Amy's Gone Adventuring: Italy

The first port we stopped in was Messina and we thought it would be a good place to explore on our own. As Ohioans living in Belgium we were quite unaccustomed to the hilly walk, but we managed to make it quite high and climbed to the top a beautiful sanctuary. It was so peaceful and beautiful overlooking the coast and city below. Meandering through the city streets all the apartments and houses had tiny little outdoor spaces all with clothes drying out in the fresh sunny breeze.

One of the most prominent things to see in the city was the cathedral with a giant astrological bell tower. At 12:00 each day it begins a huge display with music as all the parts set into motion. We snagged a table at a nearby cafe for a cold drink and cannoli snack - a fantastic local treat best eaten strait from the source. The clock would move briefly as we waited. Each time it would finish moving Morgan would gently hold Scott's cheeks in her hands and say, "daddy, please make the man move again." As we waited the entire square filled with more and more tourists along with vendors selling hats and cheesy souvenirs. The full display began at the top of the tower where a lion shook his head left, right, up, and down and roared very, very loudly. Morgan was terrified. It was followed by an equally loud rooster flapping its wings and moving its head. She wanted nothing more to do with it so we walked a little further away under a tree until it was over. For the entire remainder of the trip she reminded us, "the lion went like this and this and up and down and I was really scared."

Next we walked through the cathedral where Morgan and I found a nice chair to relax in and she snoozed on my chest while Scott got some cool pictures inside. Since we were already a bit worn out for the day we just did a bit more strolling through town and Scott and Morgan went back to the boat for a nap (or as it turned out swimming and ice cream) and I walked around town and found a gelato of my own.

One of the things we found neat about Sicily was that much of the city had been destroyed between an earthquake and WWII yet they made an enormous effort to rebuild the city including the cathedral to its original design with such beauty and detail. It was such a beautiful city and a great way to spend a gorgeous day.

I love pictures of hand holding.

The sanctuary was so peaceful I could have sat up here all day.

This was the cathedral in the center of town with the Astronomical Clock in the bell tower. The square gradually filled up until noon to watch the clock.

Behind the fountain is the terrace we found to have a drink and a snack while we waited.

Here is a close up of some of the moving figures.

Morgan had pineapple juice just about everywhere and loved it. We enjoyed a tasty Sicilian treat of cannoli - by far the best I've ever had. You'll have to drool over the picture on Scott's page, his was much better than mine.