Category Archives: Italy
Gold! Gold! I have struck Gold!
Wow, what a stroke of luck! I have discovered gold! Huge amounts of it! I have been labouring for a few days now, trying to get as much of it out of the ground before somebody else will find it. … Continue reading
Garibaldi was here
Italy is full of commemorative plaques and statues, many of them about the Risorgimento, the unification of Italy, and the independence wars from 1861 on. There are plaques and statutes to commemorate the landing of troops, successful battles, sustained defeats and … Continue reading
A Horse needs Fuel too
I bet these two vehicles, which I saw parked about 100 meters apart from each other in Palermo, belong together. (Seen opposite the Cathedral in Palermo, Sicily.)
Swordfish
(Discovered at the corner of Corso dei Mille and Via Rocco Pirri in Palermo, Sicily.)
Symmetric Cemetery
“We need to build a new cemetery in Palermo,” ordered King Ferdinand II. “This bloody cholera is killing people faster than we can dig graves.” Chewing tobacco and speaking in his typical mumble, the king pronounced it “cemet’ry”. The architect, … Continue reading
Video Blog: Civil War in Palermo
I spent New Year’s Eve and the first couple of days of January 2014 in Palermo, the capital city of Sicily. I only made one New Year’s resolution (although I had previously dismissed those kind of resolutions as bunk) and … Continue reading
Christmas Earthquake
Waking up and getting up early is something I usually enjoy, but on a cool December morning, 5:20 is a bit too early. Even according to the rigid regiment of my alarm clock, I would had another 70 minutes of … Continue reading
Lipari – Day 1
Lipari, Salina, Vulcano, Alicudi, Filicudi, Panarea. Don’t worry if you can’t immediately pin down these names on a map. Until two months ago, I couldn’t either. Then I moved to Sicily. If I add the name of the seventh and … Continue reading
Etna is causing trouble again
Since yesterday, Mount Etna in Sicily has been active again. It has been spewing lava and ash, forcing the airport at Catania to suspend operations. (Photo taken on the road to Caltagirone on 15 December 2013.)
Book Review: “The Wine-Dark Sea” by Leonardo Sciascia
Whenever I move to a new country, I not only read guidebooks and history books, but I also try to find some novels and stories which portray my new domicile, whether in its contemporary age or in the past. When … Continue reading
The Happy Hermit 