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| Capital | Palermo | |
| Area | 25 832 km² | |
| Population | 4 953 000 (2020) | |
Sicily (Italian: Sicily elp. Sicilian) is a region in the south Italy, containing the island of the same name (the largest in the Mediterranean) and several small islets nearby.
Understand
Sicily is a medium-sized island (25,426 km²), the largest in the Mediterranean, with a more or less triangular shape. The region also contains several adjacent islets (three archipelagos: Eolie, Egadi, Pelagie, and additionally Ustica and Pantelleria), which together occupy less than 2% of the total regional area. The capital is Palermo.
In Sicily is located the largest volcano in Europe, Ethno (Etna), and further volcanoes in a few islets. There are also other types of mountains, up to almost 2000m. To people who love the sea, Sicily offers long coasts both sandy and rocky.
For folks who love historical relics, Sicily is rich in buildings of the ancient Hellenes who founded several important colonies on the island. There are also ancient remains of Phoenicians and Romans. Medieval and baroque churches, castles, palaces abound, in which the artistic traditions of several peoples are mixed - Arabs, Byzantines, Normans, Catalans, Spaniards, etc.
Guys who love good food will find in Sicily a delicious and varied traditional cuisine.
Terrain
In northern Sicily there is a limestone mountain range, a succession of Apennines, more or less descending from east to west. The highest peak reaches 1979m.
To the east is the great volcano Ethno (Italian Etna), c. 3300m, north of the city of Catania.
In the southernmost corner are the Iblean mountains (Iblei), whose highest peak is only 987m high. Thick layers of limestone, with deep, steep valleys, hide in its depths a former submarine volcano, which erupted 200 million years ago.
Plains are small and rivers short. The longest river in Sicily (Sauce) is only 144km long.
Around Sicily there are several islets, the largest of which (Pantelleria) has an area of only 85 km². The most touristy islets are the Lipari islands (also "Aeolian"; Italian Lipari Islands or Aeolian), an archipelago of volcanic islands, with two active volcanoes on the islands Vulcano and Stromboli.
History
Ethnic groups
Climate
The climate in Sicily is a typical Mediterranean climate.
Winters are cool but not completely cold. The night temperature very rarely falls below zero (not every winter, and never for long); usually during winter days the temperature varies from 6 ° C to 15 ° C.
Summers are hot, and can be very hot in a few years. The temperature can exceed 40 ° C, although most often it reaches 30 ° -35 ° C during the hottest part of the summer days.
However the temperature depends on the altitude. On the volcano Ethno (which exceeds 3000m) it can be cold even in summer.
Rainfall is abundant only in winter (10-15 rainy days per month). During July and August it usually rains only 1-2 days a month.
Cities
The main cities are:
- Palermo (Italian Palermo / pa'lɛrmo /), an ancient city, now the regional capital, with c. 650 thousand inhabitants
- Catania (Italian Catania / ka'ta: nja /), founded by the ancient Greeks at the foot of Ethno, with approx. 300 thousand inhabitants
- Messina (Italian Messina / me'ssina /), the closest to Calabria, with ca. 200 thousand inhabitants
Smaller cities, capitals of communities, are:
Esperanto cities
- Mazara del Vallo hosted the Italian Congress of Esperanto in 2012
- Sant'Angelo di Brolo next to Messina is, according to a decision of the city council, since 2014 "Esperanto community"
Other destinations
There are several towns that are interesting for tourists because of their monuments, beaches or festivals.
Other important destinations are the Etno volcano and the nearby Alkantara Gorge. All the islets are charming and worth visiting, although some require a long boat ride (for example, it takes 3 hours from Palermo to Ustica and about 6 or more from Trapani to Pantelleria).
Enter
Enire avie
The most important airports in Sicily are Palermo and Catania. Another noteworthy airport is in Trapani.
Smaller airports are in Comiso, Pantelleria and Lampedusa. Travelers to Messina can also fly to Reggio Calabria, in nearby Calabria.
Get on the train
Although there are no bridges or galleries from Calabria to Sicily, it is possible to reach Sicily by train. There are separate ferries transporting trains along with the passengers between Villa San Giovanni in Calabria and Messina in Sicily. Most of these trains run from Rome to Palermo or Catania, with main stops in Naples, Salerno, Messina (there are also further stops). Some trains run at night and contain a variety of beds.
The journey from Rome to Palermo usually takes about 11 hours, from Rome to Catania c. 10am.
Get on board
Of course, boats and ferries are a common way to reach an island.
The most important ports in Sicily are Palermo, Catania, Messina and Trapani.
Frequent ferries cross the strait between Calabria (Villa San Giovanni) and Sicily (Messina).
Other important maritime connections between Southern Italy and Sicily (mostly ferries) are between Naples or Salerno and Palermo / Milazzo / Messina / Catania / Termini Imerese. Many companies make it possible for trackers to travel by car day and night by boat if they like.
Additional ferries (or ships) regularly connect Sicily with Civitavecchia, Cagliari, Livorno, Genoa, Tunisia, Malta (between Malta and Catania or Pozzallo).
There are also direct connections from Naples / Salerno / Vibo Valentia to the Aeolian Islands.
Examples are:
- long connections (often night): Naples-Palermo 11-12h, Genoa-Palermo c. 21h, Tunisia-Palermo 11-12h, Malta-Catania 7h
- short connections: Villa San Giovanni Messina 0h20, Malta Pozzallo 1h45
Information can be found online for example at:
- FerriesLines (in 5 languages)
- Direct Ferries (in several languages)
- aferry (in several languages)
Enter the bus
Get in the car
To move
Public transport
Transport by train
Transport by ship
To reach islets it is necessary to use boats (usually ferries).
The most used ports to reach islets are:
- for the Lipari Islands: Milazzo in Messina
- by Ustica: Palermo
- for the Aegadian Islands and Pantelleria: Trapani
- for Lampedusa: Porto Empedocle near Agrigento
Transport by bus
Drive a car
Bicycles
Walk
See
Ancient traces are very abundant in Sicily. The most famous are Greek buildings, such as the theaters of Taormina, de Syracuse, de Palazzolo Acreide or the temples of Agrigento. In western Sicily, in Selinunto and in Segesto, there are temples influenced by Greek civilization, but not properly Greek.
Other ancient buildings are Roman. Among them the most famous is probably the Roman villa of Weather in Piazza Armerina.
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Fari
Communicate
Buy
Stores
Eat
Traditional foods
Vegetarianism and veganism
Drink
Alcohol
To live
Esperanto housing
Campsites
Hostels
Hotels
Security
Healthy
Respect
Esperanto
Local Esperantists
Esperanto meetings
The 79th Italian Congress of Esperanto took place in 2012 in Sicily, in the town of Mazara del Vallo (western Sicily).
