On the last day of our trip we visited Mt. Etna! In classical mythology, it was here that Hephaestus, the blacksmith of the gods, assisted by the mighty Cyclops kept his fiery forge. Here too was said to be the prison of the terrible Typhon, the great fire-breathing serpent Zeus defeated in the Typhonomachy. Both of these legends serve an etiological purpose, seeking to explain the volcanic activity of Mt. Etna, and now it was our turn to see the mountain I had only read about in myth.

 

Even at a distance the white, snow-capped volcano dominated the horizon, towering above the nearby city of Catania. As we advanced along the winding roads up the mountainside, dark volcanic rock and snow gradually dominated the landscape, a stark departure form the lush greenery of the rest of the island. We then left the bus and hopped on a gondola to continue our ascent. At last we arrived near the top, where we enjoyed the expansive view that lay before us, waged some hard fought snowball fights, as well as collected small pieces of the mountain to bring back home with us. It was a perfect opportunity to reflect on all the amazing things that we had seen as well as the friendships that had been strengthened throughout the course of the trip.

In the second half of our trip, we traveled to cities located on the southeastern part of the island. Here in the towns of Ragusa, Noto, Modica, Syracuse, and Catania we encountered buildings, in particular churches constructed in the baroque style. The Sicilian baroque style arouse after a massive earthquake in the 17^th century. From the total destruction caused by this natural disaster, the local inhabitants gained the opportunity to rebuild their homes according to the then fashionable baroque ideals. In particular, Sicilian baroque is best known for its theatricality. The elaborate three-tiered, concave church facades adorned with elaborate Corinthian columns and other recognizable curves and flourishes inescapably attract one’s eye. In many ways, the ornateness of Baroque architecture presents itself as a reflection of the heavenly splendor of God; its richness a defiant reaction to the simplicity propounded by Protestantism.

Additionally, it was interesting to see the distinct building materials used to construct the different churches. There was a great variety of local stone used; from the warm, honey-colored stone in Ragusa to the dark volcanic rock in Catania, located just beneath Mt. Etna’s snowy peak.

In Agrigento we toured the Valley of the Temples, where we encountered some of the most striking examples of Greek architecture. The term “valley” is a misnomer as the site is actually located atop a ridge that overlooks the city. Unlike the less than romantic nomenclature used in Selinunte (Temple A, B, C, etc), in Agrigento the writings of Cicero have informed our identification of the various temples. One of the most impressive buildings is the exemplary Temple of Concord, whose façade prominently features as the UNESCO logo. While it is unclear what exact Greek deity the temple was dedicated to, Concord is uniquely a Roman concept and celebrated the unity after a political battle or dispute. The Temple of Concord is exceptional with respect to its condition, and actually is the most well preserved temple in the entire Greek world! The unparalleled preservation of the building is contributed to the temple’s transformation into a Christian church. Some alterations that were made to the structure from this conversion, such as the spaces between the columns of the interior colonnade being filled in, are visible today. Altogether though, the Temple of Concord is the best specimen of an Ancient Greek Doric temple.

(Photo cred to Michael Colbert)

In Erice, we were treated to the unique experience of baking various sweets with Maria Grammatico, owner of one of the most famous Pasticceria in all of Sicily. Maria Grammatico first encountered the Sicilian tradition of “dolci” in her time growing up in a convent. There she learned the wonderful art of making all kinds of sweets, most notably marzipan made from Sicilian almonds. After leaving the convent, Maria set up her own shop, which she continues to run to this day. In our visit, we worked with Maria and her attendants to make her famous, colorful marzipan. We playfully molded the marzipan into the form of various fruits, other food, and some really adventurous students even made the first letter of their first name! On top of this, we also learned how to make  other treats colloquially refereed to as “nun breasts” and “beautiful uglies”. While our creations baked, we dined on a buffet of traditional Sicilian cuisine and afterwards, we were able to enjoy our handiwork as dessert.

In Segesta we also visited the remains of an ancient theater, situated on the hilltop just beyond the unfinished temple. Originally constructed by Sicilian Greeks, the theater is carved within the hillside, utilizing the natural declining slope of the ridge to its own advantage. In this way, the theater wonderfully conforms to the surrounding landscape and is very much in harmony with the topography of the region. In later periods, the theater was used by the Romans, who, unlike the Greeks, sought to dominate the landscape through their superior engineering. This difference is best highlighted by the use of the scene frons, which was the decorated, architectural background of a Roman theater stage. The scaenae frons was a permanent, often elaborate structure that  stretched multiple stories into the sky. This building was influenced by the much simpler, Greek equivalent known as the skene, which was not permanent and typically only one story tall. It was incredible to think that such a structure as the scaeneae frons would completely block out the breathtaking view that we enjoyed as we sat in the theater seats.