Mediterranean Trip Part III: Oh Sicilia!

Our next stop was Catania on the island of Sicily. After our day of Malta car rental excitement, we decided to hire a driver to take us around Sicily. We hired a Sicilian named Salvo thanks to the awesome translating skills of my bro-in-law. He sat pilot and entertained our driver and himself as we navigated the island.

On the road with Etna smoking in the bg.

Our first stop: Mount Etna. I don't know why I'm so obsessed with volcanoes, but I am. I love their awesome power, and it intimidates me to no end to think that towns and cities can be wiped out by these mountains of destruction. This trip we got to visit two, and Mt. Etna was the first.

Overlooking Catania

Etna is huge. It's one of the most active volcanoes in the world (thanks Wikipedia!) and was definitely smoking when we were there. We took plenty of pictures, hiked around some craters, and oogled at the amount of lava rock spewed around this massive mountain.

An unfortunate house caught in a lava flow

Next stop, Taormina. Taormina is a quaint little tourist town along the coast with beautiful beaches and a history that stretches back before 734 BC. Crazy. It was fun to walk the town, explore the crooked alleyways, and eat the Sicilian way.

Eating my gelato "the Sicilian way" in a brioche bun.

One from Salvo's roadside photo shoot

That coast, tho <3

The cacti! So many cacti on Greece and Malta and Sicily! I couldn't believe it.

Mediterreanean Trip Part II: A Day on Malta and a little note on Mykonos, Greece

Due to our troubles at Ataturk airport in Turkey, we missed our cruise ship departure and one day at sea. We caught up with our ship in Mykonos, Greece. An incredibly touristy and fun little town full of white stucco and blue trim and delicious eats. 

As soon as we got to the cruise ship, we jumped in the ocean. It felt oh so nice. We roamed around the island that night, exploring the streets, the five huge windmills, and a couple more beaches, before we left for Valetta, Malta.

View from the cruise ship

Valetta, Malta. A city built by gentlemen, for gentlemen. I love that tagline. Aaanyways, this was one sweet little island. We rented a car and had a grand ole time driving on the left side of the road with round abouts galore! I don't know how close we were to covering the entire island, but by the end of the day it definitely felt like we covered the entire island! Our highlights and stops included:

The Blue Grotto: This little gem was beautiful. We took a little boat ride from a fisherman's harbour and explored different sea caverns. The water was so blue and it looked fake at times, like kool-aid.

That water, though

The Dingli Cliffs: Offered excellent views of the ocean and this really delicious, all-local and natural restaurant. 

St. Peter's Pool and other Swimming Holes: The best cliff jumping. Though it was swarming with French teenagers, this place was awesome. We had a great time jumping and swimming.

We followed these signs...

To this.

Valetta: This yellow-stoned, walled city was beautiful. I loved the views from the Upper Barrakka Gardens and the old cathedrals throughout the city.