Malta being very close to Sicily, we had to take the opporunity to visit the Italian island. It was easy enough to do, since Virtu Ferries Ltd. is offering a regular route from Valletta to Pozzallo or Catania. We decided to take a package which included transport from Pozzallo to Taormina to Mount Etna before coming back to Pozzallo for our return to Valletta, for a little over 100€.
The Maria Dolores departed from Valletta around 7 am. It takes about 90 minutes to sail on the Mediterranean Sea all the way to Sicily. The sea was calm, the Catamaran was fast. Impressive. Not so impressive was the movie they played en route…
Our first stop was in Pozzallo, a major port in Sicily with magnificient beaches. As it was still early, the whole group went for breakfast at La Perla, a Pasticceria on Via Dell’ Arno.
What a pleasure for the eyes first, then for the nose, as soon as we walked in. Sweet delicacies, fresh pastries, all kinds of specialties were on offering. Melissa picked something that looked like a “pain au chocolat”, which she described as being closer to a brioche filled with a Nutella like filling, With it, the obligatory coffee, a cappucino that almost looked appetizing to me. As for me, I settled on a pastry stuffed with rice, cheese and a spicy tomato sauce. Deliciozo!
After breakfast, we set of in the direction of Taormina, going through the Sicilian landscape and admiring the agriculture, the rich architecture and the amazing incapacity for Italians to drive properly. Taormina is a very popular touristic destination, with over a 100 hotels for about 10 000 citizens. Built vertically, going up a very steep hill, it offers spectacular views of the beaches on the Ionian Sea, beaches that you can access via a funicular.