Lazy Last Day in Taormina

It's hard to believe our Sicily adventure is ending soon.  Monday March 21 is our last full day in Taormina and the nicest weather of our trip.  Sunny and a high of 18C.  After our Mount Etna adventure yesterday, we wanted to take it easy and spend most of the day outside in the sun.

We first dropped into the Ortigia store, where we had purchased beautiful scarves with images of the mosaic leopards from the Palatine Chapel in Palermo.  Mine is silk and Alonso's is a cashmere blend.

In Ortigia store with our new scarves

As we stopped at Piazza IX Aprile, we had a wonderful view of Mount Etna.  We sat in the sun for a while people watching.

View of Mount Etna

I never get tired of the calm sea

We always pass a shop where a woman embroiders names on aprons, bibs, etc. at the open front of the store.  A dog was keeping her company today.

Dog helping out

There are a number of antique stores on the Corso.  We saw an old map of Sicily when it used to be divided into three kingdoms.  The symbol of Sicily has three legs which our guide yesterday said represented the three kingdoms which merged to form present day Sicily.

Three kingdoms of Sicily before it united

Alonso at Piazzo IX Aprile

View of the sea

We stopped for a late lunch at Licchio's Bar.  This time we sat outside.

An alley off the Corso had some lovely ceramic heads and a cute dog.

Alley off the Corso

Marika, our guide from our trip to Mount Etna, told us that Daiquiri Bar was one of the best places in town to have an aperitivo.  Unfortunately, it has not opened yet.  Today, the staff were putting out ceramic heads on the steps near the bar.  Close, but it won't be open before we leave tomorrow.

Getting ready to open Daiquiri Bar

We walked up to Porta Catania and stopped for another coffee and some treats at Cioccolato e Gelato.

Gorgeous cakes

Pistachio granita and cannolo with ricotta cheese

Enjoying the sun

We went back to the apartment to do some packing and then headed out at around 6:00 p.m.
Villa Taormina, the luxury hotel about a minute from our apartment is still closed.  It has lovely flowers on the outside- should be open soon.

Outside of Villa Taormina

One of our favourite bell towers near our apartment

One more sighting of Mount Etna at dusk

The sea at dusk

Alonso at dusk with full moon

We wanted one last glass of the Etna wine we had the other day at our favourite wine bar.   However, the bar was closed!  We stopped instead at Arco Rosso, a Wine Bar which had just opened for the season.  It is located in an alley just off the Corso.  We had a very nice glass of Etna wine- not as distinctive as our earlier glasses, but still very good.  We also shared a plate of anchovy bruschetta.

Alonso with our glass of Etna wine

Anchovy bruschetta

Outside of Arco Rosso

Our last picture of the day is the full moon over Piazza IX Aprile.  Venus was also visible in the sky.  A lovely last evening in Taormina.

Moon over Taormina

We headed back to the apartment where we continued our pack.  Alonso made pasta with pistachio sauce and a salad.   We leave early Tuesday morning to catch the bus to the Catania airport where we will fly to London.   We may not blog every day, but we will keep you informed of our four day "London Blitz".  We fly back to Toronto on March 26.

Sicily has exceeded our expectations in many ways.  The landscape, food, culture and people have been wonderful.  The place has an incredible history capturing many civilizations.  A fascinating place to visit with a lot of diversity across the island.  Make sure you give yourself enough time to explore and enjoy.