Malta & Sicily May 2023
Pre-trip to Amalfi Coast
Malta: Valletta
Sicily: Palermo, Siracusa & Taormina
Post-trip to Puglia
Malta
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Taormina, Sicily
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Amalfi Coast pre-trip
A half-dozen in our group did a pre-trip to the Amalfi Coast. They stayed in lovely Sorrento, and from there, had a private tour to the stunning towns of Positano, Amalfi and Ravello. They also had private tours to Capri, Pompeii and Naples--where they enjoyed some of the excellent and famous pizza.
Malta
Our entire group of 15 arrived in Valletta, Malta on May 9. We stayed at the historic Palais le Brun near the city center. For the following four days, our lovely private guide, Germaine, showed us her tiny country. We started with a walking tour of the city center sights and visited Upper Barrakka Gardens and St John's Co-Cathedral. Later, some of us spent time at the archaeological museum with its artifacts dating back to 5000BC. The following day, we toured the lovely walled hill town of Mdina as well as neighboring Rabat. And we made a photo stop at Dingli Cliffs.
On day three, we traveled to Malta's north island, Gozo. After a panoramic tour, we visited the monolithic Ggantia temples, Ta' Pino Basilica, and the Catacombs of St Paul. We made a brief stop at a salt farm where a family member explained the process to us. We later enjoyed a lunch of Maltese appetizers before taking the ferry back to Valletta. The Maltese are rightly proud of their delicious tomatoes, and some of us fell in love with Gbejna, local fried sheep's milk cheese. On our final day, we toured the Birgu 3-cities area and spent some time at the charming fishing village of Marsaxlokk, with its brightly-painted boats. Though the seas were too rough for a boat ride, we also saw Malta's gorgeous Blue Grotto.
SICILY
Palermo
Palermo was our first destination and we stayed in the beautiful Grand Hotel et des Palmes. We started off with a foodie tour of Capo Market. Our excellent guide, Fabrizio, procured for us sfincione, a type of focaccia, then panelle (chickpea fritters), crocche' (potato croquettes) and arancine. We also visited the cathedral, a combination of Arabic, Norman and neo-classical styles. We finished the tour with cannoli. The key is to eat them only when freshly made; they were so light and not sweet--unlike most American counterparts.
The next day, we visited Monreale Cathedral, part of a UNESCO site dating to 1172, known for 130+ mosaics and containing over 2000kg of gold. In the afternoon, we visited the seaside town of Cefalu' where we had another amazing meal. The following day, on route to Siracusa, we toured Agrigento, the best example of Greek ruins on the island. And did we mention another multi-course lunch....
Siracusa
Here we stayed at the waterfront Grand Hotel Minareto. On our first full day, half of us traveled by boat, the rest by taxi and bridge, to Ortigia, the island in the middle of Siracusa. We had two tours, one of the old town around Apollo Temple, and later a progressive dinner that started with steaming platters of fried fish, continued with various appetizers, and ended with pastries. Food guide, Paolo, was such a delight! In between tours we checked out the sprawling daily market.
The next day, with guide Saro, we toured the charming UNESCO baroque town of Noto, rebuilt after a devastating earthquake. In addition to seeing various beautiful buildings and visiting a gorgeous church, we had a delightful chocolate and nut tasting. Later we had yet another delicious lunch at a taverna, and we ended at a gelato and granita shop.
On our last day, we traveled past Piazza Amerina to tour Villa Romana del Casale, 4th century UNESCO site with incredibly well-preserved mosaics. A fabulous lunch followed at a trattoria.
Taormina
Our last destination in Sicily was Taormina, perched high above the Ionian Sea. On route from Siracusa, we caught what would be our only clear glimpse of Mt Etna; it was topped with lots of snow from the recent rains. In town, we stayed at the NH Hotel. We started off with a walking tour of tiny Taormina, with its outsized collection of boutiques! We braved unseasonable rain and wind to visit the Greek theatre that stands high above the town and affords the best views. Back at the hotel, many of us discovered pinsa, like a crispy focaccia, at lunch. It was topped with the best mortadella ever and pistachio pesto. Yum!
The next day, Saro was back to escort us half-way up Mt Etna, where he lives, to our winetasting at Gambino. (They told us there are lots of nice Gambinos, the mobsters notwithstanding.) We had a delightful tasting of four wines grown in volcanic soil that we enjoyed with generous antipasto platters, though it was hard to tell which cheese we were supposed to eat with each. This was followed by a lunch of a series of appetizers, pastas and typical pastries at an authentic farmhouse on lovely grounds--complete with a horse, goats and sheep. On our last day, the group took part in a pizza-making lunch in town. That evening, Massimo, the wonderful man who helped design our private tour for all of Sicily, stopped by to meet us and bring us some scrumptious local cookies.
