My Multiply: The sun-kissed island...Sicily

I believe that Venus the Goddess of Love was born in Sicily...It is the most fantastic of all the Mediterranean islands and I agree with Goethe... "Without seeing Sicily it is impossible to understand Italy - Sicily is the key to everything"...

So let's go to visit that beautiful island...

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...We flew in from Vienna and arrived in Catania airport before dinner. The way to our hotel in Taormina took more as one hour. While drinking a famous Italian wine we enjoying the fabulous view of the beach by early evening...

What is more beautiful than anything else in the whole world?... The view of the sea during a stunning sunset. From the hotel balcony was a nice view of the sea panorama ...So here I'm standing in my balcony, wordless overlooking the Mediterranean Sea...

The volcano Etna is situated close to Catania, 3.320 m high, making it the tallest volcano in Europe but the view on the Mt Etna is really amazing

That day we decided to visit the ancient Greek theatre in Taormina ...but previous to arriving at that nice city , suddenly it appeared in front of majestic Mt Etna...

The time for a lunch... we ducked into a restaurant with a fabulous view of the sea side and it was the ideal place to watch the sun set behind the mound...

The next day we decided to visit Palermo and Monreale. On our way to Monreale I repeated also the big test of my driving license. How they drive it's unique... one car on the left side.. one car on the right side and between some motorbike ... awful , but I'm alive...

The splendid cloister of the Benedictine abbey alone would make Monreale famous. Located next to the cathedral, these 228 columns, some with mosaic inlay, each with a meticulously stone carved capital, enclose the gardens of the cloister.

Monreale is world-renowned for his cathedral of the 12^th century

The central apse of the Cathedral, with the huge figure of Christ Pantocrator. The beautiful mosaics are said to be one of the world's largest displays of this art, surpassed only by Istanbul's famous Basilica of Saint Sofia

Palermo was the wealthiest and most magnificent city in Europe in the 12^th century.

I like many of the most charming villages in Italy, sits atop a hill (originally chosen in medieval times for their defensive value). It makes for a very attractive town

Syracusa's medieval heeritage musn't be overlocked. Everywhere we went in Syracuse, we were surrounded by fascinating, ancient ruins...

Syracuse has a Greek amphitheatre and also a Roman one, both well preserved.

Archimedes was born also in that nice ancient city Syracuse

287BC - 212BC

...and God created Sicily. The place where the mountains meet the sea. Sicily, the island in the sun, is home to Heavenly beaches, majestic mountains and Europe's greatest natural wonder Mount Etna. Probably the single best attribute of Sicily is that it manages to be fascinating place while hardly trying to do so. It all simply seems to exist and its up to you to join in and enjoy it...