Their House Is Your Trattoria

At-home trattorias are increasingly popular in Sicily. From the winding narrow street of the inner-Palermo suburb formerly know as Kalsa spreading throughout the historical centre, where you can wine and dine right in the middle of the street or in somebody's backyard. What counts is home-cooking.

Danielle Pergament from New York Times, guided by her Sicilian friend, discovers a brand new concept of dining.

IT was lunchtime in Palermo, and in the old quarter, a small trattoria was filling up with burly construction workers and fishermen in sodden boots — all crowded around rickety tables watching a soccer match on a staticky television set. The place was noisy with clanking glasses and men talking over one another. Platters of sautéed vegetables and grilled calamari lined the countertop, and the perfume of sizzling garlic drifted through the room. I scanned the other tables and ordered what everyone else was having: spaghetti, drizzled with olive oil and laden with fresh clams, mussels and tomatoes.

But when the pasta arrived, drenched in a briny, spicy tomato broth, there was no fork and no waiter in sight. There was just the owner, known simply as Pina, shuffling in threadbare slippers, a lighted cigarette precariously perched on the edge of her mouth. “You need a fork?” Pina barked. Her gravelly voice was so intimidating that I was ready to eat with my hands. “Get it yourself. Top drawer, next to the stove.”

If eating in Palermo's rustic trattorias seems like visiting someone's home, that's because it often is. Pina, a gruff Sicilian mother, keeps a bedroom behind the kitchen and five days a week opens her canteen-sized dining room for lunch, serving some of the most authentic food in this port city.

At Zia Pina (Via Argenteria, 67), four blocks from the Tyrrhenian Sea, you won't find a sign welcoming diners, written menus, a reservation book or even a telephone. Instead, there are half a dozen tables, biblical paintings and dented pots and pans gurgling and steaming on a beat-up stove.

But you can't simply walk in. If Pina doesn't like the look of you, she'll tell you the trattoria is closed — and she'll do it as she's serving platters of stuffed mushrooms and grilled swordfish to a table of hungry fishermen. Luckily, I arrived with my Sicilian friend Emanuele, a photojournalist who has been eating at places like Zia Pina since he was a child.

The food of Palermo, like its rocky shoreline and weathered faces, is a bit rough. Vegetables are crudely chopped; fish is served with head and tail; everything comes under a veil of coarse sea salt. Pina's cooking was no exception. She was partial to pasta tossed with fresh shrimp, calamari or sea bass, as well as hearty salads of potatoes, capers and onions. If you're still hungry, you're welcome to seconds, but don't expect Pina to bring them. You can help yourself from the caldron on the stove.

At-home trattorias are not the insular tradition they used to be in Sicily. What began decades ago as lunch counters for blue-collar workers, usually started by their wives at home, are spreading to garages and empty houses — and they are becoming increasingly popular with young Sicilians and businessmen, who come for the laid-back atmosphere, low prices and arguably the best food in Sicily.

The amateur chefs are cautiously opening their doors to the public, and their menus are expanding, too, though not by much. They are still open only for lunch (about 12:30 to 2 p.m.), prices are remarkably cheap (pasta is usually under 3 euros, about $4 at $1.38 to the euro), and the recipes were handed down from the chef's grandmother. A click more relaxed than standard trattorias, these places have the air of an old-fashioned speakeasy — the proprietor might sleep in the back room, and the entrance is purposely hard to find, with unmarked doors, few signs and no advertising.

And because the places are not entirely legal, the would-be restaurateurs don't have to worry about things like workplace insurance, smoking laws, liquor licenses or even taxes. “Most of these places pay protection money to the Mafia,” Emanuele said. “They just want to serve good food to their regulars and keep their heads down.”
Well, that and watch soccer. A few days later, Emanuele and I walked into La Rosa Nero, or the Pink Black — a small, free-standing concrete hut in the middle of the quiet, dusty Piazzetta della Api. On a Saturday afternoon last January, the scene inside was another story. Two small rooms, painted pink and black, were crammed with flimsy plastic tables and crowded with groups of men hunched over bowls of steaming pasta, plates of fried calamari and small cups of red wine. Their eyes were fixed on the television — Palermo versus Lazio, and Palermo was losing. Shouts and jeers filled the small trattoria. There wasn't an empty seat in the house.

Rosa Nero is run by a young man named Benedetto. He wouldn't reveal his last name because his trattoria is not licensed and he preferred not to call attention to himself. Benedetto explained that this used to be his mother's house. Friends would come over to watch soccer, and his mother would whip up bowls of spaghetti with sardines. Before he knew it, the dining room had grown into a neighborhood soccer club and, as more friends came, a trattoria was born.

Emanuele and I sat down next to a group of teenagers and ordered the house special: angiova, or pasta with sardines. It arrived like an untossed salad — whole sardines (heads on), chunks of tomato and a splatter of pine nuts and sweet raisins, all piled atop a small mountain of pasta. I grabbed the fork and spoon, and mixed it up until it turned into a hearty sauce — sweet, salty and a little nutty.

Full and happy, we got up to leave and I started to leave a tip. “This isn't done,” said Emanuele. “These places don't pay taxes; all the money goes in their pockets.” Do they ever get in trouble with the law? “See those two men in the corner?” he pointed. “They're police, and they like the food as much as the rest of us.”

On my last afternoon in Palermo, Emanuele and I walked down to the waterfront, to an area known as Piazza Kalsa. Our destination was Padre Aldo (again, no address, no phone). The trattoria could easily be mistaken for someone's home — a tidy house on a residential block with a little garden on one side and a paved driveway on the other. “I was born next door,” said Aldo Balestreri, a lively 77-year-old with a stubbly white beard. “My specialty is grilled fish.” He paused for dramatic effect. “And Camilla Parker Bowles ate here once.”
Mr. Balestreri added that this used to be a taverna — a hall where men drank grappa until sunrise. Then, one summer about 40 years ago, he rolled a barbecue grill onto the driveway and started cooking meat. Next thing he knew, he had a trattoria.

Despite the chilly weather, most patrons were sitting at plastic tables on the driveway, now a patio. We sat down and listened to the menu. Moments later, an antipasto of olives, sardines, tomatoes and capers, drizzled in olive oil and coarse grains of salt, arrived on a worn block of wood. For pasta, we had spaghetti with baby shrimp, mussels, rough-cut garlic and spicy red pepper flakes. We washed it down with chilled red wine and watched the lunch crowd ramble in — young suntanned couples, gray-haired men with callused hands, and teenage boys with greasy hair and baggy jeans.

Then Padre Aldo re-emerged, holding two swordfish steaks. He slapped them on the grill and started calling out the day's menu over the hiss of the barbecue. A few moments later, he brought us two plates of spada alla palermitana, or swordfish Palermo-style — lightly breaded with a few drops of olive oil and a fat lemon wedge.
The three courses and a bottle of wine came out to 20 euros. As we walked away, Aldo called out from the searing iron grill: “You never asked why they call me Padre Aldo. It's because they think I'm Jesus — my food is that good.”

Lava's burning passion

Lorenzo Starace Nastase writing for http://www.luxuryfiles.com/luxury/mooffanka/?$lang=EN&$version=port&doc=784, has described the emotional connection that Sicily and Sicilians have with their volcanoes.

