This morning we get up early, because we want to discover, first of all the street market of Siracusa: a blaze of colours, smells, flavours and a lot of delicious things to taste. It would be so nice to have our own apartment just to try to cook all these kind of fish, using so many spices, tomatoes and cheeeeeese!!!Soon afterwards we take the car and we reach the Greek theatre, located out of the youngest part of the town. This is a typical example of hellenistic theatre that was built taking advantage of the position of the hill, that could guarantee a perfect sound system and a wonderful view of the harbour and of Ortigia.
Soon after the visit to the theatre, we leave towards the south. As you move from the city, the landscape changes, becomes more arid, in some traits it looks like a border counrty, nearly African. We want to reach the most southern point of the island, Capo Passero where the flows of the Ionian sea and of the Mediterranean sea are going to meet..."who knows what they say to each other???". The place is wonderful and the view is spectacular, the sunset here is something astonishing, you cannot miss. From the beach, you can swim to reach the island or, otherwise, you can ask for a boat to take you there. On the island it is still possible to see the remains of a Medieval fortress dating back to the age of Charles V. In the past, the Mediterranean sea was full of Pirates and such towers were used as part of a sighting system. We spend all the day on the seaside, it's really very quiet and the beach is provided with all you may need even if it is characterized by dunes and low vegetation.
On the way back, we go and look for vineyards where to buy some bottles of Nero d'avola, we pass by Pachino, the homeland for a sort of very little tomato that is really very delicious and tasteful for the sauce and not only....The final stop before reaching Siracusa is Marzamemi, that looks like a fishing village of days gone by and whose name derives from Marsà al-hamam, meaning "Bay of the turtledoves" since these birds are used to pass hereby during their migrations. This little village is known as a fisher village, that was born around the little harbour and it is provided with a tuna fishery, one of the most important in Sicily, dating back to the Arabians settlements. This part of the region is really very interesting and amazing not only for the landscapes you can delight your eyes with but also for the nice routes you can follow:
1- Archeological: starting from Syracusae with the amphitheatre, the temples, the dolmen near Avola, following to Eloro and Villa del Tellaro,...2 - Naturalistic: natural reserve of Vendicari (from which you can see a tuna fishery), of Plemmirio, of Priolo and the last but not the least the different crops of this part: oranges, olive, strawberry, lemon, grapes, tomatoes,...
3 - Medieval and Renaissance: the Castles and the buildings in Syracusae, the Swabian tower and the one of Capo Passero,...
4- Baroque: don't forget Avola, Pachino, Floridia, among the best known,...I think tha you have just to choose the one you prefer!!!
For our last dinner in Syracusae we decide to go back to Piero again and tonight we are going to taste
PASTA WITH PISTACHIOS AND SHRIMPS
Ingredients:
200g Pachino tomatoes
20 prawns
100g piastachios from Bronte
dry white whine
2 cloves of garlic
oil
salt
400g short pasta, like busiate, fusilli, penne
Boil the prwans for 3-4 minutes in salted water and drain them. Put them apart. In a pan, pour some olive oil with a drop of water and add the two cloves of garlic. Let them fry for 3 minutes and remove them before adding the prawns. Sprinkle with a dash of white wine and salt everything. Then add tomatoes, that you previuosly have diced in 4 parts and the coarsley chopped powder of pistachios. Cook for 5 minutes, till the tomatoes have completly whitered.
In the meantime cook pasta in boiling salted water for the cooking time indicated on the box and serve it with the previuosly cooked sauce!
Enjoy your meal because it's the last one we are going to try in Sicily.... we are moving on!
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