Heart

Not a clue what the heart is for ...
it's on a sign near the center of town

Through the Keyhole

Does anyone remember the TV show "Through the Keyhole" where the host took you

into celebrity  homes to see their personal style and décor?

 He didn't show the "plastic-y" "I'm so great and important" side ...

he showed more personal sides ... the car or plane models, well-loved books, seashells scattered on a table ... whatever showed the human side. 

 

Cool door

This is near the end of the Way of Two Arches near the center of Randazzo.

Etna Train Station (Catania) Graffiti

Saw this on the side of the station for the narrow gauge train which goes around Mt. Etna ... (I wasn't planning on being absent as long as I have been ... I hate moving!!)

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Max

this is Max ....he's just a big puppy ....

would you believe

that this is a public, two-way road?

It's the road going to a friend's home.

Fortunately,  DH and I rarely meet someone going the other way.

 

keys ... keys .... and more keys

These are my keys to get into the apartment ...

one for the front gate and three for the front door.

Such a lot of keys...

 

time to hit the beach!

Lots of "fun in the sun" possibilities here!

What's your pleasure?

 

Musical relief

 
 


Detail of a column on what used to be the Guild building in Noto ....

I like the variety of instruments included ... violin, cymbals ... even Pan pipes...

though I do wonder what prompted the addition of the mask.

 

grocer's sign

 

This sign is probably 24-inches across and about 18-inches tall ...

created out of terra cotta ("baked earth" in Italian) and

is proudly mounted by the entrance to

"Deborah's Grocery" !

Love it!

 

sunny days ....

Love this café chair .... seems a shame that the sun is covered over while sitting...

watching the passers-by .... and enjoying an espresso .....

 

sumo wrestler ...

a sumo wrestler ...

 



Kabuki dancer

the Kabuki dancer design ...

 

Noto's flower festival

Noto, a city in Ragusa province, hosts a flower show every year in May.

This year's theme was "Japan".

One street in the historical section will have designs created using organic products...

these are a couple of this year's designs.

 

sure looks different ...

Found this staircase down in Ragusa province ~

the main stone found in southern Sicily is limestone ...

not the lava commonly found in Catania and Messina provinces where Mt Etna is located.

Many of the fields in Ragusa have limestone walls dividing them one from another

and the walls are made without any mortar ~ just stacked and held together by the stones shapes.

This method is called "secco" or "dry".

 

As far as the eye can see ...

lots of round hay bales, covering the hillsides of Ragusa province ....

yup... it's nearly summer time here in Sunny Sicilia.

 

Check out the SMART car!

Haven't seen this style before ... I think it's cool looking!

Wonder if DH would consider this for the two of us...

fantastic gates

Love the ironwork on these ...

 a secondary entrance to the Ceramic Institute in Caltigirone, 

famous for terracotta and ceramic products. 

It is located in the upper section of Caltigirone, near the Stairs of Saint Mary.

more Savoca

The patron saint for Savoca is Santa Lucia and the church where Apollonia and Micheal marry (in "The Godfather") is in honor of her.
This is the figurehead over the main entrance to the church ... one of areas that Santa Lucia offers protection is vision or blindness or dealings with eyes.  As you can see, she holds a pair of eyes in her hand.

Savoca and the Godfather

DH and I visited the village of Savoca a few days ago.  It really is a charming little village. 
"The Godfather" is DH's favorite movie.

Looking through the ancient city gate up to the cathedral where Appolonia and Michael marry.

huzzah

Dance troupe at local festival ... this was at Ramacca's Artichoke festival.

 

.... what's that again ?

A sandwich truck we saw at a recent festival ....

yup, it really does say "El Perro Caliente"  (Spanish for "The Hot Dog") .

Mostly it offers sausage sandwiches.

Restaurant sign

 

DH and I saw this sign outside a restaurant in the town of Enna.

Nicely laid out using silverware as the "I"s.

