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Myself and a few other friends had all said since the beginning of our time in Italy that we wanted to visit Sicily. It came down to the last month and finally everything came together. Joey and I went by overnight train on Friday while the girls would be traveling by plane on Saturday. The train, though affordable, was not exactly the best experience. My cabin was absolutely boiling — probably due partially to the fact that the temperature controls were broken. To make things worse, I was on the very top bunk. Nevertheless, I endured the night and woke up to the train being loaded onto the ferry.

Once the train was secure, I went up on deck for the short journey from Villa San Giovanni to Messina. The early morning light against the silvery clouds was so different than what I had seen in Tuscany, but it was absolutely beautiful. We came back onto land and set off from Messina. As the train drove, we rolled past countless citrus orchards. As someone who has spent most of his life in the urban tundra that is Milwaukee, it was surreal to see innumerable trees laden with ripe, bright fruit in December.

After a fifteen-hour train ride, Joey and I finally arrived in Palermo. We rejoined the girls at our hostel, and after a short introduction of Palermo by the owner, we set back out to find some food. The owner of the hostel recommended Bar Touring, near the coast. At this caffè they made arancine bomba, literally “little orange-bombs” (my rough translation). In plain English, they’re fried rice balls. Arancine are made by breading and deep-frying a ball of risotto and can be prepared with a variety of fillings, such as mushrooms, ragù, spinach, sausage, and cheese. Normally they are much smaller, about the size of a clementine. However, the bomba term refers to much larger ones prepared all over Sicily. These delicious bombs are about the size of a large orange, making just one enough for a lunch. We each bought one and then sat on the edge of the sea, gazing at the nearby ships at port.

Next returned to the city and visited a few of the churches, the most notable being the Cattedrale di Palermo. The lack of marble on such a large and ornate church made it stand out to me. I also thought the sculpture of Jesus inside was quite beautiful with its bursting golden rays. By the end of the day we were all pretty tired, so we had a relaxed night. We ate at pizzeria nearby the theater. It was possibly the busiest restaurant I was in during my whole stay. Despite the commotion it was still enjoyable. There were mostly locals there, so it was nice to have the feeling that I was experiencing a true Sicilian family-style pizzeria.

The following day we decided to visit the Duomo di Monreale, up in the nearby hills. On the way there, we stopped at Pasticceria Capello to try La Torta Setteveli, a world-famous cake made with seven types of chocolate. It is nothing more than a chocolate-lover’s dream. This cake is incredibly rich and not to be missed if you are visiting Palermo.

We continued on to Monreale, and arriving a little early, spent some time looking around the city. When we finally entered the cathedral, I was absolutely dumbfounded. The entire church was beset with ornamental gold, red, and green mosaics. I knew immediately that this was far and away my favorite of all of the churches I had visited in Italy. The sheer amount of time and craftsmanship required to create such a work is simply mind-boggling.

On our final day we decided to visit a nearby beach in Mondello. Our walk to the bus stop gave us a little view of the busier, more commercial areas of Palermo. We even saw one man arguing with another from outside of a bus! Palermo was shaping up to be quite an interesting place. A short bus ride later, we found ourselves on a beach with soft sand and azure ocean. The weather was nothing short of perfect and the sun felt so good while sitting in the sand. Being there in December felt like being in a completely different world.

Our time in Sicily was incredibly enjoyable for me, and was a wonderful change of pace from the end-of-the-year academic crunch. Besides just a change of pace, Sicily struck me as being very different compared to Northern Italy. Two things in particular stood out to me.

Firstly, I noticed that many of the buildings had obviously sustained significant damage at one point in time. There were even ruins of buildings left standing in places. A little research online suggested that these conditions were caused by the Allied invasion of Sicily during WWII. Whether or not this is true I am unsure, but it seems plausible. However, it made me wonder why the buildings had gone so long without being repaired or rebuilt. One website I came across suggested that money for reconstruction had been squandered away by government corruption. Despite all of this, the questions of why became increasingly irrelevant to me as the conditions simply became part of Sicily’s charm. I have always been a fan of old, reused buildings and urban ruins, and Palermo is definitely a treasure trove for that.

Secondly, the way in which people related to one another was a marked difference from my familiar “norms.” It was not unusual to see to guys walking down the street arm-in-arm, or see two friends kiss each other on the cheeks (something that could get you chased out of town in certain parts of the US… or shot). Also, while on the bus to Mondello a young boy (I believe he said he was 5) sat next to two older gentlemen, who were bus drivers. They all began chatting casually, and when the men stood up to leave the boy gave them a hug. All the while, the mother standing nearby acted as though this was perfectly normal, something I don’t believe you’d see in the US. I understand that in a general sense it all boils down to cultural differences, but it was refreshing for me. You could tell in the way that people talked and behaved that they truly cared for each other, even a stranger they just met.

Sicily is very different from Northern Italy, and appears even more so when compared with the US. Some people might not like it — they might talk about the ugly, damaged buildings or whisper about the presence of the Mafia. For me however, Sicily is a place that, despite whatever imperfections, still retains an irresistible charm.