Puglia post-trip
Twelve of us flew to Lecce in Puglia, where we enjoyed gorgeous weather. The following morning, Francesco, our guide for two days, led us on a tour of the impressive city center. We loved his orange shoes. Sprinkled in with our sightseeing, we sampled rustico leccese--a tomato and mozzarella puff pastry, taralli, and iced espresso with almond flavoring. Afterwards, we had lunch at the restaurant of delightful Ylenia who helped craft our stay in Puglia. We were treated to even more local specialties, including two types of puccia--a sandwich made with the dough used for pizza.
The next day, wearing purple shoes, Francesco escorted us to Galatina, the first stop on our visit to the Salento Peninsula. The Basilica of Santa Caterina has stunning frescoes. From there, we continued on to Gallipoli, home to St. Agatha's Cathedral, a castle, and Purity Beach. We feasted on a lunch of fresh seafood and more, outdoors overlooking the ocean.
Likely the highlight of Puglia was Alberobello, which we visited the following day with guide Luciano. It's a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with its unique and charming trulli homes. We were surprised to learn they continue to be built; the design helps to both capture rainwater and provide natural air-conditioning. From there we headed to Matera, another UNESCO Site, in the nearby region of Basilicata. It's famous for its sassi, cave dwellings built into the rocks dating back 9000 years. Lots and lots of stairs in that town, and we felt we'd climbed or descended them all!
On our final full day, again with Luciano, we visited three towns. The first was Martina Franca, atop a hill in the province of Taranto. It has cobbled streets and baroque architecture, as evidenced in its basilica. Next was Cisternino, a pearl of a coastal town in the province of Brindisi, where we enjoyed a delicious lunch. Lastly, we visited postcard-perfect Polignano a Mare, on the Adriatic in the province of Bari. It has a pristine beach and clusters of white houses on a promontory.
At least as deserving of mention were our van drivers in Puglia, Stefano and Fabio. They ferried us around for three days, navigating narrow streets and finding parking spots where there seemingly weren't any. They even took us to the airport on departure day. They were professional, good-natured and entertaining. We know they enjoyed us, too, as they insisted on a group photo the final morning. They both put it on their Facebook pages!
Throughout the trip, not only did we sample all the foods and lunches mentioned, but we had delicious and varied dinners together as well. It was definitely food-focused, but what a great part of the world to do it in!
A half-dozen in our group did a pre-trip to the Amalfi Coast. They stayed in lovely Sorrento, and from there, had a private tour to the stunning towns of Positano, Amalfi and Ravello. They also had private tours to Capri, Pompeii and Naples--where they enjoyed some of the excellent and famous pizza.
Malta
Our entire group of 15 arrived in Valletta, Malta on May 9. We stayed at the historic Palais le Brun near the city center. For the following four days, our lovely private guide, Germaine, showed us her tiny country. We started with a walking tour of the city center sights and visited Upper Barrakka Gardens and St John's Co-Cathedral. Later, some of us spent time at the archaeological museum with its artifacts dating back to 5000BC. The following day, we toured the lovely walled hill town of Mdina as well as neighboring Rabat. And we made a photo stop at Dingli Cliffs.
On day three, we traveled to Malta's north island, Gozo. After a panoramic tour, we visited the monolithic Ggantia temples, Ta' Pino Basilica, and the Catacombs of St Paul. We made a brief stop at a salt farm where a family member explained the process to us. We later enjoyed a lunch of Maltese appetizers before taking the ferry back to Valletta. The Maltese are rightly proud of their delicious tomatoes, and some of us fell in love with Gbejna, local fried sheep's milk cheese. On our final day, we toured the Birgu 3-cities area and spent some time at the charming fishing village of Marsaxlokk, with its brightly-painted boats. Though the seas were too rough for a boat ride, we also saw Malta's gorgeous Blue Grotto.
SICILY
Palermo
Palermo was our first destination and we stayed in the beautiful Grand Hotel et des Palmes. We started off with a foodie tour of Capo Market. Our excellent guide, Fabrizio, procured for us sfincione, a type of focaccia, then panelle (chickpea fritters), crocche' (potato croquettes) and arancine. We also visited the cathedral, a combination of Arabic, Norman and neo-classical styles. We finished the tour with cannoli. The key is to eat them only when freshly made; they were so light and not sweet--unlike most American counterparts.
The next day, we visited Monreale Cathedral, part of a UNESCO site dating to 1172, known for 130+ mosaics and containing over 2000kg of gold. In the afternoon, we visited the seaside town of Cefalu' where we had another amazing meal. The following day, on route to Siracusa, we toured Agrigento, the best example of Greek ruins on the island. And did we mention another multi-course lunch....