He writes ...

Throughout the centuries Stromboli has taken on connotations of evil, and has been likened by historic nautical correlations to a lighthouse. From the dawns of time it lit up the way for sailors of the Tyrrhenian Sea, including myself. Its charm survives despite a variety of events that in recent times have brought it under the spotlight again. The same fascination that it exuded in remote 1949, set off the “war of volcanoes”: a conflict of pure passion, one that had nothing to do with geological issues – only exquisitely human ones.

The “spark” was a letter written by Ingrid Bergman to Roberto Rossellini. In 1949 he was working, with Anna Magnani, his partner of the time, on the movie “Vulcano”. In the letter, written in English, Ms Bergman articulated her desire to work with the greatest name in Italian Neo-realism, concluding the missive with the only words in Italian that she knew: “ti amo”. Rossellini was deeply affected by this peculiarly expressed request, and rushed to America to meet the actress. At the time, she was one of America’s most beloved stars.When they returned to Italy it was perfectly clear to everyone involved that Rossellini and Magnani were history.

At the time the latter was in London receiving a prize but on her return, an indirect clash from the shores of two volcanoes was ignited: Rossellini was about to make “Stromboli, terra di Dio”, with his new flame Ingrid, while Magnani continued to work on “Vulcano”.

It was a ruthless battle, complete with acts of espionage and sabotage from both productions, both of which were working without respite to beat the other in wrapping the movie first.

The arm wrestle finally came to a halt with the première of “Vulcano”, directed by William Mieterle, which took place at the Fiamma cinema in Rome. However, during the showing the news of the birth of Rossellini and Bergman’s daughter began to circulate. Every press agent present at the première left the room to verify the news. This was an indirect declaration of defeat to Magnani’s movie, relegating it to a spectacle of lesser relevance. Even today, Stromboli is a reminder of one of the greatest love stories that has ever blossomed at its feet, with a plaque commemorating the Swedish actress’s stay in full view on the façade of the house known as “la casina rossa” (“the little red house”), which once hosted her here.

Many tales were spun in Stromboli and it’s easy to fall in love in a place that maintains intact a sense of “leaping back in time”. This is enhanced by its tranquillity, the absence of cars, and peculiar lighting in the streets: all elements that heighten one’s anticipation of a shiver of emotion, when listening out for iddu (“him”, as the inhabitants of Stromboli call the volcano), he who is always active and present.

Don’t be under any illusions, then.

If you’ve never been to Stromboli you will never know whether it’ll inspire love or hate in you. But if you end up loving iddu, remember that after your departure, sooner or later the volcano will beckon you back here without you even realizing it. You will find yourself admiring its fireworks in the sky above the Aeolian Islands once again, just like someone else who decided to make Stromboli their home and workplace.

Celebrity Island

An unexpected Hollywood hangout on the way to the blissfully peaceful islands off Sicily.

From the Guardian Isabel Choat writes :

I've slept in Brad Pitt's bed. Nothing for Angelina to worry about, because he wasn't in it at the time. Even so, I was pretty taken aback when I found out.
You see we weren't staying in five-star luxury in Taormina, Sicily's celebrity mecca, but in a simple agriturismo in the sleepy north-west. It was lovely, with stunning views across the bay, and fantastic food, but it wasn't glitzy or glamorous by any stretch.

Brad Pitt had stayed at the Agriturismo Tenute Plaia while filming Ocean's Twelve at the Tonnara di Scopello, a disused tuna fishery set in a ridiculously picturesque cove a mile or two up the road. The rest of the cast, including Catherine Zeta-Jones and George Clooney, had dinner at the hotel, but only Brad had spent the night. Perhaps the lack of spa, butlers, helicopter pad and marble-clad interiors had put the other stars off. But we thought it was near perfect.
On our first night we had sat on the terrace working our way through dish after dish of anti-pasti - rissotto balls, octopus salad, slivers of rare beef and tiny squares of bread with melted mozzarella. Next came pasta with olive oil, pine nuts and mackerel, then grilled fish with lemon and garlic. Later Ignacio, our waiter, offered to drive us in to Scopello, a hillside village with a fountain and 13th-century walled square where we sat under a vast eucalyptus drinking grappa.
We were on the edge of the Zingaro Nature Reserve, which covers seven kilometres of spectacular coastline, so could walk off our dinner the next day. The path follows the coast, giving tantalising views of sandy coves and bays, the sea so clear you can make out individual rocks on the sea bed. Hot and sweaty after a three-hour walk, we tired of just looking at the beach and veered off the path to dip our feet in the deliciously cool water.

Scopello was just the starting point of our holiday, a brief taste of Sicily, before we moved on to Marettimo, the most remote and mountainous of the Egadi, a trio of islands an hour's boat ride from Trapani. Though the Egadi are just as beautiful as the north-west, they lack the necessary polish to attract Hollywood's elite. Favignana, the largest of the Egadi, has one chichi hotel (Albergo Egadi), but on Levanzo and Marettimo the choice is between fishermen's houses, pensiones or basic apartments.

Fausto, the owner of the Marettimo Residence, met us off the boat, loaded our gear on to a golf buggy and pointed us in the right direction. "We're the last building in the village. See you there." Among the cluster of flat-roofed houses, more Greek in style than Italian, we spotted La Scaletta - a bar-cum-ice cream parlour - a deli, a couple of restaurants and a bakery selling slices of focaccia pizza. The other passengers had disappeared into the narrow, shady lanes and aside from the old men who sat in a row outside the harbourside Museo del Mare - a tiny room with black and white photos of men sitting in exactly the same spot 50 years ago - we saw no one. We seemed to have the place to ourselves and began to wonder whether five days was four days too long.

But worrying about what to do is sort of missing the point. You don't come to Marettimo to race round the sights (there aren't any) or try a dozen different watersports, as there are none of those either, unless you count exploring the island's many caves by fishing boat or kayak. You come to enjoy breathtaking views of the craggy coastline, pine-covered peaks and to swim in crystal-clear sea. As we learned pretty quickly, the real joy of Marettimo is shifting down several gears and slipping into its gentle, soporific pace.
After breakfast among the olive and lavender trees at the Residence, we'd amble down to the harbour to see what the fishermen had brought in. Their cute blue and white boats looked like they'd been planted there to blend artfully with their blue and white houses, but they were working boats. One look at the catch in the morning told you what you'd be eating that night. Snapper, John Dory or calamari came grilled or fried and served with salad or, north African style, with cous cous, pine nuts, raisins and saffron. The fish that weren't sold straight from the boat were packed on to carts and wheeled round the village to cries of "pesce fresco".

In the afternoons we'd pack our beach bags and saunter down to the rocks near the Residence to soak up the sun and cool off in the sea. We nearly always had the beach to ourselves.
Come evening the empty village would start to fill up: women emerged from their homes to catch up on the day's gossip, kids raced round the shiny cobbled streets on bikes, and teenagers loitered outside La Scaletta eating brioche stuffed with ice-cream. After dinner we'd hit the bar in the romantic little square for an espresso or glass of Marsala. And then head back to the Residence under a starry sky, knowing that with no sights to see or activities to try, we'd be doing it all again tomorrow.

