Being in a new country - even for a few days - means learning new things about that culture - and the country itself of course! Sicily has a few cultural & archaeological things I noticed and I think these were worth writing here at least in one post!
These important points are going to be the points that should be kept in mind when you are in Sicily.
Because people will talk about them anyway...


One of the Largest Theatres in Europe: Teatro Massimo  

Teatro Massimo di Palermo

Designed by Giovan Battista Basile, Teatro Massimo di Palermo is known as one of the largest and most prestigious theatres in Europe. The theatre has a surface area of almost 8.000 square metres, and its magnificent Neoclassical facade is definitely worth seeing! In the picture on the left, you can see me standing right in front of the theatre. I wish I could have entered the theatre to see its inside, because most of the sources I read later on mention how beautifully it is decorated inside the building.



Europe's Largest Volcano is in Sicily: Mount Etna

Mount Etna in Sicily

Etna is known as the largest volcano  in Europe (3350 m high). The volcano is still active (I don't know how people can go and see it then considering it is active and can blow out any time; but there surely are people who visit the mountain as some of my tour members went there to see it!) and Etna's height is also -like most of others- subject to variation. The mountain has a surface area of 1570 km2 and its perimeter is almost 200 km long. The area has been designated a National Park. It is strange to say that but the highest part of the volcano has been used for snow sports. In total, there have been 135 violent eruptions recorded in the history, and in the last three, the magma even flowed as far as the sea. Etna is subject to some mythological stories at the same time: According to the legend, the Greek god of fire (Hephaestus) lived in the winding ravines of Mount Etna, and long stories are told about other mythological gods as well.

Hot Climate Most of the Time: Get a Hand Fan

A traditional-look hand fan

Even when I was back home after my journey to Sicily, I kept checking its weather condition - The country was hotter than my home country (which is too hot in summers, especially in August, which we call Hot like Hell!) and even I hated that hot weather! Walking under the sun during the day, not knowing where to sit, when to have a break, being unable to find a way to avoid the hot weather made us all exhausted indeed. Considering the country stays warm even in autumn, the best way to avoid sweating like hell would use a fan while walking around! Probably this is one of the reasons why they sell traditional hand fans in the centre - in the picture you can see the one I bought (Mostly because it looks vintage but also it helped a lot during my journey!) And then I realised suddenly - It's a fact, in Sicily, people use hand fans. Everywhere!





Food: They say PIZZA is good. I reckon not.

Italian pizza

People might be saying the best pizza can be found in Italy - I don't know anything about pizzas in Northern Italy, but there is one thing I'm sure of: Sicilian pizza is not even close to "good". It is OK, to be honest; especially when you're too hungry, a pizza would help you a lot! But they use too much dough and the quality of the materials on the pizza are not well enough. I felt like I'd been eating a bread with some tomato sauce on it.  I'm not an expert of food anyway, but I've eaten loads of good-quality pizzas in several countries - and to be honest, I was expecting very tasty pizzas from Sicilian cooks.

You can see a picture from Fratelli la Bufala, which is the best-located and best-known restaurant in Palermo. Drinks, spaghettis, and other stuff were real good -but again, not the pizza!

So try Carbonara...

Carriages Still a Good Means of Transport!
Yes! You can travel with a carriage - either you want to get to somewhere or just want to have a city sight-seeing... They are great! Not many people use them as taxis play a good role on transportation in Sicily, but if you want to hire a carriage, you could easily find one on the streets. Every corner had one or two carriages waiting for us - very silly that I never thought of trying one of them!

In the picture, you can see the lovely girls I captured - I was just walking among the tiny streets, watching all the beautiful buildings and taking pictures of them - then I came across with these two lovely girls - suddenly they smiled and waved their hands, and here it is! We have a real nature photo of real life in Palermo!

Espresso 3 times in a day!

A full cup of Espresso

Growing up in a culture where coffee plays a big role, I am accustomed to the hard taste of Turkish coffee (still prefer it with sugar anyway!). And Espresso has never been something I preferred in my life... Neither the usual Nescafe we all know. But in Sicily, they have Espresso and Espresso-kind-of-coffees everywhere! Every menu had them!

So after breakfast, lunch and dinner; basically after all meals, we had to have a very very little cup of Espresso. As a big fan of black tea, for a change, I enjoyed drinking the hard Espresso after every meal, too. And I can say that, the Espresso you will drink in Sicily is real Espresso. It's too hard-like double Turkish-Greek-Arabic coffee or something.

The funny thing is, when I was back home, all my veins were begging me for more of it!



Sicilian Ice-Cream with Bread!

Ice-cream with Bread

It's everywhere! Literally everywhere! I had never seen it before, but in Sicily, they put the whole ice-cream into a special bread, and sell it that way. I have found it quite creative and loved the idea! Having more than 3 ice-creams in a day prevented me to have more of this ice-cream-with-bread thing (Sorry for not knowing its actual name!), but it is definitely worth trying! You can see the picture above, where my sister eats one of them - seems happy enough!

It's all in the food stores, cafes, little restaurants on the streets; even if you are not looking for it, you will surely come across with it! Another Sicilian thing it is!

Besides, there were a few more different types of desserts that are special to Sicily, but as I'm not a dessert type of person, I haven't noticed any of them at all.