Sicilian Diary

  The government has released another decree in light of the increase in Covid cases, and tomorrow we are set to head back into lockdown mode, just like Ireland did last week. There's a crucial difference, in that schools in Ireland will stay open, whereas here, upper secondary schools (scuole superiori) will operate distance learning. For me that means my children will still have to go to school every day, but my teaching work will now take place online. Fun fun fun... Bars and restaurants must close at 6pm and gyms and public amenities are also on the list. But there are worse places to be under lockdown. I just hope they don't make the beach out of bounds as happened in April...

Only in Sicily an you find the such a compelling mix of folklore, religion and Greek myth. One of Sicily's best hidden gems, the Greek amphiteatre at Tindari, has just concluded its festival of Teatro dei Due Mari, and I was lucky enough to catch Il Ciclope, Euripides satirical nod to the Polyphemus episode in Ulysses... at sundown. And just in case that wasn't enough, the lore of the Black Madonna opened and closed the evening - the sandbank in the shape of the madonna's head on our way to the theatre, and the sanctuary of the Black Madonna in all its kitch shining glory as we left.  

Scenes from the Carnevale at Cataffi February is Carnival Season in Sicily – something not to be missed. Streets of most Sicilian towns and cities are strewn with confetti and streamers sprayed by children dressed up as nobility or peasants – or even as mafiosi – like some of the boys in my English class (“How do you say “mafiosi” in English, prof ?”). Carnevale , born in the sixteenth century to celebrate the end of the old year and party like mad before the asceticism of Lent,  evolved through the centuries. In the 1700s “ Abbatazzi ”, or folk poets, similar to the Irish Bard, improvised rhymes along the streets of Acireale, one of Sicily’s most famous carnivals. The 1800s brought the parade of decorated horse-drawn carriages, while the twentieth century introduced floats led by speers, accompanied by characters in papier-maché masks and fancy dress. Le Maschere Tradizionali originate in the sixteenth century Italian Commedia dell’Arte , c...

Two boats, two seagulls, and hundreds of cactus fruits facing the sun. This is why it is good to be in Sicily in February...

This is how the birthday of 93 year old nonna Aurora begins… This sweet, wise matriarch is already receiving visitors at 9am when I return from dropping the bambini off at school. She’s all style in a smart long cardigan, graciously offering coffee to guests. Among the first to arrive is our former and most beloved postman, Enzo, also a poet, with his daughter. He has brought nonna his latest book of poems and flowers for the occasion of course. Nonna’s sister-in-law from Turin paints her nails for her, a friend brings homemade cakes – torta di mele and a chocolate one… Ninety-three roses from Holland adorn the living room table – brought on the airplane from her son in Amsterdam… At lunch, the extended family occupies an entire restaurant, where poems and songs from nonna’s talented children and grandchildren are performed between courses of delicious Sicilian food. “The craic is mighty” – comes to mind; as always at these family gatherings, I’m reminded of similarities betwee...

Every good cook book has a story behind it, and this one is no exception ... Sicilia in Bocca by Antonio Cardella , received as a wedding gift from savvy Tuscan friends years back. It’s printed on yellow-tinged paper with a rustic feel to it, like the placemats you get in trattorias. The illustrations are witty, the prose has socio-political undercurrents (the author prefaces the Starters section with a caveat: Don’t get the idea that Sicilians are used to anti-pasti; not so long ago hunger was the norm. “It is not easy to change a state of forced abstinence into one of cheerful guzzling.”) And the recipes are in dialect, Italian and English – with creative translating from the original and a good dose of Sicilian wisdom and proverbs. I need to consult all three version to make sure I’m following the recipe correctly J Yesterday I went to my libraio di fiducia , my favourite bookseller, Filoramo, and asked him if he had a copy. I wanted to give it to an American friend who is get...

My favourite Madonna of all the multitude of Virgin Marys venerated by the Sicilians, is the Black Madonna of Tindari.  Her feast day takes place on 8 September, but the festivities go on all weekend: these include the annual pilgrimage to her Basilica at the top of Mount Tindari, fireworks and local processions. Part of the draw is the place of her shrine: Tindari, off the beaten tourist track, sits high on a rocky promontory with spectacular views. Founded by the Greeks in 396BC (by Dionysius the Elder, a nasty despot from Syracuse), the ruins of the city include an amphitheatre, the gates to the city, stone arches and tombs.  You can enjoy a picnic there without a Japanese tourist snapping a photo of you while you munch your sandwich (likely to happen in nearby Taormina). But the interesting thing about the Madonna of Tindari are the stories surrounding her origins. Legend has it that the cedarwood statue was hidden on a cargo ship returning from the ...