Siracusa
Here we stayed at the waterfront Grand Hotel Minareto. On our first full day, half of us traveled by boat, the rest by taxi and bridge, to Ortigia, the island in the middle of Siracusa. We had two tours, one of the old town around Apollo Temple, and later a progressive dinner that started with steaming platters of fried fish, continued with various appetizers, and ended with pastries. Food guide, Paolo, was such a delight! In between tours we checked out the sprawling daily market.
The next day, with guide Saro, we toured the charming UNESCO baroque town of Noto, rebuilt after a devastating earthquake. In addition to seeing various beautiful buildings and visiting a gorgeous church, we had a delightful chocolate and nut tasting. Later we had yet another delicious lunch at a taverna, and we ended at a gelato and granita shop.
On our last day, we traveled past Piazza Amerina to tour Villa Romana del Casale, 4th century UNESCO site with incredibly well-preserved mosaics. A fabulous lunch followed at a trattoria.
Taormina
Our last destination in Sicily was Taormina, perched high above the Ionian Sea. On route from Siracusa, we caught what would be our only clear glimpse of Mt Etna; it was topped with lots of snow from the recent rains. In town, we stayed at the NH Hotel. We started off with a walking tour of tiny Taormina, with its outsized collection of boutiques! We braved unseasonable rain and wind to visit the Greek theatre that stands high above the town and affords the best views. Back at the hotel, many of us discovered pinsa, like a crispy focaccia, at lunch. It was topped with the best mortadella ever and pistachio pesto. Yum!
The next day, Saro was back to escort us half-way up Mt Etna, where he lives, to our winetasting at Gambino. (They told us there are lots of nice Gambinos, the mobsters notwithstanding.) We had a delightful tasting of four wines grown in volcanic soil that we enjoyed with generous antipasto platters, though it was hard to tell which cheese we were supposed to eat with each. This was followed by a lunch of a series of appetizers, pastas and typical pastries at an authentic farmhouse on lovely grounds--complete with a horse, goats and sheep. On our last day, the group took part in a pizza-making lunch in town. That evening, Massimo, the wonderful man who helped design our private tour for all of Sicily, stopped by to meet us and bring us some scrumptious local cookies.
Puglia post-trip
Twelve of us flew to Lecce in Puglia, where we enjoyed gorgeous weather. The following morning, Francesco, our guide for two days, led us on a tour of the impressive city center. We loved his orange shoes. Sprinkled in with our sightseeing, we sampled rustico leccese--a tomato and mozzarella puff pastry, taralli, and iced espresso with almond flavoring. Afterwards, we had lunch at the restaurant of delightful Ylenia who helped craft our stay in Puglia. We were treated to even more local specialties, including two types of puccia--a sandwich made with the dough used for pizza.
The next day, wearing purple shoes, Francesco escorted us to Galatina, the first stop on our visit to the Salento Peninsula. The Basilica of Santa Caterina has stunning frescoes. From there, we continued on to Gallipoli, home to St. Agatha's Cathedral, a castle, and Purity Beach. We feasted on a lunch of fresh seafood and more, outdoors overlooking the ocean.
Likely the highlight of Puglia was Alberobello, which we visited the following day with guide Luciano. It's a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with its unique and charming trulli homes. We were surprised to learn they continue to be built; the design helps to both capture rainwater and provide natural air-conditioning. From there we headed to Matera, another UNESCO Site, in the nearby region of Basilicata. It's famous for its sassi, cave dwellings built into the rocks dating back 9000 years. Lots and lots of stairs in that town, and we felt we'd climbed or descended them all!
On our final full day, again with Luciano, we visited three towns. The first was Martina Franca, atop a hill in the province of Taranto. It has cobbled streets and baroque architecture, as evidenced in its basilica. Next was Cisternino, a pearl of a coastal town in the province of Brindisi, where we enjoyed a delicious lunch. Lastly, we visited postcard-perfect Polignano a Mare, on the Adriatic in the province of Bari. It has a pristine beach and clusters of white houses on a promontory.
At least as deserving of mention were our van drivers in Puglia, Stefano and Fabio. They ferried us around for three days, navigating narrow streets and finding parking spots where there seemingly weren't any. They even took us to the airport on departure day. They were professional, good-natured and entertaining. We know they enjoyed us, too, as they insisted on a group photo the final morning. They both put it on their Facebook pages!
Throughout the trip, not only did we sample all the foods and lunches mentioned, but we had delicious and varied dinners together as well. It was definitely food-focused, but what a great part of the world to do it in!