You're melting today. 40 degs yesterday hotter today - Sunday =Domenica!!! Quiet on the streets of Acireale. Chiesa (church) was beautiful and managed to understand some of what was said and follow the mass.
Yesterday you met Pinnochio's father Guiseppe. He is only in his 20s and very handsome. Also met Romario, Nino, and Luigi. These names make the visit seem seem all that more authentic. There is very little English spoken in this town and thats been good too. There is no real shopping centre and the street near to the hotel is probably the nearest thing to the main shopping area. A few clothing and gift shops dotted along the street and heaps of pizzeria and tabacchi (dairy type stores). It's a very authentic Scicilian town and people are very generous, totally unlike the Italian mainland and the experience so far.
Saw about 20 weddings yesterday. Seven (one after the other including a double wedding) in one church. The Scicilian families lay on beautiful weddings, the wedding dresses are spectacular (says someone who doesn't pay attention to those things!!!).
Rest up and keep warm in front of the fireplace or heater there at home, you're also resting in Italy today and enjoying the air conditioning. Take it easy at work this week and drop into the blog now and then when you're free to see what you're up to. Tomorrow let's go to Catania a major Scilian city only 15 minutes away, and take a look around a huge Greek amphitheatre. Arohanui and God Bless.
Pics of Acireale.
This butcher shop offers freshly butchered horse meat!!! YUM YUM - not!!!
Maceleria Equine. Horse meat on the bone - giant bones!
One of two very impressive wedding cars.
The other one. It's around 10pm still 25+degs. People are just starting to come out for dinner?!!! We ate alone in a restaurant at 7pm ..........way too early.
Frances, her chauffeur and the other wedding car.
With Luigi and Claudia at La Taverna restaurant. They have live lobster but we had vegetarian pizza - delicio!!! They gave us glaases and metal spoons for our takeaway desserts - cafe and pistacihio ice-cream
The Meditereanean sea at Santa Maria La Scala where you and I had a beautiful swim. The water temperature was perfect and the water crystal clear.
The red carpet leading into the church where you saw 4 weddings take place. To the left of this courtyard is another that opens onto it. There were weddings happening in their at the same time. The courtyard was a popular place for photographs into the early evening. Thats where today's Sunday mass was held.
Ciao ariverderci bloggers.Get back to work!!!
buon sierra
my turn again. tis coada here! calda is the word for HOT! i have been people watching again. lots of oldies sitting around the square talking and people watching. they look at us and probably have no way of figuring out where we come from. for one, we are much bigger and taller then them, and of
course our flat noses and strange sounding english (i like to think of it as exotic sounding).
the people here have their own tikanga - unlike the romans they are not a tipping society and we are not sure if they are offended when we do. the sicilians here are very generous and from what I read they have this pay back thing going on (shirley you would never survive here because if you do a favour they try and pay it back double) just about every place we have been to they have given us something for free e.g. ros and I were given sweet almond cakes as we left the restaurant and last night eljon and I were given peaches, and dessert in glasses (they love to give).
Ros is having withdrawal symptoms as we havent yet had a wine, (even though it is only 2pm in the afternoon) and she is insisting I hurry up. I am dreading the outside temperature.
last night I saw a big car and I said to eljon hei there goes a big car, (a normal size - semi van) it wasn't until it drove past and I noticed a big sign on the back that said funerali. (so we guess it must have been a hearse) even that looked small for a hearse. I had been wondering about what they do with their bodies as I have not yet seen a cemetry so I can only surmise that they cremate - will suss that out. especially when you consider our countryside is littered with them.
k ros is hassling me to go out. so much for siesta time.
ciao for niao
p.s some of italian is alot to be desired apparently some of my sicilian is english sounding eg sicily sounds more like shishelean as in sh..
my turn again. tis coada here! calda is the word for HOT! i have been people watching again. lots of oldies sitting around the square talking and people watching. they look at us and probably have no way of figuring out where we come from. for one, we are much bigger and taller then them, and of
course our flat noses and strange sounding english (i like to think of it as exotic sounding).
the people here have their own tikanga - unlike the romans they are not a tipping society and we are not sure if they are offended when we do. the sicilians here are very generous and from what I read they have this pay back thing going on (shirley you would never survive here because if you do a favour they try and pay it back double) just about every place we have been to they have given us something for free e.g. ros and I were given sweet almond cakes as we left the restaurant and last night eljon and I were given peaches, and dessert in glasses (they love to give).
Ros is having withdrawal symptoms as we havent yet had a wine, (even though it is only 2pm in the afternoon) and she is insisting I hurry up. I am dreading the outside temperature.
last night I saw a big car and I said to eljon hei there goes a big car, (a normal size - semi van) it wasn't until it drove past and I noticed a big sign on the back that said funerali. (so we guess it must have been a hearse) even that looked small for a hearse. I had been wondering about what they do with their bodies as I have not yet seen a cemetry so I can only surmise that they cremate - will suss that out. especially when you consider our countryside is littered with them.
k ros is hassling me to go out. so much for siesta time.
ciao for niao
p.s some of italian is alot to be desired apparently some of my sicilian is english sounding eg sicily sounds more like shishelean as in sh..
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