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Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean and occupies a strategic position at the toe of Italy. Solunto Map The island has long been a magnet for invaders - all of whom have left their mark. Tourist attractions in Catania Greek temples, Roman ruins, Norman castles and Byzantine domes. Solunto Map. Visiting these relics of the past, swimming off the island’s beautiful golden beaches, marvelling at Mt Etna – Europe’s largest live volcano – and sampling first-rate seafood are all part of the Sicilian experience. Solunto Map. City of Catania. Nightlife Entertainment in Campo Bello di Mazara Situated at the mountain slope of Etna and to the center of a fertile lowland cultivated to citrus fruit, it was occupied from the Cartaginesi versus 700 B.C. Diving Centres Dive Sites and Schools Acireale Then it was under the dominion of Siracusa and conquered from Dionigi and from the Cartaginesi then, finally by the Romans in the 263 B.C. Cheap hostels in Piazza Armerina Subsequently conquered from the Normanni was destroyed in 1693 from a terrible earthquake. Solunto Map. We find it again today, like commercial heart of the Isle with its splendid and attractive baroque.

Sicily was chosen by the Gods of Olympus as the scene of their stories of love and hatred, of passion and revenge, of sudden wrath and deep compassion. Cheap accommodation in Lampedusa And today it's still a land of fire and passion. Solunto Map. It's also a land of great beauty and contrast, not least the contrast between what the local politicians say they'll do with the money, and what eventually ends up getting built/maintained/improved. Solunto Map. In ancient times, Sicily was covered with extremely rich farmland, whose copious wheat harvests fed virtually the entire western part of the Roman Empire. Solunto Map Its thick forests were renowned, but the Romans plundered them to build their great naval fleets and the myriad wooden homes that fueled Nero's infamous fire. Hotel Reservations Sciacca Like much of southern Italy, Sicily has been the ground upon which the boots of Western civilization have trod. Diving Centres Dive Sites and Schools Lampedusa

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. Licata Accomodation 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. Solunto Map. The Normans took over in 1061. Solunto Map They tore down almost all signs of Arab culture. Camping and Caravan sites in 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. Solunto Map. It is to the Normans that we owe the most spectacular of Sicily's architectural treasures. Tourist Information office centre Egadi Islands 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. Solunto Map. 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. Last minute accommodation Cefalu Eventually, in 1302, the French gave way to the Aragonese (part of the same dynasty which sponsored Christopher Columbus), who dominated until 1734. Solunto Map. The aristocracy created during this realm left their magnificent homes, such as Palermo's Palazzo Sclafani and Palazzo Chiaramonte, scattered all over the island. Information about Segesta 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.

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