Our walking tour begins in Messina, called The Gate of Sicily and separated from mainland Italy by only five kilometres. In ancient times the Greeks named the city Zancle for its sickle-shaped harbour. Although it is hard to imagine, a devastating earthquake leveled Messina in 1908, and several Allied raids bombed it intensely during World War II.
After passing interesting sites like the Church of San Francesco and the Fountain of Neptune, we will visit the National Museum to see some paintings by Caravaggio. Afterwards our tour will continue past the City Hall, the Church of the Annunziata dei Catalani, and Piazza Duomo. Here the most interesting part of the bell-tower (60 metres high) is the astronomical clock to the left of the Cathedral.
Next we will proceed to northeastern tip of Sicily and view Calabria on the mainland across the Strait of Messina. If time, we will visit the the Ganzirri, a fishing village that is now a lagoons of Pantano Grande and Pantano Piccolo.
Options for a Full Day:
1. Spend the afternoon shopping and cooking in Messina. We will drive to the Market of St. Orsola, where we will meet a local and renowned chef and learn about the market and the culinary traditions of city. At this lively, colorful market, we will see merchants singing and selling their fresh and seasonal fish and fruit. Next we will shop at the market with our chef-provided list. Then we will walk to Ristorante a Cucchiara for our cooking class. We will eat our delicious meal, of course with Sicilian wines, and Cin! Cin! our marvelous day in Messina.
2. The Excursion to Messina can be combined with the Excursion to Milazzo or the Excursion to Tindarys.