On other nights Fausto insisted on us joining him for dinner at the Residence. Our first al fresco meal was a giant pan of fish stew -a delicious feast of scarfolo, a spiny, red fish, cooked in onions, wine and tomatoes. Our host spoke no English but he'd roped in a friend to translate. As he guffawed at his own stories, his friend fussed around us grumbling that Fausto spoke too fast.
A few days into the holiday we decided we really ought to venture beyond the village. We had, after all, booked our trip through a walking specialist who had supplied us with a stack of idiot-proof maps. You can hike for hours across Marettimo but there's no need to feel guilty if you take a shorter route, as the views are just as spectacular. While other, older, guests at the Residence set off early for a full day's tramping, we took the easy - OK, lazy - option and followed the trail to El Castello, a ruined castle perched dramatically on a rock jutting out into the sea. On either side of the path were clumps of yellow and purple heather, so neat they looked like they'd been planted there by an expert gardener, and rosemary bushes that filled the warm air with their scent.

On another day we set out, accompanied by one of the village dogs, to Punta Campana, at 630m the second highest peak. In four hours we didn't see a soul. As we climbed, the path got narrower and rockier and at one point I was convinced we'd veered off it completely. Still, the dog knew exactly where he was going so we gave up on the map and followed him. On the way up, the air had been alive with the sounds of bees and birds, but up here there was silence. In the distance Favignano and Levanzo were swathed in mist, their peaks poking out of a blanket of white. The sea and sky were exactly the same shade of blue, making it impossible to find the horizon. We could just about make out the wash of the fishing boats. It was utterly peaceful.

The hydrofoil zips between Trapani on the main island and the Egadi trio four times a day, so it's easy to pop over to a neighbouring island. We passed a pleasant enough day on Levanzo on a tour to the Grotto del Genovese, reached by yet another stunning stretch of coast where seagull chicks were nesting among the wild flowers. Inside the grotto are drawings, thought to be around 10,000 years old, of bison and deer and men fishing for tuna.

The waters around the Egadi still teem with blue fin tuna , and the Mattanza, an ancient ritual where schools of tuna are rounded into increasingly smaller nets before being killed with spears, is still practised. It's a bloody spectacle and one we decided we could do without. We did eat tuna one night, though, when Fausto invited us back for dinner. Having taught himself how to prepare sushi, he was keen to show off his skill and served up melt-in-the-mouth tuna sushi, sashimi and sticky rice, all washed down with a hearty Sicilian red.

Fausto told us how long it had taken him to get used to life on Marettimo. After five years of running the Residence, he was only just beginning to be accepted into the community. I told him my Brad Pitt story, but he didn't seem very interested. I got the impression that, like the rest of the islanders, Fausto couldn't give a fig about celebrity gossip.

New York Times cravings

Other foodies get their hands on Sicilian produce...

From the New York Times Gael Green writes :

Imagine a gourmand paradise where miniature cherry-topped pastries are marketed as Virgin’s Breasts and a gorgeous layering of pudding, pastry dough, and preserves created by cloistered nuns is the coveted Triumph of Gluttony.

Of course, I’d come to Sicily hungry (how else?), alerted by traveling foodies to a new generation of inspired chefs tweaking the traditional, and obsessed with digesting the island’s history through its food.

I was eager to taste high-risk improvisations like the smoked lavender-cod pyramids of Ciccio Sultano, “Italy’s Best Young Chef,” in the estimation of the magazine Gambero Rosso. I’d heard that Corrado Assenza’s cutting-edge bravado and exotic flavorings in honey, chocolates, and marmellatas at Caffé Sicilia would startle my sensibilities. And everyone was talking about the fantasy tasting menu at Il Mulinazzo, not far from Palermo. I was especially excited to try the powerful Sicilian wines that were winning prizes and showing up on menus across New York. And so I arrived, ready to immerse myself in the island’s rich tradition now punctuated by the shock of the new, carrying a list of must-eat addresses that would have had us eating a zigzag across Sicily.

My guy’s must-sees included the island’s usual wonders: Greek temples, Roman mosaics, Baroque cathedrals. I hungered to taste the mythic lemons, the capers of Pantelleria, the eggplant (in caponata and in spicy pasta alla Norma), the famous rolled-and-stuffed sardines a beccafico, Trapani’s seafood couscous, and, yes, I was primed to dare the spleen panini of Palermo.
It was an ideal moment to arrive: the week before Easter, when the country vibrates with pagan and religious rituals in every town and it’s still cool and green, fields wild with flowers before searing summer turns everything brown. Marzipan lambs grazed in every pasticceria window. By the time I’d tasted almond-paste goodies (an Arabic legacy) from every shop on Taormina’s main street, with a stop at the Greek theater, we’d had enough of the town’s tourist clots.

We headed toward Catania to meet friends at Sicilia in Bocca, hangout of actors and politicians, where at midnight on Palm Sunday a fisherman was just delivering a giant basslike spigola—still in rigor mortis, it was so fresh out of the sea. We ate crudi—raw gamberetti and neonata (baby anchovies)—and what the house does best, pasta, surprised to discover the Sicilian habit of grating pecorino on seafood pasta. (Toasted bread crumbs were the traditional and deliciously nutty sprinkle for our pasta con sarde—with sardines and wild fennel—in a region once too poor to even think of importing Parmigiano-Reggiano.) Next morning we lingered long enough to explore Catania’s rowdy fish market, stopping at Caffé Europa for a typical Sicilian breakfast: hazelnut gelato in a doughnutlike brioche.

Sicily is small, swiftly crisscrossed on the autostrada, letting you swing easily from the Greek-influenced eastern coast to the ancient ruins of Siracusa before settling into Palermo, as we did, using it as a home base for day trips and an occasional overnighter in our determination to feast and photograph.
Perhaps less-food-obsessed travelers would have skipped driving in torrential rain to the triangle of the towns Noto, Modica, and Ragusa. But then they would have missed Baroque architectural marvels built after the area was ravaged by earthquakes in 1693. And each town is also a food-lover’s imperative. Modica harbors Antica Dolceria Bonajuto, a chocolate shop dating from 1880 with a small museum. Easter celebrants had cleaned out the bakery, so we didn’t get to taste the eggplant-and-chocolate-filled half-moons (lucumie) or the beef-and-almond-paste-stuffed impanatigghe.

I was lucky to find a cinnamon bar of the house’s grainy and starkly bitter chocolate, still made from Ivory Coast cocoa beans using a secret Aztec recipe brought to the city centuries ago by wealthy Spaniards.

The daring and passion of Corrado Assenza at the surprisingly plain Caffé Sicilia made it worth a soaking mad-dash from the car park in nearby Noto. We sat for hours tasting cakes, puddings, flowery custards, candied fruits, Sichuan-pepper-spiked cookies, and exotic honeys (chocolate, basil, saffron). There was only time to sleep it off before hitting the road to the Ibla half of Ragusa and a tasting dinner, best of our stay, at Michelin-starred Il Duomo. Daring and obsessed as are all the best contemporary chefs, Ciccio Sultano plays with odd combinations of classic Sicilian ingredients in a tiny house with cherub sconces aimed at the vaulted ceiling, casting soft light on us below. A puddle of wild-apple purée comes with a warm tortino of the local cacciocavallo cheese. The stunning pungency of lemon salad cuts through the richness of lightly smoked pork from black pigs.

