Sicily, the largest of the Mediterranean islands, lies between southern Italy and North Africa. Calendar of events in Palermo The island can be seen as a "stepping stone" between Europe and Africa. Cheap accommodation in Sant Agata Militello. A beautiful, mountainous island, Sicily has been occupied by a series of migrants and invaders. These include the Greeks, Cathaginians, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Normans, Angevins and Spaniards. In 1861 Sicily became part of Italy when Garibaldi united the Kingdom of Italy and the island. Cheap accommodation in Sant Agata Militello Eighty-five years later Sicily achieved "relative independence". This means that although Sicily belongs to Italy it is responsible for much of its own local affairs. Cheap accommodation in Sant Agata Militello. The island is divided into nine provinces: Agrigento, Caltanissetta, Catania, Enna, Messina, Palermo, Ragusa, Siracusa and Trapani. Tourist Information office centre Sant Agata Militello Throughout history islands have been invaded by foreign powers. Hostels in Agrigento However, Sicily's rugged terrain has provided its people with a degree of protection as many of its towns and villages are high in the mountains.  

Mt Etna, the largest volcano in Europe and one of the most active in the world, lies south of Taormina. Eolie Aeolian Islands photos You are permitted to climb up to 2900m. Cheap accommodation in Sant Agata Militello. A rope marks the spot where the volcano’s unpredictability makes it unsafe to go any further. Further south, the town of Syracuse was once a very powerful Greek city. Panarea apartments Check out the medieval buildings on the island of Ortigia which lies in the centre of town. Don’t miss the 5th century Teatro Greco – a masterpiece hewn out of rock with a seating capacity for 16,000 people. Hotel Reservations Cefalu The five Doric temples in the town of Agrigento are also well worth a visit. They are the most well preserved of Sicily’s Greek ruins and are truly spectacular.

As elsewhere in the Roman Empire, the Romans were replaced by the Vandals and the Ostrogoths, who demolished far more than they built (one rare example is the villa of Piazza Armerina) and were swept away by the Byzantines. Cheap guesthouses Lipari The Arabs who followed them moved the capitol from Siracusa to Palermo, renamed most of the existing towns, and planted the first carobs, date-palms, citrus trees, jasmines and melons. Cheap accommodation in Sant Agata Militello. The Normans took over in 1061. Cheap accommodation in Sant Agata Militello They tore down almost all signs of Arab culture. Car Hire Milazzo They brought the island to a new level of prosperity and planted a different kind of seed, still visible today in the blonde and red tresses of many Sicilians. Cheap accommodation in Sant Agata Militello. It is to the Normans that we owe the most spectacular of Sicily's architectural treasures. Solunto Bed and Breakfast From the cathedrals of Cefalù, Messina and Monreale to Palermo's Zisa and Cuba, the churches of San Giovanni degli Eremiti, San Cataldo and the Martorana. Under the realm of Frederick II, the Swabian king, Sicily became one of the centers of the Western world, and perhaps it is not surprising that the principal architectural endeavors of this era. These lasted only from 1220 to 1250, were of a military nature, such as the castles in Siracusa, Catania and Salemi. Cheap accommodation in Sant Agata Militello. When Frederick died in 1250, his successor Manfred was murdered by the ruthless Charles of Anjou, whose French allies streamed into the island and established a new aristocracy so despised that it led to the popular uprising called the Sicilian Vespers. Houses to rent in Milazzo Eventually, in 1302, the French gave way to the Aragonese (part of the same dynasty which sponsored Christopher Columbus), who dominated until 1734. Cheap accommodation in Sant Agata Militello. The aristocracy created during this realm left their magnificent homes, such as Palermo's Palazzo Sclafani and Palazzo Chiaramonte, scattered all over the island. Trapani apartments The Aragonese clergy, while wielding the heavy arm of the Inquisition, effectively conspired to keep almost all artistic traces of the Renaissance out of the island.

Cheap accommodation in Sant Agata Militello