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Itinerary |
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Sicily 2008 Daily Itinerary
This is our travel plan to date. Weather, incredible views, and interesting things may alter our route. This is our travel plan to date. Weather, incredible views, and interesting things may alter our route. Friday – The tour begins at Haigis Mall, UMass, where we’ll board the bus to JFK Airport. Our overnight flight is on Alitalia to Palermo via Milan. Saturday – Today we arrive in San Vito lo Capo, an small community on the northwestern coast of Sicily. After lunch and check-in at our hotel, we’ll take an orientation walk, shake off the jet lag and freshen up for dinner in the hotel. Sunday – For our first full day in Sicily, we will start out early to explore the western coast of Sicily, heading toward the ancient Greek city of Selenunte. This beautifully situated ruin is on the southern coast of the island, near Marsala, and has very well preserved temples and beautiful views of the sea. Our day ends with a Mediterranean seafood extravaganza in Sferracavallo, a coastal town near Palermo. Monday – In the morning we’ll visit the fishing village of Castelemare del Golfo to check out the days catch. For lunch, a visit to a regional vineyard to taste a variety of Sicily’s finest cuisine. In the afternoon, we’ll drive to the Byzantine Cathedral of Monreale with its stunning mosaics and peaceful cloisters before heading for our next hotel in the town of Cefalu on the north coast of the island. Dinner at the hotel. Tuesday – “A Day in the Life of Cefalu”. For the entire day today, we’ll explore Cefalu and document the town in photographs and words. We’ll do our best to meet the people, see how they live, and try to be keen observers instead of just tourists. Dinner at the Hotel. Wednesday – We’ll head out this morning to the interior of Sicily, with a stop in one of the many picturesque hill towns in the Madonie Mountains. At midday we’ll find our way to a former Benedictine Abbey called Gangivecchio. The Abbey now houses a restaurant run by Wanda and Giovanna Tornabene, a mother and daughter who won two James Beard Awards for their 1998 and 2002 cookbooks on Sicilian country cuisine. A gourmet meal is included with our visit to this private estate in the Madonie Mountains. We’ll continue our explorations in the mountains as we head for Taormina, “the Jewel of Sicily” in its spectacular location at the base of Mt. Etna and overlooking the Straits of Messina to Calabria. Dinner at the hotel. Thursday – Today starts with a walking tour of Taormina , its beautiful Greek theatre, and its stunning views of the volcano and the Ionian Sea. Lunch is on your own before we head out to explore Mt. Etna, the most active volcano in Europe. We’ll see how the Sicilian people have, for centuries, adapted to the ever-present threat of lava flows, earthquakes, and ash from this “lady” with whom they share their lives. Dinner at the hotel. Friday – First a visit to the outdoor fish, meat, and produce market
in Catania – a truly amazing experience for all the senses. After
a gourmet lunch at Agritourismo Casa Dama, we head south to Siracusa to
visit both the historic city center and, time permitting, one of the best
preserved Greco/Roman amphitheaters in the world. Dinner at the hotel. Saturday - An open day to explore Taormina and, if you have any money left, to shop. We have a wonderful fair-well lunch on the schedule at one of Taormina’s best restaurants, Zamara, featuring their famous Lemon Risotto and other Sicilian treats. Sunday - Reality check — fly home to Amherst from Catania. All Travel Arrangements by: |
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