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Judith Jones visits the beautiful Mediterranean island of Sicily. Having been heavily influenced by invaders ranging from the Greeks and Romans to the Carthaginians, Arabs, Normans, Spanish and French this place is a veritable treasure trove for the serious shoppers of the world.
Basing herself in Sicily’s second city of Catania, Judith immerses herself in local life by firstly visiting the fish and vegetable market then paying a visit to the vineyard situated on the outskirts of the city, built on the slopes of Mount Etna, one of Europe’s most active volcanoes.
From Catania, Judith travels to the stunning Baroque town of Siracusa to watch a performance of the ancient art of puppetry, and discover how these beautiful figures are made.
It’s then on to Caltagirone to buy some of the local ceramics. Whilst there she has a the opportunity to meet with one of the more eccentric artists whose specialty happens to be ceramic!
On the way back to Catania we check out some fifth generation chocolatiers but not for to long, sadly, as we have an appointment with one of Sicily’s leading fashion designers, Marella Ferrara.
Lastly, Judith checks into one of the islands leading hotels for a bit of R&R. The Eremo della Giubiliana, a charming hotel set in a historical residence, a few kilometres south of Ragusa where it’s hard not to escape it’s deep rooted history.
Judith’s bedroom, she learns, was used by the The Knights of the Order of San Giovanni, stationed in the nearby island of Malta, as a Convent structure in the first half of the 16th century.
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A Puppeteer is hard at work for an upcoming show at the Vaccaro Mauceri Puppet Laboratory
The famous Steps of Santa Maria del Monte
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