Syracuse
Syracuse has forever depended upon the sea, railying herself around the island of Ortygia, overlooking a wonderful bay on the east coast; its name is synonymous with an ancient Greek past, a series of valiant tyrants, the rivalry between Athens and Carthage; a past which has left a number of vestiges for the modern day visitor to see and enjoy. Alongside this dramatic historical background, there exists another less obvious past that can be explored among the streets of the island, where time seems to stand still somewhere between the medieval and Baroque eras. Just behind Ortygia stretches a flat area called Akradina - yet another name inherited from Antiquity ... (continue)

Noto
In a region populated by olive and almond trees, Noto sits on a plateau dominating the valley of the Asinaro and its citrus plantations. This tiny Baroque jewel endowed with an opulent beauty is the result of a single tragic event: the earthquake of 1693, that, despite bringing death and destruction to this part of Sicily, also sparked a huge effort to rebuild ... (continue)

Agrigento and the Valley of Temples
As the road picks its way to Agrigento, the almond trees gradually become more numerous. When in flower (January and February), their blossom appear like little clouds of white against the green fields and the bare earth of the hillsides; it is precisely at this time of year that the town comes to life and puts on its Sunday best for the Sagra del Mandorlo in Fiore (Almond Blossom Festival) Visitors approaching Agrigento from the coast will be treated to a glorious sight, particularly if arriving at sunset when the houses along the crest of the hill are coloured with paste hues and the Temple of Heracles dominates the foreground from on high, illuminated by the last rays of sunlight (enter the town from the Valley of the Temples) ... (continue)

Etna
Mount Etna is Sicily's tallest peak. Although capped with snow for much of the winter, it is one of Europe's most famous active volcanoes. Its actual height has been repeatedly modified by eruptions throughout time; it currently (1998) stands at 3350 m above sea level ... (continue)

Taormina
Perched on a rocky spur at about 200m height, Taormina occupies a fabulous position, overlooking the sea and right opposite Etna volcano. It has been a popular destination for travellers since the 18th century, although only in the last decades it has developed into a well-known tourist resort. Many foreigners, notably British and German, have decided to build villas in the town and many illustrious figures fave sojourned there, including Emperor William II and King Edward VII, and such famous families as the Rothschilds and the Krupps ... (continue)

Kamarina Archeologica
Camarina was founded as a Greek town at the behest of Syracuse; it suffered assaults from both the Carthaginians and the Romans who finally destroyed it in 598 BC. Excavations have revealed the remains of a temple dedicated to Athena (incorporated in the masonry of the 19C building which now houses the museum), sections of plateia B, the market-place and stoà - the portico over the covered market, and a residential quarter dating from Hellenistic times (marked by the fence on the other side of the road) ... (continue)

The Castle of Donnafugata
The name. which is Arabic in origin, is misleading. It does not, in fact, refer, as first appearances might suggest, to a woman fleeing some tyrannical husband or father, nor to one of the legends lingering in some popular memory, but is a free interpretation and transcription of Ayn as Jafat (meaning Fountain of Health) which in Sicilian dalect became Ronnafuata and so was corrupted to its modem form ... (continue)

Marina di Ragusa
Administratively belonging to Ragusa, Marina di Ragusa is the most renowned and the best equipped of the province's summer resorts. Endowed with services and plenty of accomodation and entertainment facilities, it is crowded in the summer months and densely populated all the year round, hence regarded as a town in its own right. Marina di Ragusa grew on the former Mazzarelli ... (continue)

Ragusa
(258km from Palermo; 68000 inhabitants; 502m a. s. l.; zip code 97100; area code 0932) is the province's capital city, interesting for both its artistical and historical heritage. Set on a wide limestone hill between two deep valleys (the Cava San Leonardo and the Cava Santa Domenica), it is divided into two distinct areas: Ragusa Ibla (the lower side) and Ragusa (the upper side), separated by the so-called valle dei ponti (valley of the bridges), a deep valley that is crossed by four successive bridges, among which that known as dei cappuccini (of the Capuchins), dating from the 18th century, is especially renowned ... (continue)

Pozzallo
Pozzallo (33km from Ragusa; 18,000 inhabitants; 20m a.s.l.; zip code 97016, area code 0932) is the only coastal city of the province. It nestles in a beautiful and much frequented bay. The importance of Pozzallo goes back to the 14th century, when it was a strategic military and commercial outpost for the County of Modica. The Count had a harbor built there, the so-called caricatore, around which the Scaro, the earliest quarter, soon grew up. This is one the most picturesque sides in town, thanks to its narrow, cosy streets. The modern city has grown on a modern orthogonal urban grid ... (continue)

Ispica
(33km from Ragusa; 15000 inhabitants; 170m a.s.l.; zip code 97014; area code 0932) is a lovely town located on the eastern end of the province of Ragusa, bounding Siracusa's district. The town planning, resulting from the reconstruction following the 1693's earthquake, is among the most modern in Sicily; nonetheless it is adorned with some splendid palazzi and churches ... (continue)

Modica
(15km from Ragusa; 50000 inhabitants; zip code 97015; area code 0932)
"Modica. Noble, opulent and populated city, seat of the ancient and vast County". This 18th century description by historian and clergyman Vito Amore elegantly summarizes the political, economical and cultural importance of this city whose history is rooted in remote ages and events. Historical sources maintain that a town called Motyca, hereabouts, was inhabited by prehistoric peoples, called Sikels, around the 7th century BC., at the time of the Greek Colonization of Sicily; the historian Mario Carrafa, in the 18th century, told of Greek coins discovered the area, bearing the inscription Motayon. Traces of a Roman settlement are clearer, it being perhaps a Roman Città Decumana (that is, liable for tax). Clearer signs were left by the Arabs who conquered a Castle in Mudiqah in 845. The city yet changed its name to Motica, Motuca and Mohac. The Normans, led by Roger of Hauteville, who had driven Arabians from Sicily, took it in the 11th century. He, lately known as The Norman and devoted to St. George, established the cult of this Saint who is now Modica's patron saint ... (continue)

Scicli
Scicli is a most lovely city in the province of Ragusa, lying on a vast valley amidst rocky mountains, where the San Bartolomeo, the Santa Maria La Nuova and the Fiumara di Modica rivers join. Its 18th century look most resulted from the reconstruction that followed the terrible earthquake of 1693. Thanks to its elegant palazzi and churches, and its picturesque shape, it is famously known as the "Baroque Jewel" ... (continue)