Life in Tirana: October 2015

The first week of October to tour Sicily turned out to be perfect with sunny weather in the low 80s, fewer tourists and relaxed waiters and innkeepers.
Peter and I, our son Luke and his buddy, Lincoln, spent a week mostly on the eastern side of Sicily.
Impressions were, in part, drawing contrasts to Albania and other parts of Italy that we have seen.

The coast line was a mix of Maine like seacoasts with rocks and crashing waves or serene aqua blue waters. People were friendly. We were surprised that many young and old folks really only spoke Italian. Many more Albanians speak English. Another surprise for us was driving through small cities with less dramatic attractions. There seemed to be almost no one on the streets, no visible cafes or small markets and old buildings needing a face lift. Finally it was gratifying to see many small dirty compact cars on the roads. I never saw a car wash! You may think that is strange but any of our guests who have come to Albania will laugh as every third car is a top of the line BMW or Mercedes and a car wash on every third block or dinky town. Go figure when Albania is the poorest of the Balkan countries!

Most towns have a "Dhomo" or the big church in the center of the city with surrounding imposing buildings. I will just put up a few....


In Celafu, a city on the northern coast


Cantania, a city on the east coast


The historic city of Siricusa, on the southeastern coast

Fountain of Arethusa, at the moment she is transformed into a spring!

On the center plaza, a very interested dog listens to this young accordion player.


Between towns, we sometimes had to slow down for heavy traffic!

In the large church in Celafu, there were 8 unusual stain glass windows. In the late 80s and early 90s an artist created windows that took one from darkness to the first days of creation. This was the day people arrived.

Above is the Black Madonna in Tindari. A thousand years ago this icon came from the East to perform many miracles.

Greek and Roman theaters -

Carvings in the upper seats from 3rd century BC

Check this out. The tank in the center was likely to have been for draining the blood and gore spilled in the course of the combats. But not before the spectators had had their fill: at the end of the contests the infirm, ill and disabled would attempt to suck the warm blood from the bodies and take the livers from the animals, in the belief that this would speed their recovery!

Huge cave used as a prison. Amazing echoes inside.

Wine and Beer and nice labels...

Wine tasting at Gambino Winery. Very classy food paired with 4 wines!


So this winery had a problem with insects destroying the grapes. Not wanting to use insecticides and recognizing that after 5 years, the insects become resistant to the poison, they found the female hormone that is how the males find the females to mate. Don't ask me how but they string wires just above the grape vines and smear it with this smell. The males come in droves and are driven crazy by the smell but no females. Finally they leave and the grapes grow in peace.

It is the scale of the buildings (4-5 stories), similar architecture and narrow intimate foot and car traffic patterns that make these cities so cozy.

From our B&B balcony in Taormina

From the land, a lot of volcanic rock and beautiful coastal vistas....

The two photos above were looking down from our balcony in Celafu on the northern coast.

Gorge you can hike down to and swim in the blue green waters.

Mt Etna, on the main island of Sicily, has decimated many towns and cities over the last 500 years. As recently as May 2015 there was an eruption. It made for a cool hike on the rough lava rock.

We took an excursion out to the Aeolian Islands just off the NE coast of Sicily. These lava rocks scattered in the waters are made for photographers. On the island of Stromboli sits the volcano with some activity.

We were sitting in the excursion boat hoping to see this sight or if it had been winter, the sight below but mother nature didn't cooperate that nigh.

I am enamored by the almost Greek architecture of houses, restaurants and alley ways on the islands.

We were ready for lunch and these porcelain signs set in stucco were everywhere.

There were many weddings on Saturday of our trip. I couldn't resist...

And finally, the reputation of good eats on the island of Sicily is very true! 85% of the pistachios grown in Italy come from Sicily. You have pistachios in cheese, gelato, gravy etc. Yummy!

Above and below is the vegetable truck that roams around the tourist centers in towns offering up the freshest of fruits and vegetables.

This was a delicious lunch of Parma ham, arugula, soft cheese and homemade mayo in a warm tortilla!


I thought this was a cute banner for a pastry shop in Randazzo.

This must be the harvest time for cactus fruit as it was in every market. Peter tried one, of course. It was ruby red and tasted like melon but....his mouth touched the outer skin and burned for awhile!