On returning to Ragusa, and following Montalbano's trail, we got the bus to Modica where we stayed for a couple of days. We also made a quick trip to the neighbouring small town of Scicli. Modica is built in a ravine, so has steep streets of buildings ascending both sides.
Modica has become famous for its chocolate which is made to an ancient recipe. When the Americas were discovered, Sicily was under Spanish control, so chocolate was introduced, and made to the Aztec recipe for their "chocoatl" which was a sacred food for them. It's a bit of an acquired taste, being hard and granular and not like the melt-in-the-mouth Belgian and Swiss styles we are used to. It makes great hot chocolate though!
Other traditional Sicilian foods we tried were
arancini, which are deep fried rice rissoles, and
cannoli, which look like giant brandy snaps, and are crusty pastry filled with sweet ricotto cheese - we were both converted to them!
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| No caption required! |
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| Modica's duomo of San Giorgio dominates the town |
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| Barbara at the door of our B&B |
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| Don't try this at home! (unless you're Maureen) Actually, this three legged symbol is Sicily's coat of arms ... |
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| Bill in front of Montalbano's police station - in fact the town hall in Scicli |
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| One of many grotesques adorning buildings ... |
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| View from one side of town to the other - San Giorgio prominent in the centre |
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| It was very sunny on our last days, and this lovely chap was enjoying it |
Just catching up on your adventures. Great to see a lizard in December sun and if only chocolate was enough to motivate us to save the earth.
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