We are staying near the town of Taormina on the eastern coast of Sicily. In Taormina, as in many areas in this regions, Mt. Etna can be seen in the distance. Mt Etna is the largest active volcano in Europe. It’s a heavy smoker.
Mt. Etna from Taormina
We had a guide take us to Mt. Etna, because we had been told it was exciting to hike up along the craters. So a young man named Luca took us. First he drove us through the town of Zafferana. Luca gave us a history of the eruptions of Mount Etna, many of which happened during the past few decades. The most devastating recent eruption was in 1992 when lava flowed down the mountain threatening various towns and destroying numerous buildings. Luca told us that there is a legend involving a similar eruption that had occurred about 300 years ago. According to this legend, the villagers of Zafferana, upon seeing the lava flowing toward their homes, prayed to the Virgin Mary and in fact carried a statue of the Blessed Mother to a point just above the town where the lava would arrive first. It was at that very spot that the lava stopped. So, when this huge eruption occurred in the 90s, Luca explained, the people in the town again carried a statue of the saint to the spot where they hoped the lava would stop and AGAIN, the lava stopped just at that very spot. Luca took us to the place where the lava stopped and you can, indeed, see what was once molten lava but is now a long hard crumbled ridge of volcanic rock that ends just above the town – actually right behind a house. There is a small monument of the Virgin Mary there and there are always fresh flowers placed around her feet by the people in the town.
According to Wikipedia, the government set off a series of explosions that diverted the lava flow from the town during the eruption in the 1990s. I still said a wee prayer at the monument. We were about to hike up the side of the volcano. I just thought she might put in a good word.
There are a series of craters that descend from the yawning active crater at the very summit of Etna. We didn’t go to the very summit, but we did hike past several smaller craters. The landscape is eerie and lunar, barren, but with surprising waves of color:
It was a long steep hike to the summit of the highest crater around.
We thought we were the only people on this particular summit, but when we reached the crater at the top, there were a couple of hippies sitting there smoking a joint. I’ve climbed a few mountains and hills and in my experience, there are always hippies smoking a joint at the top. This friendly pair didn’t speak English but they offered to take our picture and we took theirs.
Denis wanted to get a photo of me. ”Back up,” he kept saying. I backed up. “Just a little more. A little more.”
“Just a few feet more!”
The hippies laughed and laughed.
Great storytelling. I loved the history lesson and the beautiful pictures. As for the hippies, glad you didn’t harsh their mellow!
I love the stories too. It sounds like a wonderful trip.
I checked out the Pompeii exhibit when it came to Boston. Very cool. A whole town destroyed — and some of it preserved — in lava. The most fascinating takeaway from the exhibit? Apparently Pompeii was a foodie paradise. Like 300 take-out joints and restaurants. Not kidding!
Ann, you look nineteen in that last photo. Also please tell me you’ve seen Tom Hank’s Joe Verses the Volcano. That’s one of the best movies and not many have seen it, sadly. Glad you are still in one piece to write this entry.
It looks wonderful, Ann. I really enjoy reading about your trip. What a beautiful experience you are having!
Love the pics and the story. Makes me rethink the power of prayer. Really.
When I was young we spent summers with my grandparents in a little town named Floridia, just outside the port city of Siracusa. The place was absolutely magical,we traveled the island extensively, and i remember the unbelievable beauty of Taormina. One summer my parents climbed Mt Etna together, while I waited with my Nona at the base. I didn’t appreciate how incredible it was to go there…the smell of jasmine in the courtyard, the deep azure of the sea, the swallows circeling in the air above Floridia’s church in the morning, fresh tomato and basil sauce, my grandmother’s voice…
Lila, thank you for sharing that … what an evocative and beautiful memory.
I agree, Ann looks fabulous. I too liked that movie. But, evidently we are a committee of two. No one else seemed to agree.
Two is better than one, Sandy! “What’s a brain cloud?”
I loved that movie.. it was a riot and somedays I need a Hulu Lamp in my dingy cube.
Great pics of your trip Ann.. are you sure you aren’t sending pictures of Devin and not you?? You look way too young!
I loved that movie too! Three Meg Ryan’s for the price of one!
Looks like an awesome vacation!
Beautiful photos! I once read a book, written in the 1920s, about volcanoes and the stories of people living around them and being rescued, etc. 9 out of 10 people would think it was the most boring book in the world, but I found it fascinating – it included amazing black and white photos from the 1890s. Perhaps someday, your photo will be included in a book like that!
Donna, If you like geology and can stand a book without high speed chases, try “Basin and Range.” I love going to the western US and seeing time “on the half shell,” and the book is about geological process…and where you can see it.
Ann, great photos. Sounds like you’re having an amazing trip! Enjoy every minute!
The pictures are amazing. I really like the one of you with the crater in the background. The sky and the landscape in that photo is gorgeous.
I am back to needing to quit smoking because of upcoming spine fusion. It appears it does not work as well because nicotine acts as a poison. UGH!!!!! I remember you said Denis was quitting again last New Year’s. Just curious how he did this attempt? For some of us heavy smokers it feels like a volcano erupting… maybe my friends should pray to the Virgin Mary.
Kathy C.,
Have you tried http://smokefree.gov/? It provides information on quitting and state quitlines numbers. I’ve read that quitline counseling/support — especially if combined with the nicotine patchs — increase the odds of quiting by a lot. Some states provide two weeks of free nicotine patches. Good luck with quitting and the surgery. From what I’ve read, even if you try quitting and go back and smoke, keep trying to quit, because it often takes people at least three times.
Ann, so glad you’ve having such a wonderful vacation! Love this. What a great story about this neat day trip.