Water and fire are the two elements that define Acireale. We reach its historic center by climbing up from the sea that forms the backdrop to one of Sicily’s most beautiful myths. The one featuring the shepherd Aci and the nymph Galatea.
We leave Santa Maria La Scala, the fishing village, and continue along the Strada della Marina, with Mount Etna, “a Muntagna,” towering imposingly in the background.
Following the provincial road, we discover the so-called Grotta, the small church of Santa Maria della Neve. Housed in a lava cave, it contains the 18th-century nativity scene of Acireale, enriched over time with life-size wax shepherds.
In a few minutes, we arrive in the heart of the city: we are in the magnificent Piazza Duomo. Here, it is a must to sit at a table in a bar, as Quasimodo loved to do during his stay in Acireale. This could be the starting point for a journey through the places of Quasimodo‘s poetry.
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