We are in that time of the year again. The summer is over, we’re all going back to our daily routines and embracing the comforting colors and sound of the fall, yet, it’s hard not to think about another holiday, a city break somewhere beautiful and rich in history and art. This is why every September Trip Advisor selects five European locations tipped to become particularly popular in the following months: to make our destination choice a tad easier. Or not, depending on how you look at it.
This year, the well known traveling site included an Italian stunner in its list and, let me tell you, it’s a bit unexpected: Catania. Unexpected not because the city doesn’t deserve it, but because it’s easy to forget about its wealth of art and history, considering it’s surrounded by places like Palermo, the Valle dei Templi, Monreale… You know the way it is: if you open a chest filled with breathtaking, precious diamonds, you may fail to note their beauty one by one.
This is why Trip Advisor’s choice of Catania as one of 2019’s up and coming European destinations is welcomed: it’ll hopefully bring more attention onto a town that well deserves the love – and visits – of more people. Here are five reasons you should most definitely include Catania in your next trip to Sicily: Trip Advisor is not the only one to have noticed them!
1. Mount Etna watching over the city
Just like Vesuvius is synonym with Naples, Etna means Catania: high and majestic, imposing and fearful, yet also loved, admired and respected, Mount Etna, whose natural reserve has been part of the UNESCO World Heritage since 2013, is the soul of Catania. It protects and looms over the city at once, and is the first of its beauties to welcome visitors as soon as they land at Fontanarossa airport. It frames the baroque streets of Catania in the same way the Alps embrace those of Turin, all those miles up north. You can admire it from town or, if you’re into trekking, you can take one of the many tours available bringing you around the Natural Park of Etna. The choice is yours.
2. The lively and colorful world of Catania’s market and kiosks
As it often happens in towns by the sea, the fish market is one of the places where Catania’s colorful character truly shines. And what a character: you see, Catania’s fish market is not your usual outdoor souk style gathering of fragrant, vocal, vibrant stalls. Or it’s not just that, at least. Located just behind the cathedral, it has the peculiarity to have developed inside the tunnels of Charles V’s walls, built during the 16th century to defend the city from potential invasions.
Because of this, the market is both indoor and outdoor and takes place, quite literally, in a piece of history. You’ll find more than fish, too: vegetables and fruit, meats and tripes, all can be found here, at the hearty core of Catania. And if you need to quench your thirst after a visit to the market, look no further than one of the city’s traditional kiosks, or cioscu. To drink u cioscu, at the kiosk, is a true Catanese tradition: you’ll find them in Piazza Roma and Piazza Cavour, in Piazza della Borsa and Piazza Umberto, the latter being home to the most popular.
The tradition of kiosks in Catania dates back to the 19th century, when vendors would sell water with anise to help people survive the heat. More than a century passed, but the ingredients remain beautifully old fashioned: sugar, fruit, water and natural syrups. Try fresh drinks made with water from Mount Etna and mandarin or tamarind, orzata, or the delicious sciampagnino, made with citron juice, water and soda water, and completo, a fantastic mix of orzata, anise, lemon juice and soda water.
3. The world underneath the streets
Throughout the millennia, mount Etna truly made the history of the city of Catania: every eruption covered with a layer of lava and ashes buildings and roads, art and commerces. But nothing of such an immense patrimony has gone truly lost, it’s simply hidden under the ground. Centuries and centuries of history lie underneath the surface, an archeological dream and a place to rediscover the origins of a city, origins matching those of civilization in Italy. Under the streets of today’s Catania, we’ll find the Achillian Thermal Baths and those of the Rotunda, but also the remains of the largest Roman amphitheater in Italy after the Colosseum and the Arena of Verona. We can see the early shapes of Catania’s Christian faith in the church of San Gaetano alle Grotte, characterized by a series of underground tunnels which were, most likely, catacombs and where Sant’Agata was probably buried. A true world underneath the world, unique and rare.
4. Catania and Sant’Agata
If you’re in Catania at the beginning of February, then you’ll have the luck to experience one of the largest religious festivals in the world, the celebration of Sant’Agata. When it comes to the number of faithfuls participating, only the Holy Week in Seville and the feast of Corpus Christi in Cuzco, Peru, have more. The festival of Sant’Agata takes place on the 3rd, 4th and 5th of February but preparations for it begin straight after the end of Christmas celebrations. More than one million people participates to celebrations that culminates in a holy procession through the city that touches upon the places of Sant’Agata’s martyrdom: typical of it are the candelore, large, beautifully decorated candles carried by faithfuls on their shoulders. However, the real centerpiece of the procession is the vara, a large, chiseled reliquary entirely made in silver and dating back to the early 16th century.
5.Catania’s baroque
And then, there is Catania’s outstanding baroque architecture, something you can enjoy every day, in every street and corner of the city. Catania was severely damaged during the 1693 earthquake that entirely destroyed the town of Noto and many other smaller villages in the area. Reconstruction began almost immediately, in a style whose opulence was not simply dictated by the architectural trends of the times, but also by the will of the Sicilian aristocracy to show off their power and wealth. The results, which we can still enjoy today, are buildings at once opulent and incredibly light, a heady mix of two opposite but somehow equally incredible things. Every corner of Catania truly has a treasure to offer: it’s time to go take a look for ourselves.
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