Settled into Palermo for a week, we spent mornings wandering through the legendary Vucciria market as well as our favorite, Ballaró, full of fussy shoppers. I bought peppered pecorino to take home for breakfast and stood in line at a cart for delicious innards stuffed into a crusty roll. When we’d walked enough to justify it, I’d buy a medium-size cup of bacia plus cioccolato under a drift of whipped cream at Stancampiano. At Antica Focacceria San Francesco, pani ca’ meusa, beef spleen stuffed into bread (plus an optional plop of ricotta), is dished up from a giant vat all day for local fans (I loved it, too). At Bye Bye Blues on a side street in nearby Mondello, we were surprised by the creativity in the kitchen and marveled at the delicious simplicity of raw fish with a ginger rice cake, layered anchovies and potato in caper sauce, and spaghetti with sea-urchin-and-fava purée.

From Palermo, it’s not far to the salt flats of Trapani to watch the spring tuna hunt (if you can take the gore) and to climb the medieval winding streets of Erice, a hilltop town overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea. With so many tourists lined up to buy pastries from Pasticceria Maria Grammatico, a legend of Sicilian pastry, and a hokey donkey cart parked at the Norman castle above waiting to be photographed, it’s easy to dismiss Erice as slightly theme-park. So we were amazed at the good-natured welcome and smartly al dente ruffled ribbons of pasta in a meaty ragù at Ristorante Monte San Giuliano. Another evening, a new friend in Palermo, fourth generation of the Barbera olive-oil family, took us to Il Cortile, a small mom-and-pop trattoria in Custonaci near the sea, where we dined happily outdoors on the simplest, barely sauced pasta and boiled veal.

One morning we set out from Palermo for the 90-minute drive toward the middle of the island to sit in on the cooking class Anna Tasca Lanza gives in the charming tiled kitchen of the Casa Vecchie, overlooking her family’s sprawling Regaleali vineyard estate. A tireless champion of the island’s kitchen tradition in her many cookbooks, she shaped and fried arancine (rice balls), sautéed slivered artichoke for our pasta, and made creating individual cassatas look easy.
Tradition hits the fan at Il Mulinazzo, with its two Michelin stars, helmed by Nino Graziano, a veteran of several kitchens in France. It’s just south of Palermo in Villafrati, a quick drive for lunch. Even the tradizionale tasting menu shows off Sicilian cooking creatively rethought: elegant snapper tartare with oil and lemon on warm chickpea fritters, lasagnetta with sardines and wild fennel, almond couscous in a fish soup, rack of lamb with an asparagus zabaglione. Next day, I owed my guy a major Greek temple and an afternoon of mosaics.

Palermo : The coolest city in Italy

Recently, the national magazine Panorama described Palermo as "the coolest city in Italy.
With wide avenues lined with palm trees, stylish shops, restaurants and nightclub where everybody dresses up, Palermo transpires style from every angle.
Think of Palermo and its baroque, opulent fashion. People like Dolce & Gabbana, Marella Ferrera or Fulco di Verdura, who popularised the use of coloured stones in creations for clients like Greta Garbo and Coco Chanel.
Palermo is really "Cool". Not exactly in the Milanese way, but in that reflection of pomp and grandeur that is in the air and above all in the Palermitani themselves.

Still do not believe me?
Wander around Via Principe di Belmonte, a pedestrian area right in the commercial district. Or enjoy an aperitif at La Cuba inside Villa Sperlinga.
Tanned, graceful girls in stilettos and stylish handbags, men in dark colour suit with wide silky ties and sunglasses enjoys their aperitifs and coffee breaks at the pretty outdoor cafes.
These are not Mafiosi, they just love to dress well.
Fare bella figura, which roughly translates to "cutting a fine figure," endures as one of the highest Italian virtues, on a par with making a pilgrimage to the Pope. As the Sicilians say, L'onuri è fattu a li robbi, Honor is measured by your dress.
Yes folks, it is all about appearances here.
It wouldn't be fair to i Siciliani to say their obsession with clothing springs from narcissism. Elegance in Sicily shows civic altruism: you are prettifying the landscape for the delight of your fellow citizens. As the old Sicilian saying goes, Mancia a gustu tò, càusa e vesti a gustu d'àutru;
Eat to please yourself, but dress to please others....

Sicilian Item of the day: Coppola hats

Worn by Jennifer Lopez and sold by Dolce & Gabbana as well as other designers, the Coppola is the most traditional Sicilian hat.

La Coppola Storta is returning the coppola hat to its original roots as a luxury item.

This shop trades only in made in Sicily caps. You will have the chance to choose the exclusive Sicilian ‘coppola’ among a numerous variety of shapes, colors, textiles and patterns.

These fancy hats combine fine Italian fabrics, unique patterns and hand made Sicilian craftsmanship to create the ultimate offerings in headwear.

Coppola is glam. The others are just caps...

Coppola hats are distributed through their flagship stores and better boutiques throughout the world. Their flagship stores are located in Rome, Palermo, Taormina and New York.

You can order you own Coppola online here.

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Driving in Palermo (Part 3)

This week we have another instalment of the essential driving companion for roads in Sicily (you will find Part One and Part Two here and here). Read carefully - this could save your life!

Rule #8. What's a Stop Sign Between Friends?
This is a very important rule for you budding students of the art of true driving, so listen carefully and pay attention. Road signs in Sicily are better considered as "advisory". When in doubt, it is better to be polite and nice to your fellow drivers and let them pass regardless of what the road sign says. In fact, upon approaching an intersection where your opposing driver has a stop sign and needs to give way to you, rather than passing him by, allowing him to drive off when the road is safe and clear, isn't it far better to suddenly hit the brakes and stop for him? Not only will your confused opposing driver be appreciative and thankful, but you will also receive the thanks from the five other drivers behind you, who will no doubt be rushing to thank you personally, right after swapping their details with all the other cars they have just crashed into. This method is far more effective when used on the busier roads.

Rule 9#. Roundabout...what the!!!!
There are probably 5,000 roundabouts within the confines of greater Palermo, in fact you will most likely find them on every second or third road corner, but the amazing thing is that very few Palermitans have actually seen one, far less have driven one. This can be the only explanation upon witnessing a Palermo driver who approaches a roundabout as if it was something that landed from out of space. At first sight they immediately slam the brakes on, fearing that the roundabout was suddenly placed on the middle of the road where there was none before. Then as they enter the roundabout you see intense confusion and concentration on their face. "What the @$#% is happening here", you can see them mouth. "Do I drive faster, slower, how do I get out of here?". Often the best method as a student of Sicilian driving is to actually stop while in the roundabout. This is best because it gives you time to think about the way out and to just generally, take a break. When you feel a little more confident you can exit the roundabout, but please do so at either a very slow, snail-like pace, or driving like a man possessed (either extreme will suffice). Make sure you repeat this behaviour during every encounter with a roundabout.

