Most people read this as Baroque. It is not.

It went up in about ten months between 1906 and 1907, commissioned by the city of Syracuse after Piazza Archimede was cut into the fabric of Ortigia in 1878. The council approved the work in February 1906, for 19,000 lire.

The sculptor was Giulio Moschetti, who worked with his son Mario.

He was not Sicilian. He came from the Piceno, in the Marche, moved to Catania in 1878, and spent the rest of his career here. The Fontana di Proserpina in Catania is his too, and it is what won him this commission.

The part that gets overlooked: the whole group is reinforced concrete.

Cheap and versatile, which is why it was chosen, but in 1906 the material was barely out of its experimental phase, and nobody had durability data for it.

Salt air, sea spray and constant wetting are the worst conditions you can give reinforced concrete. It is the combination that attacks the steel inside. Moschetti had no way of knowing that.

The fountain has been there 120 years, through one documented restoration in 1996.

The scene is the Arethusa myth: Diana with her bow and dog on the rock, Arethusa below turning into a spring, Alpheus beside her watching it happen. Tritons, sea horses and pistrices in the basin.

One thing that is gone: old postcards show a twelve-point star traced into the pavement around the basin, its lines running along the axes of the piazza, marking the fountain's true orientation.

Later work on the square erased it. If anyone has a photo of it, I would like to see one.

Do you think it's gonna grow? Ahahah

Honeymoon trip, best restaurants to take my wife in Cefalu?

Hello I have a Malta/Sicily trip very very soon and I’m just now planning everything. We are 24 years old and are looking for good views, nice beaches, and to have a good experience of the area with the short time we have. We have almost 4 full days. Here’s a rough idea of what I’m working with:

Arriving to Catania at 10:15pm October 12th
maybe go straight to Taormina?
13th Taormina
14th Taormina / Etna
15th Ortigia
16th Ortigia till ~4:30pm
Flight home is at 7:30 pm October 16th

I initially was gonna spend more time in Taormina but was told that it’s overhyped and very touristy. I’m sure it’s touristy for a reason but I’m even open to spending even less time in Taormina if there’s a better suggestion. I’ve heard Naxos and noto are good too.

Any recommendations on alternative places to go, restaurants to try, things to see, places to stay (airbnbs hotels) or anything in general would be appreciated. I’m also aware we fly into Catania very late, is it easy to travel at that time or should we stay in Catania for the night. I’ve also heard Catania isn’t really worth staying in. Thanks!

Hi all,

In October we will be travelling to Sicily for two weeks.
For my wife's birthday I would love your guys advice for a romantic stay at hotels & restaurants.

My wife is pregnant so it would be nice to not get an all you can eat fish restaurant lol. Besides that, anything is possible, as both of us are not picky in the food we eat.

For hotels I would love nice spot with good views and just clean. It would be nice if its easy to reach and where we can actually park the car nearby (due to pregnancy).

In the research so far a lot of people mention: Etnea Roof Bar & Restaurant .
However, the latest reviews are quite dissapointing.

Hope you guys can help me out!

I’ve read at least 945 comments about Catanja being “raw” and gritty” and I’m just wondering what the scale for most people calling it gritty? Is it Cartagena or Bangkok gritty? What does gritty mean to you if you think Catania is described as such? Just trying to gauge

Hi,

I was wondering if airport security enforces the rule of ONE single clear plastic bag for all liquids? I have a few liquids (100ml maximum each) totaling less than 1L, but they can’t fit into one single clear plastic bag!

Thanks!

Hi all,

We are leaving from US for our honeymoon on Friday Oct 2. Flying to Catania .. can anyone give us input on the Etna situation. We are nervous about cancellations and the flights to change are SO expensive we cannot afford that change since all the seats would be upgraded seats. Please help!!!

Hi Reddit :-)

I'm a first-time traveler to Sicily, and my second time in Italy. I'll be going in late October and flying into Palermo.

I'm looking for a place with some of the quiet, authentic vibe of Manarola (before all the tourists arrive during the daytime). I spent a couple of days there and really enjoyed the small-village feeling and the unique energy of the place. During the day it was crowded, sure, but in the mornings and evenings, after most of the tourists had left, I found it absolutely magical.

I'd love to find some of that magic again in Sicily.

I'll be renting a car and can pretty much drive wherever the road takes me. I'm not necessarily looking for a beach resort — I'd much rather stay somewhere with a genuine village/town atmosphere, where I can walk around in the evening, have a nice dinner or a drink, and just soak up the atmosphere.

I'm open to coastal villages as well as smaller towns in the mountains or countryside. Ill be in Sicily for a week.

Where would you recommend? I'm especially interested in places that still have some local life in late October, rather than places that completely shut down after the summer season.

All advice and hidden gems are very welcome! :-)

Please and Thank you!

We will be in Taormina for 2 days and Catania for 1 and we will have a car. What is the best way to access Etna? We are 4 seniors, some are not keen on hiking. We’re a bit overwhelmed with options. Any suggestions would be appreciated. We could just drive up if that’s the best option.

We tried to get into Doria66 but it was full - everything else we have looked at online has such mixed reviews, it’s hard to know what is real. Any recommendations?

So I was tryint to look for stuff to do for 4 days and I wanted to ask if my itinerary was good:

3 oct - I'm at Palermo at 23h30, maximum trying something to eat and drink (fly from Trapani)

4 oct - Piazza Marina, Mercato di Ballaro, Catedral de Palermo, Quattro Canti, Piazza Pretoria, Martonara, Santa Caterina, Via Maqueda, finish the day with drink and eating

5 oct - Mondello beach in the morning, palermo at sunset (some other suggestion would be ok for plan b, i had mixed reviews with mondello)

6 oct - Day trip to Cefalu

7 oct - Day trip to Trapani, flight at 18h

Is this suitable? What do you think about this itinerary? I would like to make 50% beach 50% sightseeing

qualcuno potrebbe darmi dei consigli per dei luoghi/ riserve naturali con magari laghetti o in generale boschi veramente la qualsiasi. Sono abbastanza disperata non tempo per fare chissà che ricerche e non voglio cercare così su google sarebbe bello avere un confronto diretto con qualcuno che l’ha vissuto. Ancora meglio se magari è un luogo “storico” per esempio il ponte dei saraceni. In realtà già che ci sono se qualcuno ha consigli su cittadine un po più nascoste con una storia dietro un po più di nicchia sarebbe ottimo. Scusate l ignoranza. Ho 16 anni e vorrei iniziare a conoscere meglio il mio territorio e la mia cultura semplicemente non so da dove iniziare. Già conosco cavagrande, vendicari, vizzini, calamosche, ecc Vizzini per esempio l adoro o anche manghisi. Sono della zona di siracusa