From Taormina, Sicily, you can see the mainland of Italy. In the other direction you can see the smouldering volcanic giant, Mt. Etna. You can see a lot of things. It’s difficult, in a place like that, to not see something beautiful. As you might expect, the people who live in such a place are happy, and inspiring.
It’s always a good idea to have a sketchbook handy in a place like Taormina. I’m a sucker for the Moleskine 5 x 8.5″ (13 x 21 cm) plain cahier journals – 80 pages of unlined potential. Rumor has it they were used by the likes of Van Gogh, Picasso, and Hemingway. Pretty decent company. Also, they’re designed in Italy. 
The Ionian Sea is bordered by eastern Sicily, the bottom of the boot of Italy, the west coast of Greece and even part of southern Albania. It’s one of the most seismically active areas of the world. So it’s wise to keep sufficiently lubricated if find yourself in, on, or near the water. You might even see a 5-masted schooner in the waters if you keep your weather eye peeled.
There’s a beautiful island there named Isola Bella, for obvious reasons. You can walk down from Taormina, as we did once, or you can ride the trolley up and down, as we did many times. 3 Euros each way and it runs every 15 minutes.
Taormina is such a romantic place that Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton spent both their honeymoons there. If you’re getting married, or divorced, or ready to consign yourself to a lifetime of solitude, you could find many worse places to go.
Words & Music by Mike Power 