Mount Etna from Taormina
We went to Taormina, farther up the East coast of Sicily. Taormina reminds me
of Monaco. Steep cliffs with villas that hang off the side, an unobstructed view of Mount Etna, long sandy beaches on the clear blue Ionian Sea and a little town perched on top of the hills with shops and restaurants lining the narrow streets…a European village more than a Sicilian village.
Taormina has been a destination for the rich and famous for more than a century. Oscar Wilde sought a haven here. Liz and Dick vacationed here with Tennessee Williams. Truman Capote and Sarah and Winston Churchill visited. Audrey Hepburn had a home here. The town still has a feeling of the old glamour left by their passage.
Why would they all choose this town in Sicily? It is quietly beautiful, affordable and offers the rich and famous some privacy. Even now, with many more tourists, Taormina feels more like the south of France without the crowd.
Taormina pastry shop
At the end of Corsa Umberto I is the Roman Colliseum with views of Mt. Etna.
Roman Amphitheater, Taormina
For the first time since we have been here we heard American English spoken by the majority of people surrounding us and by the shop keepers. Many signs are in English. It seemed strange after expecting to hear Italian, German and French. In Siricusa, we seldom hear English let alone American English. In Taormina it felt like we left Sicily for the day.
MedFlies 