Driving away from Taormina, I know I will someday return to Sicily, if only to see Mount Etna freed of its shroud of fog. As I left the hotel, I asked a man with an iPhone to e-mail me a picture if the mountain became visible. When I arrived at the Rome airport and turned on my BlackBerry, there it was! Against the bluest sky, Taormina in the foreground, was Mount Etna blanketed with the whitest snow, looking nothing like the volcano I’d imagined when I’d seen those flames in the darkness.
Honor Moore’s Sicily
Getting there I flew to Rome, and from Rome to Palermo on Air One, then returned via Catania. To get around Sicily, I rented a car (europcar.it) in Palermo, returning it at Catania.
Where to stay In Palermo, check out the Grand Hotel et des Palmes (despalmes.hotelsinsicily.it). Wagner completed Parsifal there. It has just been renovated, and it’s an easy walk to restaurants, shops and sights. If you go to Selinunte, consider Villa Sogno (sicilybedandbreakfast.villasogno.it). Rooms are small but amusingly decorated, and there is a pool in a lovely garden of olive and citrus. In Agrigento, we stayed at Fattoria Mosé (fattoriamose.com), an organic farm complete with a beautiful chapel. The farm harvests olives, citrus, pistachios, almonds, fruits and vegetables, and has been in the same family for 200 years. When in Taormina, book the San Domenico Palace Hotel (sandomenicopalace.hotelsinsicily .it). But note that food there is not as good as at the profusion of local restaurants.
Where to eat Even though my trip wasn’t about the food, eating in Sicily is an experience not to be missed—the fish and produce are spectacularly fresh. In Selinunte, reserve a table at Baffo’s Castle, Castelvetrano. I had delicious “pesto Siciliana”—basil, tomato, olive oil and a touch of tuna. If you visit the temples of Agrigento, check out Kókalos, a lovely restaurant that serves wonderful fish. In Taormina, try La Botte Trattoria, which is a short walk from the San Domenico Palace Hotel, and order the delectable pasta con aglio e olio, which is accented with very thin slices of red and green pepperoncini. —H.M.