Rule #10. Responsive Emergency Services.
The sound of the Italian language is often regarded by many as being like a song with its dulcet sweet tones and melodious rhythm. It is considered to be the language of love, of passion, of art and of everything beautiful. So to, the sound of the water and of the wind on the Sicilian island of Salina was famously recorded on a tape recorder by Massimo Troisi in the touching movie, Il Postino (The Postman), because it was the most beautiful and peaceful sound he had ever experienced. Beautiful and peaceful sounds are not to be found in the main cities of Palermo. But you will find noise. The only sound that has any rhythm or melody is the ambulance siren. There is an ambulance in full siren mode, passing every hour on any given road in Palermo. It is so frequent and regular (and indeed predictable) than whenever there is a car accident, no one feels the need to call an ambulance for the injured parties, as everyone knows that there is one "right around the corner". "Just as night follows day, and ambulance will pass this road in the next few minutes" - Old Sicilian Proverb

In fact many Sicilian families with very elderly grandparents living with them, often prefer to live as close to the main roads as possible in case their nonna or nonno needs emergency assistance. This is the practical side to Sicilians.

Sicilian Item of the day : Marranzano

Marranzano is thought to be one of the oldest instruments in the world; a musician apparently playing a Marranzano has been noticed in a Chinese drawing from the 3rd century BC.

In English it is known as the Jew's Harp, but it has no particular connection with Judaism, in fact the instrument is known in many ancient cultures by at least forty different names.

Since its droning sounds have known to cause people to go into a trance, the Jew's Harp has been associated with magic and has been a common instrument in shamanic rituals.

The hypnotic sound of the Marranzano is generated by a vibrating air column, the frame is held against the performer's teeth, using the jaw and mouth as a resonator which greatly increasing the volume of the instrument. The Marranzano is in common use among vernacular Sicilian musicians on this island and recently a whole new music festival has been dedicated to it (http://www.marranzanoworldfestival.it/) bringing artists and Marranzano lovers from all over the world.

Marranzanos are available almost everywhere in Sicilian souvenir shops, and Ebay as well.

Palermo Street Food

Palermo Street Food, Cibo di Strada. If you are a foodie with more than just a passing interest in street hawkers (be very careful pronouncing that term in mixed company; just make sure the "w" in Hawker shines through when you tell someone how much you love the street hawkers of a particular place), you may very well think that the culture of delicious and authentic street food is a domain belonging to the Asian cities and towns with their bustling stalls of hawkers selling all types of food cooked in all different sorts of ways. Europe and most other places outside Asia lack the true and authentic culture of "street food". Sicily is the exception.

In many street lanes and alleys, not just in the Centro Storico but also out in the "burbs", you will find street hawkers selling freshly cooked, authentic Sicilian food, often made from secret Sicilian family recipes.

Street Food...Not Junk Food!
During Alice's first time in Sydney she asked me one night while we were out if we could go and buy some street food. While Sydney is a mecca for foodies it is not the first place that you would think of when experiencing a craving for street food. I think Alice realised that by the look on my face after she had asked me this. What I did not know at the time, but soon would upon my first trip to Sicily, is that Street Food in Sicily is another planet! Being halfway between Europe and Africa, and within sight of Asia, Sicily is the ultimate melting pot of culture and race.

The Cultural Melting Pot of Food

Multi-culturalism in Sicily is not something that is a recent phenomenon like say, USA, Australia, Canada or UK, it has been the way of Sicilian life for millenia. With this rich juxtaposition of culture and ethnicity has come an incredible variety of food, dishes, ingredients and styles. There are many food traditions that make Sicily truly great, but for the true food adventurer the most exciting and satisfying one, is that of the street, or the Street Food of Palermo. Be warned though, as those of you are familiar with Asian street food will attest to, Street Food is recommended for the adventurous "foodie" traveller only.

While the ingredients and hygiene are up to standard (the ingredients in Sicily are ALWAYS up to standard), much of this street food uses ingredients and food in quite inventive ways. Let's take Babbaluci, for example, otherwise known as the common snail. You all know how this tastes in France, quite nice usually, but the Sicilian take on this recipe has a great twist; extra virgin olive oil, a touch of garlic, grounded pepper, some wild fennel for flavour and maybe some tomato. They are one of those things that you taste once for curiosity, and before you realise it you have demolished nearly 50 of them! (a small tip: to impress a real Sicilian street hawker, ask for Babalucci and even if they do not have it they will be amazed at how a non Sicilian even knows about this closely guarded Sicilian delicacy).

The Best of the Rest
There are other delights on offer too, Pane Penelle - bite sized snacks made from chickpea flour, Crocche - special fluffy potato filled puff balls, Pollanca - boiled corn (strictly speaking Pollanca is mainly sold on the beach which makes it beach food), Scaccio - very tasty tidbits made up of dried salted pumpkin seeds, chick peas and fresh pistacchios, Cedro (or Pipittuni in Sicilian) - oversized breed of lemon/limes with an edible, sweet skin combined with a slightly sour inside balanced with with a liberal dosage of Trapani Sea Salt for taste (again, mainly found on the beach), Panino con Salsiccia - you have heard of German sausage such at Bratwurst and so on...very tasty...but wait until you try the herbaceous Sicilian sausage, an exotic balance of gentle spice, aniseed with wild fennel flavour supported by a squeeze of fresh Sicilian lemon. Add this delight to a bread roll (a panino), and there you have it, a hot dog that tastes like no other hot dog you have ever tried.

The Stigghiola

There are others too in the Pantheon of Palermo Street Food, such as sfincone (focaccia bread with an onion topping), frittola, pane con la milza, but the Lord of all "Cibo di Strada", and the most representative of the streets of Palermo is a barbecued dish called Stigghiola. Anyone who appreciates the taste of charcoal meat will savour this delight. It first hits you when your nose picks up the scent of something delicious in the air and like a blood hound your whole body points in the direction of the source. Your feet only take you one direction - To the Stigghiola Man! You stand in line (a Stigghiola BBQ stand is never a lonely place) and watch how a typical Sicilian man of the street, who can be better described as an alchemist, manages to turn a string of goat intestines into a dish served on a paper plate that combined with a cold beer makes you wonder if you will ever bother to eat in restaurants again, especially when you can find this on the Streets of Palermo.)

Clubbing in Sicily

Sicily is one of the most lively places in the Mediterranean and provides lots of opportunities for night-time fun in dreamlike, exotic and eastern-style settings.
In these places where fashionistas can see and be seen, bars are chic, the drinks expensive and the atmosphere vibrant.
But beware that to find your way to the most über-cool bars you definitely need a local to guide you.
Here's my fav hot-spots :

PALERMO

Kursaal Kalhesa
www.kursaalkalhesa.it/

Foro Italico Umberto I n. 21

This is where Sicily meets New York's SoHo. An attractive crowd congregates at the bar, which is flanked by discretely lit stone walls and a bookstore-cum-lounge. You can read English-language newspapers, listen to live music, get online at the Internet cafe, or pick up tourist info at the travel agency.