It says "Divine Flavours"

Lady Etna is at it again

For the 13th time this year (according to the web,  I just know it has happened a lot), Mt Etna is puffing and erupting.  The top one is from early this morning while we were out on errands.

The bottom one happened this evening while we were at a friend's house ... so couldn't see it very well ... but another friend got a really good picture.

more risers

 

another riser example ...

Caltigirone stair risers

 

Caltigirone is famous for its ceramics

and the steps in the central historical center have tiles set in the risers.

 

This is one set of risers.

Abandoned home

 

DH, a friend and I found this home while geocaching...

it's in a charming location overlooking the sea and the volcano ...

wonder why it has been left.

Ragusa Ibla steps

Steps from the bottom of the village of Ragusa Ibla to the center of town.

Made of the local limestone .. these are dry set without any mortar.

 

The stone is also is used to make dry-set walls in the surrounding country-side

to divide the fields one from another.

Welcome

Typical home entry ... this one happens to be in the village of Ragusa Ibla.

Funky door pull

DH and I saw this on a shop entrance on the tiled stairs in Caltigirone the other day ...

dual purpose ... the store is at #13 and the shop name starts with a "B".

Emergency services

Watching a procession, emergency services are easy to find on their bright orange.

Laundry day

Lines every where with laundry of all sorts hung to dry.... this is a common sight here.
Most every home has lines or racks set up in any available patch of sunshine on laundry day.

Honey ... honey and more honey

Locally produced and flavoured honey sold in the stores ....

 the farmer's markets ... street side  ... just about everywhere. 

These are orange, mulberry, lemon, eucalptus and chocolate flavours.

The town of Zafferana Etnea on the eastern side of Etna is famous for the honey it produces.

Quick and easy snack

AmoreMio sells Sicilian fast food ... things like small pizza, sandwiches, salads ... and my personal favorite, Arancino... which are lightly fried balls of rice with fillings of meat, cheese and other delights.

The three characters below are Arancino .

Most Arancino are about the size of your fist or a bit larger and the shape indicates the filling.

Ketchup Crisps?

Crik Crok is a popular brand of potato crisps sold here in Sicily ... but ketchup flavor???

Smiley face

Went out for Chinese at lunch ... cute potato smiley face

Cool spike

Spike in rail tie on our geocaching hike by Aci Reale ~ the head of the nail is probably an 1.5-inches across.

Resting in the sun

A lizard just hanging out in the sun soaking up the heat on the top of a wall built of lava blocks.

Piazza sign

No boring signs to mark street names or the name of the piazza (square) here ...

This one has a base of lava and is painted with the town insignia.

Rail ties

Such character in the rail ties on this section of the tracks .... I love the cracks and swirls in this rail tie.
The metal rails have long since disappeared.

Hiking on the train tracks

DH and I have gotten back into geocaching lately ... gets us out of the apartment and takes us into areas we would never see otherwise. 
This cache was hidden along an abandoned railway track.

Funny sign

I pass this sign most every day on my way home from work .... tickles my funny bone each time!
It's for a professional car wash ....which can be found in a small one-lift repair garage on the main road.

Snowy sign

Duck!

Ready ... aim .... throw!!

Playing in the snow

Climbing the slopes with a sled

Abandoned api

An "api" is a commonly found mode of transportation here in Sicily.  Think of a small (very small) one or two person truck with  an engine about the size of one on a motorcycle (not one of the big motorcycles .... just an everyday, run-about motorcycle).  The word "api" in Italian means "bees" .... quite apt since it's engine hums as it goes along its way.

These are found everywhere ... produce sellers fill the back and travel the streets of the towns advertising their wares, repairmen visit their clients ... apis crowd the streets of many Sicilian towns.

Snowy day on Etna

Snow dusting a secondary peak on Mt. Etna  ~ nice day to be out and about

Overlooking Aci Reale

DH and I have gotten back into geocaching lately ... gets us out of the apartment and encourages us to explore areas we would otherwise miss.
This is looking down on the northern outskirts of the town of Aci Reale, on the eastern coast of Sicily.