Messina
Thankfully, we had another sea day to recover before the next adventure. The following morning we woke as the Queen Victoria approached the Strait of Messina, the narrow stretch of water separating Sicily from mainland Italy. This was one of those occasions when the journey itself was almost as interesting as the destination. The Strait is only about 3 kilometres wide at its narrowest point and connects the Tyrrhenian Sea to the north with the Ionian Sea to the south. The currents can be surprisingly strong and unpredictable, particularly where the two bodies of water meet.
We had been lucky enough to have a wonderful guide who gave us a proper introduction to the Strait and, more importantly, told us the legend of the two hazards that made these waters famous long before cruise ships and GPS.
According to Greek mythology, sailors passing through the Strait had to contend with Scylla and Charybdis — two terrifying monsters living on opposite sides of the channel. Scylla was the six-headed monster who lived in a cave on the Calabrian side and was said to reach out and snatch sailors from passing ships. On the Sicilian side lurked Charybdis, a monstrous creature who swallowed enormous quantities of seawater and then spewed it back out, creating a deadly whirlpool.
Poor old Odysseus had the unenviable job of sailing between them. He was warned that trying to avoid one would bring him dangerously close to the other. In the end, he chose the lesser of two evils and sailed closer to Scylla, who promptly grabbed six of his men. Charybdis, meanwhile, swallowed the ship later in the story. Not exactly the sort of holiday cruise we were looking for.
The fascinating thing is that the legend may have been inspired by the very real hazards of the Strait. Powerful currents and swirling water have been documented here for centuries, so the ancient Greeks weren't necessarily imagining everything from scratch. They simply turned some difficult navigation into a story involving sea monsters, which frankly seems much more interesting than saying, "Watch out for the currents."
Our guide brought the whole story to life, pointing out the coastline and explaining how the geography of the Strait had helped create the legend. It was one of those little unexpected moments that made the journey particularly memorable.
Once through the Strait, we headed towards our Sicilian adventure.
Our original plan had been to visit Mount Etna, followed by a lavish Sicilian lunch at a winery somewhere in the foothills. It sounded idyllic. Unfortunately, Etna had other ideas.
The volcano had been erupting with considerable force for about a week before we arrived, so getting anywhere near it wasn't particularly sensible. When Mother Nature is throwing lava around, you really shouldn't argue with her. So the Etna excursion was cancelled and we decided that Taormina was a pretty good Plan B.
Actually, it turned out to be an excellent Plan B.
We booked a tour that combined a boat trip, swimming and lunch in Taormina, which sounded considerably more enjoyable than spending the day being chased by volcanic ash.
The Queen Victoria was docked in Messina, and we hopped on our bus and headed south along the spectacular Sicilian coast towards Giardini Naxos, the seaside town beneath Taormina. From there we boarded our boat and set off along the coast. The water was that gorgeous Mediterranean blue that looks almost artificially enhanced, and after our recent experience with the heat, getting onto the water was very welcome.
We explored the famous Blue Grotto around the coast of Taormina, where the sunlight filtering through the water creates that intense blue glow that makes you understand why people have been photographing this coastline for generations. We also sailed past the magnificent San Domenico Palace, the luxury hotel that became instantly recognisable to television viewers after featuring as the setting for The White Lotus.
It looked every bit as glamorous from the water as it does on television.
Then came the really important part of the excursion. Swimming.
We stopped in a beautiful stretch of the Ionian Sea, and rather than having to clamber down a ladder like civilised people, we simply jumped off the back of the boat. The water was glorious — warm, clear, unbelievably blue and buoyant!. After the oppressive heat we'd been experiencing every day, getting into the sea felt like the best idea anyone had had all week.
There was something wonderfully decadent about floating around in the Mediterranean, looking up at the Sicilian coastline and thinking, Yes, this will do very nicely.
Eventually we dragged ourselves back onto the boat where we were greeted with a glass of (Italian) Prosecco and a freshly made cannoli. Quite frankly, whoever designed this tour understood the concept of motivation. A swim followed by Prosecco and cannoli is difficult to argue with.
Then it was time to head up the hill to Taormina. And what a beautiful town it is. Perched high above the Ionian coast, Taormina has spectacular views in almost every direction, with its narrow streets, beautiful buildings, little piazzas and dramatic mountain backdrop. The town has been attracting visitors for centuries and has a fascinating history stretching back to the ancient Greeks, who established the settlement of Tauromenion in the 4th century BC. Its famous ancient Greek theatre is one of Sicily's great attractions, although on this visit we didn't have time to explore it properly.
We did, however, have time for shopping. Lots of shopping. A leather bag seemed to be particularly attracted to us, and somehow managed to find its way into our possession. I'm not entirely sure how that happened.
We also found what may have been the world's most expensive beer and some very expensive but absolutely delicious arancini — those wonderful Sicilian fried rice balls traditionally filled with things such as ragù, cheese or other delicious combinations. Were they overpriced? Absolutely. Were they worth it? Also absolutely.
We wandered through the streets, soaking up the atmosphere and enjoying the views, while all the time knowing that somewhere behind the buildings was the rather angry Mount Etna. Eventually, from one of the main streets, we caught sight of it — smoking away in the distance.
Even though we couldn't get anywhere near it, seeing Etna doing what Etna does was a pretty spectacular consolation prize.
Our time in Taormina eventually came to an end, and we boarded the bus for the journey back to the Mothership.
The drive was almost as spectacular as the destination. The road wound its way along the hills and coastline, with incredible views over the Ionian Sea, little villages clinging to the slopes and medieval fortifications appearing seemingly out of nowhere.
It was one of those journeys where nobody says much because everyone is too busy looking out the window.
Back on board, we watched the coastline disappear as the Queen Victoria headed out to sea. Etna was still smoking, the Strait of Messina was safely behind us, Scylla and Charybdis had failed to claim any passengers, and we had survived another day in Sicily. And, most importantly, we had managed to do it without actually having to run from a volcano.
All in all, we’d call that a pretty successful day. As the sun began to set, it was time for a few shenanigans with Connie and Alan. We may or may not have said farewell to Messina with a Martini or three. By this stage, the iPhone camera seemed to have developed a soft-focus effect of its own, possibly from a day at sea, possibly from the Martinis. We’ll leave that for the experts to determine. At least we were colour-coordinated, which is more than can be said for our photography!
