiful basil plant. Others seeing her flourishing plant, forge themselves the colorful clay head pots in an attempt to recreate the bountiful fertility...take the story as you wish but the heads are everywhere:
In any event back to the beach, it is a pebble beach, set at the foot of the town, fronting the islet with some lush vegetation. The islet is linked to the mainland by a narrow strip of beach which is covered by water at high tide. It is about a 20-minute walk from our apartment and then a short ride down by the Funivia Taormina …somebody was thinking, it is a great way to get up and down (quite a steep walk back from the shore) and eliminates the need for a car/parking, etc. Snorkeling and diving are popular activities, and boats offer trips to the Grotta Azzurra sea cave. Pizzerias and seafood restaurants serve meals al fresco, while hotel lounge bars and clubs offer coastal views. It is a little quiet but then we are here in the off-season.
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Afterward, we head back to the townsite via the Porta Messina one of the entry gates to the town…
It is really enjoyable walking around this town because one is constantly surprised by something which is pleasing to the eye:
…as we meandered through the alleyways we walked through the Via Naumachia which historians speculate was the site of a specially constructed basin in which “mini” sea battles would take place (often these were also staged in the Roman amphitheaters parts of which they would flood)… Click to enlarge images:
….if anyone is looking for a town that has evocative restaurant settings you simply cannot go wrong here…Click to enlarge images:
Inevitably one ends up on Corsa Umberto, the main medieval street is packed with Arab, Norman, and baroque monuments…
The Chiesa di San Giuseppe and the Piazza IX Aprile
Strolling, watching, being watched, and everything in between on the Corso Umberto and the little lanes, often rising in steps, leading off the main street …as well as numerous restaurants, cafes, and shops. The town is a shopper’s paradise with a plethora of souvenir shops, plus a host of jewelers, smart designer boutiques, and funky stores selling everything from hats to chandeliers, and did I mention some rather sinful dessert shops…
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Heading back we noticed several streets named after German personas near our apartment….we asked Claudio our host about this. It is an interesting story …in 1863 Otto Geleng found himself enraptured by Taormina creating numerous Sicilian-themed paintings leading which led to Taormina gaining some recognition in European circles. There was also Baron Otto von Gloeden a German photographer who worked mainly in Italy in the 1850’s. He is mostly known for his pastoral nude studies of Sicilian boys which ultimately contributed to Taormina being a very gay-friendly destination with well-known celebrities such as Oscar Wilde visiting. This came to end with the rise of fascism in the thirties and into WW II when homophobia (a cornerstone of fascist policy) increased and travel to Sicily became difficult or undesirable.
November 4th
On our last day, we decide to burn off some calories and decided to climb up to a small village above Taormina following a path called the Sentiero Dei Saraceni.
An old mule path connecting Taormina and Castelmola is said to have been used by the Saracens who besieged Taormina a thousand years ago. The path could be lovely (if it were better maintained), heading upward through ancient agricultural terraces – mostly now overgrown with prickly pears and rampant wildflowers.
The path passes through a ruined stone gateway allegedly a surviving part of ancient town defenses, known as the Porta dei Saraceni …
..then reaching the tiny Chiesa di San Biagio, which – according to the sign outside – dates back to the first century. Inside is a damaged eighteenth-century fresco…humble but nevertheless an interesting find…
After about an hour of sweaty work, we reach Casteloma…a rather cute village:
On the way back we enjoyed some good views of the Teatro Greco far below us...
….and the Castel Tauro, a large complex founded by the Arabs in 902 and rebuilt between the 13th and 14th centuries, after the arrival of the Normans and the Swabians. For unknown reasons it has been closed to the public for some time….it seems like it could be a wonderful tourist attraction.
Back in Taormina, we treated ourselves to what has to be the best granita ever at the Bam Bar…the fragola pictured below:
A few more snaps of the town and it is time to bid adieu to what has been some time well spent here…
I was sure you guys would like Taormina, everyone who visits never forgets that wonderful place. I’m glad I have some of its DNA in me !
Yes it was fun…highly recommended!