Tempting Tuesday: Sicilian Dreams

Last week for  Tempting Tuesday Cherrye took us down to the Sizzlin’ Soverato beach in Calabria. That post was perfectly timed with the arrival of the first sunny and hot weather of summer. I’ve been sizzlin’ this past week on the beaches of the Amalfi Coast, and taking some lovely photos to tempt you all with here. Until then, I have some great friends stopping by to tempt you with destinations throughout Italy. This week I am pleased to welcome Lisa Fantino from Wanderlust Women Travel, who is taking us down past Calabria and a hop over to the beautiful island of Sicily. One of the places in Italy that certainly tempts me!

Welcome Lisa!

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It’s funny how we make plans and then our life-path takes us in a totally different direction. As a child, I always dreamed of going to Sicily. That was where Nonna was from in Palermo. I would listen to her talk about Etna and the mountains and how as a child she would be in the hills and the clouds would be so close that she could walk right through them. It was mesmerizing! She was mesmerizing! She made even the daily routine of getting groceries from a basket lowered through a window to the street level sound exciting.

Taormina antique shop by Jeanne Boleyn

Can you believe that all these years later and I still have not been there. I am almost ashamed to say that I have traveled to Italy at least half a dozen times and I have still not been to Sicily or Calabria, the other birthplace of ¼ of my DNA.

However, I am still tempted to visit both of them. The beaches of Calabria and the history of Sicily each call out to me but the burning desire is no longer there, as if that yearning took its last breath when Nonna died. Yet, the amateur genealogist in me must venture there or my story will not feel complete.

Photo of Teatro Massimo by Bernhard J. Scheuvens

I must walk the path in front of the Opera House, Teatro Massimo, to see where she skipped rope. (This was also the scene of The Godfather III, where Michael Corleone’s daughter was killed on the steps of the theater…..just a bit of trivia for movie fans!) I must feel the sand through my toes where she went swimming at the beach of Mondello and then I must move on to Corleone and Messina, the birthplace of the rest of my family.

I have been told by locals that there is no beach more beautiful than Tropea in Calabria or Taormina in Sicily, so I will take a peek just to see if they are right………then I will swim home with my memories, but not before visiting the ancient ruins and antique stalls of Taormina.

Lisa Fantino is an award-winning journalist and attorney and the creative force behind Wanderlust Women Travel and Wanderlust Weddings. She also writes travel features for MNUI Travel Insurance and blogs as Lady Litigator.