A Sicilian adventure, July 2013: food, sunshine and friends, part 1

As summer at last started to creep in, we leaped at the chance to visit Ester, our former flatmate in London, in her hometown of Palermo, Sicily.

We spent a glorious week together in the northern part of Sicily. Met off the bus from the airport by Ester and her friend, after a few wrong turns, we managed to navigate the narrow mostly sign-less alleyways of Palermo to our airbnb apartment.

Alberto, our host, welcomed us with wine and enthusiastic greetings as though we were long-lost friends. A great first taster of Sicilian culture.

Next stop: street food/drink tour. Ester and some friends joined us and the others staying in Alberto's apartments for this tour. A disagreement soon ensued about where to find the best panella (fried chickpea cakes), and pani ca meusa/panino con la milza (bread with fried lung and spleen, sometimes served with cheese - surprisingly delectable). I still don't know the answer, but everything we tried was delicious.

In Palermo, the capital of Sicily, dirty alleys lead to majestic buildings and bustling markets. Without local and linguistic knowledge you would probably not even notice, but I gather that the presence of the mafia is still felt throughout Sicily. Lack of faith in the government is also widespread, and visible; from the piles of rubbish left uncollected, to occupations of various cultural institutions whose funding the government withdrew.

 

Palermo is a passionate place. You don't do things by halves here.

Whether it's the food - cooked and eaten and discussed with gusto; or politics - hotly debated, protested and opined throughout the city; or socialising - into the wee hours of the morning; everything is done with passion.

Keen to practice our scuba diving skills we arranged for a trip out to Ustica island, a marine reserve and a picturesque island. We walked through the deserted streets to the harbour as the sun was rising - a beautiful sight. While diving, we saw a shipwreck of a Panamanian ship far below us, and made our way into an underwater cave, surfacing within an air pocket. It's a really strange feeling to know that you're underwater, but your head is currently above water, in a cave.

After a couple of dives, we enjoyed a delicious spaghetti dish and explored the island. Quite tired after the early start and the diving, I was not keen on Kylie's idea to hike up to the very top of the island at the time. I must admit, though, it really was a great view.