Kursaal Tonnara Bordonaro

Via Bordonaro 9

www.kursaaltonnara.it/

This summer version of Kursaal Kalhesa is just another place to experience inspiring past and trendy present. Kursaal Tonnara Bordonaro is an ancient fishing warehouse (or tonnara) that kisses the picturesque bay of Arenella. It has only recently been "discovered"after being abandoned for many years. It features a spacious outdoor area where concerts and art exhibitions are usually held, within the confines of this beautiful night club.

La Cuba

Via Scaduto 12

http://www.lacuba.com/

Almost every VIP in Palermo stops by La Cuba, a private club furnished in Arabic style can be found in the garden of the amazing Villa Sperlinga, which is a luscious park found within inner Palermo. Here you can sip cocktails while listening to lounge, chill out music while marvelling at the thirteenth century domed arab building that houses the bar.

161 bar & lounge

Via Libertá 161

http://www.welove161.it/welove161.htm
A popular cocktail bar among the youngsters where you can sip a drink, be entertained by a fashion show or listen to the latest DJ sounds of international and local artists, all contained within a period, Liberty-style, palazzo.

Galleria Expa

Via dell'Alloro 99
http://www.expa.org/
A must-visit place for Art & design lover, if not for the innovative contemporary art but for the surreal rooftop experience. The juxtaposition of contemporary, modern art on the ground floor, with a WWII bombed-out top floor, that conveniently turns it into a rooftop bar where you can drink under the stars in the heart of Kalsa, the historical centre of Palermo

Baia del Corallo
Via Plauto 27/a – Sferracavallo, Palermo
Perhaps one of the most picturesque glam spots in town.

Set in a stunning wild Mediterranean garden by a rocky beach.
You can dine al fresco in the big patio area, caressed by the gentle Mediterranean breeze, or lay back in the cushion seating area by the water, enjoying the beautiful people who congregate at this bar by the sea.

Tribeca
Via Mariano Stabile 134.
New York Style glam spot.
Perfect place to enjoy Happy Hour in typical Sicilian fashion: a generous finger-food buffet with a glass of aromatic Sicilian wine while watching the hip crowd and listening to cool music.
Allegedly the best sushi in town.

Cambio Cavalli
Via Patania 54

Inside a seventeenth century building (an ancient stable, actually), where art and photography exhibitions by young artists are often held. Cambio Cavalli was a place where the city messengers used to change their horses during the middle ages in Palermo.

TAORMINA

Panasia

Via Nazionale - Spisone, Taormina

http://www.panasiabeach.it/

A piece of Montecarlo in Sicily.

über-cool glam spot to party, wine and dine or to simply chill under the sun at this beach establishment

La Giara

Vico La Floresta 1

Perhaps the oldest disco in fashionable Taormina. Stylish crowd, do dress up!

AEOLIAN ISLANDS

Club Raya

Panarea (Aeolian Island)
lounge bar and disco set in a hip boutique hotel.

Ensure you are at this place at sunset and you will never forget it. The truly unique experience of being on the broad, open terrace, watching the sun descend over the black smouldering volcano on the island of Stromboli, is something from a dream. The stunning terrace overlooks the blue sapphire waters of the Aeolian Islands.

Matthew Fort's discoveries

I just learnt of another food critic, touring around Sicily on a scooter, falling in love with the flavours, spices, wines and stunning landscapes.
His name is Matthew Fort, he writes for The Guardian and he is about to release his new book "Eating Up Sicily".
Following is one of his recent "discoveries"....

Sicily on a plate
Deep in the forest, Matthew Fort finds a former railway station serving a mix of hearty food, jazz and blues.

It was an email that reminded me. It read "Antica Stazione Ferroviaria Ficuzza Venerdi 1 Settembre 2006. ore 22 - Sal de Caro/Strings Project, jazz on guitar." It was another musical offering at the Old Railway Station at Ficuzza, which had been arriving regularly in my inbox since I was last there in May this year.
The last train pulled out of Ficuzza in 1954. It's hard to see why there should have been a station serving this hamlet in central western Sicily at all, had it not been for the neoclassical hunting lodge built for Ferdinand IV, one of the later Bourbon monarchs, just behind it. As a result of royal patronage, the station, while not on as grand a scale as the lodge - the Bourbons must have taken their hunting very seriously indeed - shared a certain foursquare magnificence. Then, after the crowds of hunters and their attendants had departed, the station fell on hard times, and when the trains ceased to run altogether, it became derelict, broken, ruined and roofless, trees and vegetation growing up through its finely proportioned rooms.
Until five years ago. Then it was taken up by Nino Barcea, an extraordinary young man, who, with the help of a motley collection of family and friends, has gradually brought this railway palace back to life, converting it into a restaurant with rooms in the process. Little by little, the trees were evicted, the roof replaced, the outside repointed and painted a rich cream, the rooms restored, the land around landscaped, dining room and kitchen equipped.
When I arrived at the Stazione, a hoopoe was looking for lunch on the lawn between the osteria and the trees, and the edge of the path through the forest was luminous with wild euphorbia and delicate pinky thistles the colour of mother-of-pearl. Brilliant sunshine caused the floor of the forest to ripple as if underwater, the air silent but for an occasional tinkle of a cow bell.
Like all my favourite hotels and restaurants, the Old Railway Station at Ficuzza has a strong sense of personality, for, beyond restoring old railway stations and making sure that the cooking reflects the rich traditions of the Sicilian kitchen, Nino Barcea uses the place as a stage for his other great loves, jazz and blues. Judging by the regularity with which I get notices of performers, bands and groups coming and going, the Antica Stazione Ferroviaria Ficuzza must be staging a non-stop musical festival. After the Strings Project came YouTube, a blues band from London, and after YouTube ...
The trick is to gather your strength for the evening's concert in the dining room. Anyone expecting the delightful precision of Italian food is in for a bit of a shock eating in Sicily, where the dishes tend to be stomping, stonking and full on. Delicate and dainty they are not. But satisfying? Ah yes, very. I remember a plate piled with antipasti - caponata cooked to a dark-hued, glossy mulch; slices of the melanzane known as violetta, cut as thin as the page of a book and grilled and dusted with slivers of raw garlic and chopped parsley; slices of mild mannered pecorino; thick, soft slices of raw salami; and cheerful, slippery pickled mushrooms and artichoke hearts.
And then a helping of tagliatelle streaked with a sauce of tomato and pork. Could there be anything more simple? And yet it was fabulously pleasing. And after that a veal chop from an organic farm at Godrano just up the road. This veal had a bit of muscle to it, and so flavour, and so satisfaction and so on to the music, head singing slightly and stomach as round as a Saxon burial mound.
Not that you need be immersed in music unless you want to be. The bedrooms are curious - large, comfortable and well appointed, and up in the roof of the station, far removed from the sound from the sessions below. While their position means that they have no wall windows, only skylights open to the sky and the intoxicating tranquillity of the forest around.
· Antica Stazione Ferroviaria Ficuzza, Via Vecchia Stazione, Ficuzza, Sicily (0039 091 8460000, http://www.anticastazione.it/)

Sicilian Item of the day : Sicily by D & G

There's nothing lovelier than leaning forward to give someone a hug or a kiss and inhaling a wonderful scent.

