amount of liquid sweetness to wash down
the overindulged dinner from the night
before. After a refreshing swim at the
beach, we snacked on exotic fruits like
fresh figs, which are so much cheaper in
Sicily where they’re abundant, making
them an affordable indulgence. We’d
return home around noon, clean up a
bit, and let our boy crawl around on the
terrace. Lunchtime rolled around before
we knew it.
Lunch was always the biggest
meal because, at midday, it was too
hot to do anything outside of the house.
Our friendly neighbours often invited
us – the only foreigners in the street – to
dine with them. Lunch was served in
a casual manner, dishes distributed
randomly around the table. There was
no time to change plates or utensils,
as our plates were continuously refilled
by the lady chefs of the house. We ate
gigantic pieces of lasagne,
scacce nella
tradizione siciliana
(similar to pizza, but
with crusts on both sides like a panini)
and, of course, more
arancini
. We drank
local wines in cheap chunky glasses and
finished with balls of heavenly gelato.
At about 4pm our major feasts
finished and everyone was desperate
for a nap. In the evenings we went for
another dip in the ocean and strolled
around the town until 10pm. Because
of the long, huge lunches, dinner
started very late. Nobody seemed to be
bothered by it: babies slept in their strollers
while families enjoyed another marathon
meal. My family loves seafood and we
ate it every evening – table-sized plates of
spaghetti with clams, generously drizzled
with olive oil, complemented beautifully
with charcoal-grilled lobsters, prawns and
fish.
No fantastic meal was considered
complete without some fantastic wines.
My husband and I snuck out one evening
to the annual
Calici di Stelle
event held
every August, and had a blast hopping
from table to table tasting all sorts of
whites, reds, sparkling and sweet wines.
Unlike events in Hong Kong, wine tastings
in Sicily are easygoing – unpretentious
chit-chats, more pouring in the glasses,
and children running around!
Between bites
Between the heavy eating and the
beach bumming, Sicily also offered us
rich culture and history to soak up. A day
trip to Agrigento took us back in time to
some 2,000 years ago, when the Greeks
conquered Sicily and left temples –
Valle
dei Templi
– similar to the Acropolis in
Athens. We hiked from temple to temple,
took loads of photos and read stories to the
kids in our group. It was an entertaining,
educational afternoon, not only for the
youngsters, but for us adults, too.
Italians love children. Going out with
my one-year-old son felt like going out
with an international celebrity. Strangers
oohed and ahhed and told me how
bello
my son was. It was a heart-warming
feeling that will remain with us for the rest
of the year, until we can return again.
January 2014
35
