Travel Talk

Summer Shots from Sicily & Solid Winter Spot?

Greetings,

The sun is shining and the weather is cool, somewhere… With winter approaching it’s important to remember some places that are still cool and by that I mean relatively warm. A friend of mine in Europe was planning an itinerary and I suggested why not look into some sweet islands such as Sicily, Crete or Malta? At the end of the day, if you’re planning on spending winter in Europe, why not spend it somewhere with agreeable weather?

When I say warm I’m not talking about a sweaty hot where you need a shower every few hours to avoid smelling like a degenerate, no. I’m talking about places with a nice climate because seriously, spending the next 3-4 months in Stockholm, Helsinki, Munich, Budapest, Odessa, Amsterdam or Dublin sound pretty dismal right about now. If you aren’t attached to a location to earn an income, why would you pass the “crap months” suffering? Unless you LOVE snow and darkness, why visit or live somewhere freezing? It makes no sense!

This got me thinking about how I have some unfinished business in Europe and I’m not just talking about the Balkans and the Baltics. It also got me thinking of my time in Sicily. Long story short, I loved Sicily and I didn’t even go on some crazy romantic getaway. There was no long beach walks with an Italian lover I met in Rome or some girl I’ve had a crush on my whole life and recently married, no, I went with my mom . It’s one of those places though that comes to your mind when people ask you about some of the more special spots you’ve seen.

There was plenty to do and we only really checked out Messina, Taormina and Giardini de Naxos. Getting there was easy and you can take a train direct from Rome to Messina. Once on the island of Sicily, the train basically circles the island and it’s not that big but big enough. . The scenery was surreal, it wasn’t that expensive and there was plenty of great guest houses, cool hostels, classy hotels and fine places to find a plate of delicious pasta. I found every meal I eat on the island tasted better than on the mainland and it was cheaper.

The photos will speak for themselves but the place just has an aura or vibe of creativity about it. I think it would be really cool to explore by renting a car or say a motorbike. Besides exploring, I think it would make a fantastic winter hub for the creative type or anyone who does digital work these days. It’s also a great place if you feel the need to add say 10-15 pounds of pasta in your stomach or feel like going on a deep see fishing trip, yes?

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