Dolce & Gabbana transformed this scent into a deadly weapon of seduction, in truly passionate Mediterranean fashion : Sicily.
"Sicily" is a warm Mediterranean fragrance available for both men and women.

The feminine version blends wild orange and floral notes, while the masculine possesses a blend of lemon, orange, lavender, sage, cedar and tobacco.

"Sicily" has a really unusual scent, unlike anything else which I have worn previously (I think a lot of perfumes smell very alike these days).

D & G are best known for making women look, quite simply, devastatingly sexy : Their fetish-meets-femininity collections are always backed by powerful advertising campaigns, like the black-and-white "Sicily".

Sicily by D & G is available in every perfume shop worldwide and can be also ordered online via Ebay following this link.

Give it a try...and feel the intense alluring scent and the warmth of the Mediterranean vibrate in unison.

Sicilian beats

A Spanish mariachi together with Celtic flutes,
some African drums and a heavy dose of oriental beats : this is traditional Sicilian music.
A music that recalls the ancient dialogue among different people in this cross-cultural island called Sicily; a music that endlessly translates its multi-ethnicity into food, language and sounds.
Today, several young and talented Sicilian artists have re-discovered the magic of performing in traditional Sicilian dialect, mixing folk music with a contemporary touch.
Some of them perform in English, alternating instruments from various Mediterranean cultures, others in Sicilian only.
We have followed some of the most promising artists during the main music festivals in Sicily and during indie and world music international exhibitions.

These are the ones that we like the most:

MILAGRO ACUSTICO
Milagro Acustico creates a rich tapestry of exoticism and stunning music. The overall effect presents a dream-like quality that conjures up gypsies and other nomadic people, sharing slices of their lives and then moving on to the next adventure.


I PERCUSSONICI
Experimental Sicilian contemporary music, created by combining instruments like an Australian didgeridoo, African drums and a Sicilian tambourine.


RITA BOTTO
This talented singer/composer/musician is considered one of the best Sicilian voices.


THE SECOND GRACE
A gentle, folky mixture of songs that drew inspiration from Caribbean, American, and English songwriting traditions. They perform in English, but some music arrangements, such as their particular use of the tambourine, are strictly Sicilian.


I BEATI PAOLI
Songwriter and singer Alessandro Mancuso delivers an incredible, almost theatrical interpretation of his music on stage. Their concerts are often accompanied by traditional and contemporary dance performances.

Kals'Art

Unquestionably, Palermo is a marvellous city to experience at any time of the year, but the added attraction of Kals’Art makes this a great time to visit it.
Kals’Art is a two month long festival of music, cinema and theatre performances that takes place in various locations throughout the city of Palermo. The streets, parks and pretty piazzas in the former Arab quarter of Kalsa (from the Arabic Khalisa, "pure") are turned over to the event which includes a great line-up of entertainment ranging from theatre performances and film screenings to live music and arts exhibitions.
A huge variety of music is grouped into four sections : Kals'Art Maree offers performances by international talents and Kals'Art Riflessi is dedicated to minimalist, ethnic and jazz tunes. Kals'Art Wawe is all about Mediterranean music, while Kals'Art Mare Aperto showcases young talent.
Visitors can also take the opportunity to join some of the free guided tours and explore Palermo's cultural and architectural marvels, including the Palazzo Mirto museum, Catena and Magione churches and Chiaramonte Palace.
Theatre performances are usually held in the courtyard of Palazzo Bonagia, a historic building in baroque style; while films are shown in the evocative setting of the monumental complex of Santa Maria dello Spasimo, Italy’s first ever public theatre.
In the Kalsa you can dine on everything from pasta to couscous to sushi, and admire architecture embracing Arab, Gothic and Neoclassical, while the ambiance still seems distinctly Arab, with narrow winding streets typical of old cities in Tunisia, Egypt and Iraq.
Visit the website for up-to-date information. http://www.kalsart.it/ (dates are subject to changes every year)
When : 20 July - 26 August 2007

Ustica - a Diver's Paradise

Just arrived in Ustica. Tiny island of volcanic origin off the Palermo's coast.

The fresh sea breeze is soothing down the warm Sicilian heat and I am thrilled to show Dean around this special place that means so much to me.. .

My family grew up in Ustica and so did I. We used to all spend every summer in a lovely country-house located in the wildest side of the island, close to the Protected Marine Reserve, a paradise for divers world-wide.

My grandfather was very close to Enzo Majorca and Jacques Majol, two of the biggest lovers and supporters of this magnificent island. They used to dive in crystal clear blue waters and spend entire days admiring the abundant rainbow fish.

For a variety of reasons, I have not returned to the island for the past 18 years. While waiting in line to board the Hydrofoil to Ustica, it all started coming back to me, a flood of emotions, flashes of special moments and some of my childhood's happiest memories engulfed my thoughts. How could I forget the smell of just ripe cherry tomatoes, the donkey rides, the sleepy town coming to life at night in the piazza.
Nothing has changed since then. Ustica is still that timeless place that I had much loved.

The boat ride from Palermo takes about 1h15 and costs 19,00 euros one way. (http://www.usticalines.it/)

Upon our arrival, Signor Nino pick us up with a minivan, courtesy of our Hotel. Not that this was really necessary, I mean, the sleepy village of Ustica is about five minutes on foot from the tiny marina. Everything is so close and accessible that it does not even look real.

We are staying at Hotel Patrice, located just a stroll from the main piazza http://www.hotelpatrice.it/

Patrice, the owner, greets us with an overwhelming Sicilian hug. She remembered me from the good old times.

Hotels here are albeit basic but comfortable and above all the pricing is not inflated like most Italian summer destinations.

We prepare for another excellent meal in the terraza overlooking the deep blue Tyrrenian sea. The Chef is a big man, therefore we have great expectations.

The morning after we decide to hire a boat and tour the island and its magnificent grottos. The vision is surreal : the water from the seabed reflects an iridescent blue-green light inside the rock carved cave. Impossible not to swim.

To hire a boat or a dinghy in Ustica is a must. It costs around 45 euros for 2.5 hours, which is as long as it takes to make a round tour.

Da Gaetano you can hire almost everything : from scooters to diving equipments to boats.

Via C. Colombo 37 ( very close to the Port) – 091 8449243 (Italian speaking only)

In the afternoon we went on a donkey ride to another secluded beach. We “parked” the donkey, put on our snorkeling gear and dived in the natural pools close to Punta Spalmatore.

Our donkey was happy to take us anywhere for few cuddles and a little fresh grass in return!

But the highlight of our trip has been definitely our snorkeling guided tour inside the Protected Natural Marine Reserved in Cala Sidoti.

The excursion provides an amazing experience, by following a couple of Marine Biologist for a 45 minute snorkeling session. This Non-profit organization called S.E.P.I.A provides snorkeling gear, including a wet suit and waterproof headset to listen to commentaries underwater.

We follow a breathtaking underwater itinerary made up of extraordinary flora and fauna.

Ustica's marine environment has been greatly enhanced by the rare circumstance of having no source of water pollution, and having suffered relatively little from man's presence over the centuries.

