We met up with the Americans today so that we could say farewell as they return to New York tomorrow. We sat in a bar and enjoyed a Campari and Soda while the majority of the Catanese awoke from their midday slumber. I still can't tell you a lot about them but I do know that they don't like the toilets here, that one of them has a cat called Sheba and that they can't speak any Italian. Sorry for the lack of info. I'll leave the others to fill you in on the details later.
Dario, Concetto's brother, picked us up this morning and drove us into town to have a Granita. This is a typical Sicilian breakfast composed of a sweet bread roll and a gelato style ice confectionary either in the bread or to the side in a glass. You might look at this and think it is strange but trust me, this is worth a try. No complaints from the kids, anyway!
Dario then drove us to the centre of Catania where the four of us broke the shackles and got the opportunity to explore on our own. Our first port of call was the historical centre. Here we took some shots of part of the underground history. The amphitheatre in the photos was lost after the earthquake of 1693. It has been partially excavated and is an icon in this city located near Piazza Stresicolo. If you descend into you will notice the corridors of the amphitheatre that continue beneath the roads and buildings.
Next item on the checklist was to eat a typical Sicilian arancini a ragu. Tasty, and delicious the arancini here are a meaty pomodoro centre encapsulated in a thick coating of boiled rice then fried until golden brown. Yummy!
Final checklist item was a typical Sicilian cannoli. Now the photos attached do not do the cannoli justice. That's because they were so damn good that we started eating them before I could bet the camera out. Lucy did her usual sneaky trick; eating from both ends then licking it all before anyone could get a bite. Lucy, Lucy, Lucy! Anyway, it was delicious even with Lucy's spit on it! The shell was fresh and the creamy centre melted in your mouth like a gelato on a hot day. Perfetto!
After ticking all our boxes we concluded that we had a satisfying day. We got back to the apartment quite late and after a quick meal we were exhausted from all the walking.