Sicily Book

	List of Maps	viii
1	The Best of Sicily	1
1	The Best Travel Experiences	1
2	The Most Romantic Getaways	2
3	The Best Museums	3
4	The Best Cathedrals & Churches	4
5	The Best & Most Evocative Ruins	5
6	The Best Beaches	6
7	The Best Luxury Hotels	7
8	The Best Moderately Priced Hotels	8
9	The Best Restaurants	8
10	The Best Down-Home Trattorie	9
2	Planning Your Trip to Sicily	11
1	The Regions in Brief	11
2	Visitor Information	14
3	Entry Requirements & Customs	15
4	Money	16
	The Euro, the U.S. Dollar, & the British Pound	17
5	When to Go	18
	Sicilian Calendar of Events	19
6	Health & Insurance	22
7	Tips for Travelers with Special Needs	24
8	Getting There	26
9	Package Deals, Escorted Tours & Special-Interest Vacations	32
10	Getting Around Sicily	34
	Suggested Itineraries	38
	Fast Facts: Sicily	39
3	Settling into Palermo	43
1	Essentials	45
	Neighborhoods in Brief	47
	Fast Facts: Palermo	50
2	Where to Stay	51
3	Where to Dine	59
4	Exploring Palermo	69
1	The Major Attractions	69
	Where Mafia Wannabes Get Street Smarts	76
2	Other Great Churches	79
3	The Best of the Palaces	83
4	Other Great Museums	85
5	City Landmarks & Treasures	86
6	Palermo's "Green Lungs": Parks & Gardens	87
7	Especially for Kids	89
	Walking Tour: Old Palermo	89
8	City Markets & Shopping	94
	Feasting at the Markets	99
9	Palermo After Dark	100
10	Easy Excursions	102
	The Legend of Santa Rosalia	103
5	Side Trips from Palermo	105
1	Bagheria: Decaying Villas	105
	Hometown Boy Makes Good: Cinema Paradiso	108
2	Solunto: Evocative Ruins	108
3	Monreale & its Magnificent Cathedral	110
4	Mondello: Fun at the Beach	112
	"This Thing We Have": Men of Dishonor	114
5	Ustica	117
	Exploring a Watery Wonderland	118
6	Messina & the Tyrrhenian Coast	124
1	Messina	124
	Not-So-Fun Facts: So You Think You've Got Bad Luck?	126
	Fast Facts: Messina	128
	Antonello da Messina: Hometown Artist	131
2	Cefalu	137
	Fast Facts: Cefalu	137
3	Termini Imerese	148
7	The Aeolian Islands	152
1	Lipari	153
2	Vulcano	161
3	Stromboli	167
8	Taormina & Mount Etna	171
1	Taormina	171
	Fast Facts: Taormina	175
	Where Garbo's Big Feet Trod the Sands	177
	For That Rainy Day	179
	When the Monks Come Out at Night	182
	An Evening Promenade	183
	The Case of the Bouncing Check	193
2	Giardini-Naxos	196
3	Mount Etna	200
9	Catania	205
1	Essentials	205
	Fast Facts: Catania	208
2	Where to Stay	209
	A Farmhouse Retreat in the Shadow of Etna	214
3	Where to Dine	215
4	Seeing the Sights	218
	Where Gladiators Battled Lions	223
	Something Fishy This Way Comes	224
	The Green Lung of Catania	225
	Walking Tour: Historic Catania	225
5	Shopping	232
6	Catania After Dark	232
7	Side Trips from Catania	233
	The Images of Lost Dreams	236
10	Syracuse & the Southeast	238
1	Syracuse & Ortygia Island	238
	Syracuse from the Sea	240
	Fast Facts: Syracuse	242
	The Tears of an Abandoned Mistress	250
2	Noto	262
	Like Venice, a City in Peril	264
11	Ragusa & Piazza Armerina	269
1	Ragusa	269
2	Piazza Armerina	277
12	Agrigento & Selinunte	281
1	Agrigento & the Valley of the Temples	281
2	Selinunte	293
13	Western Sicily	296
1	Segesta	296
2	Erice	298
3	Trapani	304
4	Marsala	309
	Don't Even Mention Port in This Town	311
Appendix	Sicily in Depth	314
1	The Natural Environment	314
2	History 101: Past & Present	316
	Dateline	316
3	Art & Architecture 101	323
4	La Cucina Siciliana	326
	Index	329