You can follow your own free of charge lesson of marine biology by booking a snorkeling session with S.E.P.I.A at Piazza Umberto I – 091 8449456.

This is a truly amazing experience and you won't be disappointed.

Must see Sicilian movies

NUOVO CINEMA PARADISO
Giuseppe Tornatore's 1989 Academy-Award-winning film takes a romantic look at growing up in a remote village. The filmmaker returns to his Sicilian hometown for the first time in 30 years and looks back on his life, including the time he spent helping the projectionist at the local movie theatre.

MALENA
On the day in 1940 that Italy enters the war, two things happen to the 12-year-old Renato: he gets his first bike, and he gets his first look at Malèna, a beautiful, silent outsider who's moved to this Sicilian town to be with her husband Nico who promptly goes off to war, leaving her to the lustful eyes of the men and the sharp tongues of the women. During the next few years, as Renato grows toward manhood, he watches Malèna suffer and subsequently prove her mettle: her loneliness, then grief when Nico is reported dead, the effects of slander on her relationship with her father, her poverty and search for work, and her final humiliation. Will Renato acquire the courage he so readily admires from Malèna and stand up to defend her?

RESPIRO (GRAZIA'S ISLAND)
In this Cannes award-winner based on a Sicilian legend, a beautiful young mother living on a small island elicits the disapproval of her fellow villagers with her carefree behaviour. When her relatives suggest she need psychiatric treatment, her son helps her escape from the condemnation of their town.

IL POSTINO
Beautiful romance set on the idyllic Sicilian island of Salina during the 1950s where exiled Chilean poet Pablo Nerudo has taken refuge. A shy mailman befriends the poet and uses his words - and, ultimately, the writer himself - to help him woo a woman with whom he has fallen in love.

I CENTO PASSI (ONE HUNDRED STEPS)
"I cento passi" (one hundred steps) was the distance between the Impastatos' house and the house of Tano Badalamenti, an important Mafia boss, in the small Sicilian town of Cinisi. The movie is the story of Peppino Impastato, a young left-wing activist that in the late seventies (when almost nobody dared to speak about Mafia, and several politicians maintained that Mafia did not even exist) repeatedly denounced Badalamenti crimes and the whole Mafia system using a small local radio station, with the arm of irony. In 1978 Peppino (30 years old) was killed by an explosion. The police closed the case as an accident or a suicide, but his friends never accepted this thesis. Note: This is a true story. More than twenty years after Peppino's death, the case has been re-opened. Tano Badalamenti, meanwhile, has been convicted in USA for drug traffic.

JOHNNY STECCHINO
Good hearted but not very wordly-wise, Roberto Benigni (Dante) is happy driving the school bus for a group of mentally handicapped children, while feeling he is somehow missing out on life and love. So he is very excited when after nearly being knocked down by her car he meets Maria, who seems immediately enamoured with him. He is soon invited to her sumptuous Palermo villa, little suspecting that he is a pawn in a sinister plot. Unbeknown to Dante, he bears an amazing likeness to Maria's mafia turncoat husband and it would be convenient for them if the mobster, in the shape of Dante, was seen to be dead and buried.

L'UOMO DELLE STELLE (THE STAR MAKER)
"Dottore" Joe Moretti travels round Sicily doing screen tests for the big Roman studios. He's a conman and takes money or favours for his efforts. Beata, a young illiterate convent girl desperately wants to change her life and falls for him, belatedly he realises his feelings for her. Their love affair is doomed when he's arrested.
Trailer in Italian only :

IL GATTOPARDO (THE LEOPARD)
Luchino Visconti's 1968 film version of Giuseppe di Lampedusa's novel. Set in revolutionary Italy in the mid-1800s, the film stars Burt Lancaster as a Sicilian prince who seeks to preserve his family's aristocratic way of life by marrying off nephew Tancredi (Alain Delon) to the daughter (Claudia Cardinale) of a wealthy, boorish merchant. The lush drama culminates with an elaborate and memorable ballroom sequence that showcases the elegant and noble Sicily.

Palermo among the TOP 10 cities for Foodies

Tourists fed up with the beach and not interested in golf or tennis are finding a new reason to travel - food. They are going great distances to sample local cheeses, pastries and exotic delicacies.
Forbes.com has just released its list of the top 10 cities for foodies:

1. New York City
Essential Eats: Per Se to sample Thomas Keller's constantly changing tasting menu; Bubby's for enormous brunch dishes like sour cream pancakes with bananas and cherries; bistro Balthazar for classic choices like duck confit and steak frites; Chelsea Market, a gold mine of several dozen gourmet food stores.
2. Las Vegas
Essential Eats: Guy Savoy at Caesar's Palace to sample butter roasted veal sweetbreads, chocolate ganache and the 10-course tasting menu; Commander's Palace for a jazz brunch; Firefly for Spanish tapas; the thrice weekly Las Vegas Farmers Market for a display of goods from local bakeries.
3. Los Angeles
Essential Eats: French restaurant Melisse in Santa Monica for traditional dishes like almond Dover sole; Coast at Shutters on the Beach for lemon ricotta pancakes; Hamasaku, a celebrity favorite, for sublime sushi; the daily Santa Monica Farmers Market for a vast selection of vegetables, fruits.
4. Paris
Essential Eats: Taillevent, the most famous and grandest classic French restaurant in the city; contemporary bistro Ze Kitchen Galerie for favorites milk-fed lamb shoulder and pork ribs; Au Pain d'Antan for buttery croissants; Beauvau market in the 12th arrondissement for Lebanese specialties.
5. Bologna, Italy
Essential Eats: Al Pappagallo for upscale but classic Emilia-Romagna food; Tamburini for a selection of freshly baked breads; bowls of tortellini with different sauces at Da Bertino; the daily indoor food market on Via Clavature.
6. Singapore
Essential Eats: One Rochester for French dishes like cream of wild mushroom soup with white truffle oil; Ah Teng's Bakery for assorted dim sum; Lei Garden for Chinese specialties; the dozens of food stalls at Lau Pa Sat market.
7. Palermo, Sicily
Essential Eats: Il Mulinazzo in an elegant country house for dishes that are upscale twists on traditional fare; Antica Focacceria San Francesco, a bakery with excellent focaccias; Osteria Altri Tempi for classic Sicilian favorites; the 11th century market Ballaro for local almonds, dried fava beans.
8. Barcelona
Essential Eats: Casa Leopoldo for seafood and Catalan cuisine like pork stew; Schilling, a favorite of locals, for basic breakfast choices like eggs, toast and ham; Can Manel la Puda for a paella; La Boqueria, the largest open-air market in the city, for stalls of fruits, tapas and bocadillo.
9. London
Essential Eats: Three-Michelin-star restaurant The Fat Duck for the 12-course tasting menu; the Thames Foyer for a full-on English breakfast; Indian spot Tamarind for more than 50 dishes; Borough Market for stalls of Indian pickles, meats.
10. Sydney
Essential Eats: Longrain for Asian style dishes like red curry of kingfish with wild ginger snake beans; Bills 3, a chain that has a cult following for its breakfast specialties; trendy Chinese restaurant Billy Kwong; Sydney Fresh Food Market, a collection of 800 vendors.