Taormina, Italy

I feel a little sheepish posting this, having proclaimed in my last post that I am starting to feel cold in England, and sharing earlier in the month that I was in Germany briefly for work. I don't usually travel quite this much but I'm now in Taormina, Sicily, for a conference. Instead of porridge weather, it is rather (very) hot and I spent this afternoon at the beach!

Two hours ago, I was swimming in this bay...Isola Bella, Taormina

My beach attendance was facilitated by the conference finishing at 1pm today. It was a great meeting, both in content and in allowing me to catch up with Australian colleagues. Mr Bite has come along too and having spent the last few days relaxing on his own, I'm pleased to be on holiday jointly now. We have one more day in Taormina and then fly to Rome on Monday morning, spending two nights there before returning to London on Wednesday afternoon. You can't really do Rome in that space of time but I'm looking forward to seeing bits of it.

Taormina scenes

Other than a trip when I was a toddler, this is my first time in Italy and it is fulfilling my expectations of the country. It is beautiful, hot, a little chaotic, and full of well-dressed Italians and lots of tourists. I gather Sicily is quite different to the rest of Italy and Taormina particularly so, so it will be interesting to compare it with Rome when we get there. One surprise for me is that they have gum (eucalyptus) trees here - I didn't know they grew out of Australia. Other aspects of the landscape have Australian twangs too (the hot dry bits!) but they are tempered by completely different buildings.

Views over Taormina to the coast

Thus far I haven't ventured beyond the main town centre (easily taken in around conference commitments) and the beach this afternoon. If you are in the area with a car or with time to take a day trip, Mt Etna is not far from Taormina. As an active volcano I find it a little disconcerting that you can walk over it, but I am sure it's a worthwhile experience. We will be visiting the other main draw card of Taormina, its ancient Greek amphitheatre, and taking in more of the stunning views the area provides.

Balcony views

As we tend to do whenever possible, we have booked an apartment for our time here, which meant Mr Bite wasn't confined to a hotel room while I was working and work-socialising. It's beautifully equipped and far more spacious than we need, and also features a wonderful balcony (above). I'll be sorry to leave it!

Apartment dining area

I hope you've enjoyed the peek into Taormina and will enjoy sharing Rome photos, and food experiences, too in time. Thus far I've been pleasantly surprised at the veggie options available but am yet to try my first Italian pizza...something I hope to change tonight.

Have you been to Italy? Any favourite parts or experiences?

Tweet

Pin It