Taormina grandly portrays a Greco-Roman theater (the 2nd largest classical theater in Sicily; the largest is in Siracusa) which was built by the Greeks on the top of a large hill, overlooking the blue-green sea of the Mediterranean and facing Mt. Etna in distant Catania. The Taormina theater was later enlarged and almost completely rebuilt by the Romans. It is still used for classical plays and music.
Taormina is one of the most beautiful holiday sites in Italy and a popular tourist attraction and vacation site. It is located about 40 minutes by highway from Catania which can be done by taxi, shuttle or bus. An alternative to taxis is offered by the shuttle bus service operated by "Interbus" with more than 20 departures scheduled a day and a very affordable price per person: only about 8 Euro.
If your arrive at Catania airport before 9.30 pm, you can take a bus.to Taormina. All buses arrive at the bus terminal in the central Via Pirandello - if your hotel is far away from there you might want to get a cab to the hotel (this usually costs 10 Euro). You may want to look into how you will travel; car rentals are more than in the U.S. and gas is higher, too. Another consideration is rate of exchange between Euros and American dollar — EUR/USD as of 10/22/09 it is 1.5035.
Taormina offers visitors a panoramic view that you cannot find elsewhere. From the Greek Theatre you can view the village below, the beautiful, unique bay of Giardini Naxos and the Etna Volcano all in one swoop. Close by, in walking distance, you can have espresso or cappuccino in the open cafes, or shop in the plethora of boutiques. The bistro cuisines are delicious and you must try the arancina (means ‘orange’ in English which it resembles) – a lightly deep-fried rice ball containing rice and a center of chopped beef and cheese. You also have to have gelato which is like ice cream and you will always remember what it tastes like. It has less fat than ice cream and a distinct, delicious taste and texture of its own. Walking down the side streets, pictured above, you will see the villas which are heavily adorned with breathtaking bougainvillea which blooms all year. You must have good walking shoes when you roam around, as the cobblestones, although they are charming, play havoc on your feet and balance.
It is commonplace to view original artists’ renditions of this beautiful city as they are displayed in the center of the square near the Greek-Roman Theater. They are for sale and you can get a beautiful one-of-a-kind hand-painted treasure for about 25 Euros.
Sicily is an outstanding, beautiful country. The climate is similar year round to South Carolina’s. Fresh fruit abounds and culinary delights await you in all cities. Taormina is its "Pearl".
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Italiano: Il teatro grecoromano di Taormina. Foto di Giovanni Dall’Orto, 9 settembre 2006.
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Bougainvillea Italiano: Il teatro grecoromano di Taormina. Foto di Giovanni Dall’Orto, 9 settembre 2006.
The Greek thater in Taormina. Picture by Giovanni Dall’Orto, september 9 2006.
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Mount Etna seen from the town of Taormina; Date 17 May 2006(2006-05-17) ; Source http://flickr.com/photos/matthewsim/154710810/
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Panoramic view
Italiano: Panorama (Capo Mazzarò) dal teatro grecoromano di Taormina. Foto di Giovanni Dall’Orto, 30 settembre 2006.
large teatro threatre Italiano: Il teatro grecoromano di Taormina. Foto di Giovanni Dall’Orto, 9 settembre 2006.
I, the copyright holder of this work, hereby publish it under the following license:
This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.5 License. In short: you are free to share and make derivative works of the file under the conditions that you appropriately attribute it, and that you distribute it only under a license identical to this one. Official license
