We didn't get to bed until 3am after the festa, so Friday was a pretty slow start. We had an hour or so to fill in before our bus back to Catania and had planned to visit the library (we had met the librarian - another relation - the night before) and wander around the town. The B&B owner had other ideas. He insisted we visit one of the local museums - Museo di San Nicolo - & promptly called the curator to make sure it was open. I couldn't understand most of what he was saying, but it was along the lines of 'I'm sending 2 Australian girls to visit you'. After that, we kind of felt obliged.
I'm glad we went - the curator was a very friendly non-English speaking man who was clearly devoted to the museum. It is situated in the crypts underneath an original 17th century church & contains artefacts from many local churches, as well as a large number of artworks.
They have a huge collection of silver & gold - obviously highly valuable as they are the only objects locked behind glass in the museum.
The sculptures were very evocative.
When we had finished looking through the museum the curator was trying to tell us something. After a few minutes we realised he wanted to take us to the 'Church of the Women' (I don't remember the name of it). He locked up the museum & took us across the square to unlock a beautiful old church. From what I understood the church has a female-only congregation & has served as a haven since the 1700s. There are sculptures of female saints lining all the walls.
After spending so long looking around the museum & church we didn't have time to visit the library so headed back to our B&B to collect our bags. Here it is from the outside - a lovely building.
We changed buses in Catania & headed on to our next stop -
Taormina. Described as Sicily's own Amalfi Coast, I was really looking forward to a couple of days of relaxation by the beach. This is the view that greeted us as we hopped off the bus.
Taormina is built into the side of a very steep mountain - about halfway down. High above sits Castelmola - we climbed up there the next day.
This is the main square with the Fortress Cathedral, built in 1400.
Mt Etna is an ever-present sight around the town - there is a view of her from almost every lookout.
Another large church - not sure what the name is.
As a beach resort and also one of Sicily's most well-preserved towns, Taormina is filled to the brim with tourists. I didn't mind too much - it seemed to add to the excitement of the place.
After a long day travelling & a stressful experience trying to find our hostel, we headed back to town & find a nice quiet bar to enjoy a drink. This is
Re di Bastoni - King of Clubs. It had an awesome laid-back vibe, cheap drinks & a good snack menu. We went back the next night as well & spent time chatting to (and getting Italian lessons from) some of the lovely staff.
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