Last bus home - Taormina style!
Taormina, Sicily, Italy - May, 2005
Thanks to a 4 minute cable car journey you can have a two centre holiday without changing hotels. By day you can soak up the sun on tranquil pebble beaches and in the evenings enjoy the numerous shops and restaurants or go to the Opera before getting the last bus home - Taormina style!
Despite being a popular tourist destination the most striking thing about Taormina is that it is a real town
Taormina is a medieval town perched half way up Mount Tauro overlooking four bays and is a scenic 45 minute drive from Sicily’s Catania airport. The smallest bay, Mazzarò, was once a small fishing village but is now home to several hotels and a cable car station that will transport you from the sea into the mountains in a matter of minutes. A return trip costs €3 and deposits you a short stroll from Porta Messina, the arched gateway leading to Taormina’s main street, Corso Umberto.
Corso Umberto is pedestrianised and surprisingly flat. It would take approximately 20 minutes to walk from one side of town to the other if it wasn’t for the distraction of the numerous designer shops that conveniently stay open until 9.00 pm. A slow walk through town, stopping to browse in the shop windows, is the perfect start or end to an evening especially when combined with an aperitif or a night cap in one of the town’s two Piazzas.
Piazza IX Aprile has an uncanny resemblance to Monaco and a drink at the Caffe Wunderbar is a must, although it’s difficult to decide which way to face as both the views out to sea and across the Piazza - filled with artists, balloon sellers and children playing their evening game of football – are equally mesmerising.
The main street continues through an archway under a clock tower passing more shops before reaching Piazza Duomo. Here life revolves round the fountain and its popular drinking well. The drinking well is one of four identical statues depicting a mythical half horse/half fish that sit at each corner of the main fountain. Locals stop to take a drink from the horse’s mouth and families take turns to wash away traces of ice-cream they’ve enjoyed on the fountain’s stone steps. A refreshing local alternative to ice-cream or sorbet is granite – pronounced granita - a cup of blended ice and fruit like an upmarket Slush Puppy and is well worth trying.
Opposite the fountain, the steps up a side street have been transformed into a Moroccan style bar. Leather and silk cushions create opulent seating underneath a white canopy that runs down the side of the building. It is the perfect place to lounge amongst pots of pink Azaleas and flickering candles sharing a bottle of Nero d’Avalo as the day turns to night.
The last section of the main street takes you to Taormina’s other gateway – Porto Catania – where you come face to face with the town’s traffic trying to squeeze its way up and down the narrow streets. It is a sight to make most pedestrians turn round and walk back the way they came.
All of Taormina’s main attractions are located off Corso Umberto including its famous amphitheatre – Teatro Greco. In the summer evenings Opera, Music and Film Festivals are held here but it is the well preserved ruins and the view from the last row of the theatre that most people come to see. A gap in the wall behind the stage has allowed nature to provide the most stunning of backdrops to rival any production. Looking down between ancient columns, over the bay of Naxos and beyond to Mount Etna it is not surprisingly the most painted and photographed image of Taormina.
The same breathtaking view can also be enjoyed from the 5-star Timeo hotel that sits directly beneath the amphitheatre. The hotel’s terrace is an incredibly romantic place to have a pre-dinner cocktail or glass of Italian fizz (Prosecco) or better still splash out and stay for dinner.
The narrow streets running off Corso Umberto, either up-hill or down-hill, are filled with bars and restaurants. Tables and chairs are perched on the steps and spill onto narrow side streets. At the popular fish restaurant, Grotte Azzura, diners have to move their chairs and pull in their tables so that cars can squeeze past round the tight corner opposite. The larger the car the more entertaining the spectacle and drivers are rewarded by their efforts with a round of applause from the diners, waiters and chef who have all stopped what they are doing to watch.
