Sicily (Italian and Sicilian: Sicilia) is an autonomous region of Italy in Europe. Of all the regions of Italy, Sicily covers the largest surface area with 25,708 km² and currently has five million inhabitants. It is also the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, though several much smaller islands surrounding it are also considered part of Sicily.
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Sicily is considered to be highly rich in its own unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, cuisine, architecture and even language. The Sicilian economy is largely based on agriculture (famously orange and lemon orchards, accompanied by the excellent cherry tomatoes “pomodorini” and olives); this same rural countryside has attracted significant tourism in the modern age, since its natural beauty is highly regarded.
Sicily also holds importance for archeological and ancient sites such as the Necropolis of Pantalica and the Valley of the Temples. (Below Amphitheater of Taormina)
Sicily and its small surrounding islands are highly significant in the area of volcanology. Mount Etna is the only volcano on mainland Sicily located in the east; with a total height of 3350 m (10,900 ft) it is the tallest active volcano in Europe and one of the most active in the world. As well as Etna, there are several non-volcanic mountain ranges in Sicily, Sicani to the west, Eeri in the central era and Iblei in the south-east. Across the north of Sicily there are three other mountains Madonie, Nebrodi and Peloritani.
The Aeolian Islands to the north-east are volcanically significant with Stromboli currently active, also in the Tyrrhenian Sea are the three dormant volcanos of Vulcano, Vulcanello and Lipari. Off the Southern coast of Sicily, the underwater water volcano of Ferdinandea, which is part of the larger Empedocles last erupted in 1831. It is located between the coast of Agrigento and the island of Pantelleria (which itself is a dormant volcano), on the Phlegraean Fields of the Strait of Sicily.
The island has a long history of producing a variety of noted cuisines and wines, to the extent that Sicily is sometimes nicknamed God’s Kitchen because of this.The ingredients are typically rich in taste while remaining affordable to the general populance. The savory dishes of Sicily are viewed to be healthy, implementing fresh vegetables and fruits, such as tomatos, artichokes, olives (including olive oil), citrus, apricots, aubergines, onions, beans, raisins commonly coupled with sea food, freshly caught from the surrounding coastlines, including tuna, sea bream, sea bass, cuttlefish, swordfish, sardines and others.
Perhaps the most well known part of Sicilian cuisine is the rich sweet dishes including ice creams and pastries. Cannoli, a tube-shaped shell of fried pastry dough filled with a sweet filling usually containing ricotta cheese, is in particular strongly associated with Sicily worldwide.
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Text from Wikipedia – for more info go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sicily
Photos copyright Heikkilä & Partners
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