Picture of the day – Castellammare del Golfo

Castellammare del Golfo (Sicilian: Casteddammari) is a town and comune in the Trapani Province of Sicily. The name is roughly translated “Sea Fortress of the Gulf.” It is so named because of the medieval fortress in the harbor. The body of water it sits upon also takes its name from the fortress, Golfo di Castellammare.

In ancient times, Castellammare had been the harbor of Segesta, one of the main towns of the Elymian people.

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A chest of Sicilian figs (Photo)

I took this picture at a market in Catania. A nice good memory of this past summer…

The temperate climate of Sicily has contributed to the development of typically Mediterranean vegetation. Vineyards, olive and citrus (lemons, mandarins, ciders, oranges) trees are throughout the island. Various species of plants grow naturally, such as: dwarf palm, mirto, corbezzolo, lentisco, oleanders, eucalyptus, pine trees and euphorbia.

A tribute to Messina, the lady of the Strait (Slideshow)

We want to remind people how beautiful Messina is and that brighter days await for her ahead. Watch this slideshow as a tribute to Messina, the lady of the Strait.

Photos of Ragusa

Sicilian professional photographer Franca Calderone shares with us some beautiful pictures of Ragusa. Located in the Southern tip of Sicily, Ragusa counts a population of 68,346. The city was totally devastated in the earthquake of 1693 and rebuilt.

Photo credits – Franca Calderone

Stromboli in the Aeolian Islands (Photos)

Stromboli is a beautiful volcanic island of the archipelago of the Aeolian Islands, located North of Sicily. A friend was nice enough to let us use some of the pictures she took while on vacation there. The complete slideshow is hosted at www.flickr.com/photos/sicilyguide. Enjoy and thank you, Emilia!

Photo credits – Emilia Ammirato

Photos of Sicily by Joe Zarba

Joe Zarba, Italian-American photographer living in Brooklyn, maybe loves Sicily more than a Sicilian. These pictures have already been proposed in the former blog format. Since we discontinued it, we want to propose them here again. The complete slideshow is hosted at www.flickr.com/photos/sicilyguide. They are so beautiful!

Photo credits – Joe Zarba

Bad weather in Palermo (Photos)

I just received these images of the bad weather in Palermo from a friend of a friend. The photographer who took the shots is Renato Cessari. The complete slideshow is hosted at www.flickr.com/photos/sicilyguide. Thanks for sharing, Renato!  A picture is really worthy a thousand words.