A slow walk through town, stopping to browse in the shop windows, is the perfect start or end to an evening
Seafood is a speciality in Taormina and feature on most menus along with traditional Italian fare and, although there is no shortage of places to eat, the favourites fill up quickly so it’s worth reserving a table to avoid disappointment especially if you want to dine “al fresco”. Pots of red and pink Geraniums decorate rot iron balconies and purple Bougainvillea cover walls and create beautiful ceilings in garden restaurants. Musicians work their way from restaurant to restaurant playing haunting Godfather theme music that will leave you with goose-bumps and a reminder that you are in Sicily.
Despite being a popular tourist destination the most striking thing about Taormina is that it is a real town. Amongst the tourists you will find rows of grandfathers sitting in the shade of the church enjoying an evening chat; locals buying unusual shaped vine tomatoes to go with their pasta and ancient couples dressed up with their hats and walking sticks strolling arm in arm.
In between the designer boutiques are barbers and shops selling embroidered table cloths and old fashioned baby clothes that look like they have been there forever. Restaurants are all run by families as are the numerous ice-cream shops and, on Fridays and Saturdays you may also witness a wedding as you enjoy your aperitif in the Piazzas.
Everyone seems to know everyone else. Our guide, Christian, who took us on day trips to Mount Etna, Siracusa and Noto, introduced us to his father, his brother and his friend - the local police man - who we just happened to bump into as we passed through a neighbouring town.
Not surprisingly Taormina gets more than its fare share of tourists and is therefore best explored first thing in the morning or early evening once the cruise ships have left for the day. The views from the numerous vantage points in town overlooking the bays below are stunning but equally so are the views of Taormina looking up from the sea and down from the mountain top.
A zig zagging path leading up to the Madonna della Rocca Sanctuary and the Castle perched high above Taormina is steep in places but the path is well paved and made up of many steps. The walk is a nature trail and small lizards scurry past your feet and white butterflies dance round the wild flowers blowing in the sea breeze. You pass many yellow flowering cacti and a different copper statue depicting Christ and his Disciples at each turn in the path.
Apart from the stunning vista there is not much to see when you reach the top as the Castle is closed for renovation. However, it’s worth taking the extra 50 steps or so up to the castle to get the best photos of Taormina, its amphitheatre and the Bay of Naxos before heading back down the path or going on to explore the town of Castelmola.
The four bays are filled with unusual rock formations and one even resembles a life size elephant enjoying a drink of water
The view from the sea is equally breathtaking and for €45 (for two people) you can have your own private Grotta Azzurra excursion. The boats are small enough to enter the caves so that you can admire the electric blue sea; tangerine orange coral clinging to the rocks and floating pumice stones and if it wasn’t for the large number of jelly fish the urge to jump in would be irresistible.
The four bays are filled with unusual rock formations and one even resembles a life size elephant enjoying a drink of water but the most beautiful bay is home to Isola Bella – beautiful island. The island is a World Wildlife Fund sanctuary and is joined to the shore by a stoney pathway and is a popular sunbathing spot. However, the best way to enjoy the view is over a leisurely lunch on the terrace at the Il Gabbiano restaurant which sits at the top of the stairs leading down to the bay.
From the sea Taormina looks impossible to get to as the steep cliffs are rocky and covered with cacti and there are no roads visible. You can clearly make out all the landmarks of the town even the pathway up to the Castle and the white cross on top of the Sanctuary stands out against the clear blue sky. In the distance smoke comes out of Mount Etna and now and again you hear a rumble which you try to convince yourself is just thunder.
Back on your sun lounger the only sounds are of the sea polishing the pebbles; the sing-song sales pitch from the Grotte Azzurra boat men and the occasional train as it rushes past along the coast. There is nothing better than spending days exploring the nearby historical towns and natural wonders and then dressing-up for a promenade along Corso Umberto before dinner, showing off shoes purchased the night before.
Waiting for the cable car to take you back down to your hotel does feel a bit like getting the last bus or train home except it is much more romantic especially if you have a tub of chocolate ice-cream to share. As the cable car plunges into the darkness, the bright lights of Taormina disappear behind you and a few minutes later are replaced by the twinkling lights of the bays below. The ride down the mountain is the perfect end to a perfect day and for €3 you can do the same again tomorrow.