Messina Italy

              

The setting of Willaim Shakespeares Much Ado About Nothing was maybe my favorite place, second only to Venice but they are completely different and can nto be compared. The Cruise listed Mt Etna as the sight to see here but that was a ways away and after running ourselves ragged for the past few days we decided to take things easy and rome the port city.

I started the day with a trip to the spa and enjoyed a hot stone massage which is with out a doubt THE best way to start the day! The ship did not get to port until 11am so we got to sleep in before my appointment then grabbed lunch on the ship before heading out for the afternoon.

The port is known for the clock tower in the middle of the square that puts on quite a show at noon. Due to our late arrival and lazy morning we didn’t make it in time to see the clock strike 12 but that was where we headed once off the ship. We headed toward a large tower only to get there and find it was a different church, not the clock tower we were looking for but lovely none the less. There we saw a wedding party taking their pictures, while a thurday wedding seemed strange but it was fun to see. The bride was beautiful. 

                                  

 

We then headed to another large Cathedral with a bell tower. As we walked up to the church pre school was letting out so there were parents and kids every where. The main reason I loved Messina so much was the ability to take in and see people living every day life. The view from the street was unreal and then we climed the stairs up to the entrance of the church and the view just got better! We stayed there for a while just taking in the beauty of it all.  I cant put into words the smell, the view, the sounds, the breeze. . but  let me tell you it was the most peaceful place.

                              

 

We headed back down the mountain again in search of the clock tower. The city was built into a hill/mountain so every thing was built up. We wandered through side streets that were like steps. The houses reminded me of my Grandmother. Potted plants were every where and laundry swayed in the wind while dishes clanked. As we walked we saw and heard LIFE.

 We decided that we needed to experience authentic espresso and Italian pasterys so we window shopped for the best place. We finlly found a place crawling with locals, the tell tale sign that the palce is legit and good! We went in and ordered our espresso and I got a tart while Ryan ordered a cannoli which we didn’t see anywere but knew they had to have. Next thing we knew the waiter went to the back and came out with the most beautiful cannoli ever. I am convinced he filled it just for us, so fresh and oh so good! We took a seat outside and enjoyed our mid day snack.

We made one last attempt to find the Clock tower and were successful! It was right next to another Cathedral  and had a surrounding square that had a garden and fountain. Well worth the search.

 

We walked along the water front for a while hoping to find some sort of beach as the water was so clear and blue. We found one last fountian along the way.

Sadly we were unable to find one so we went back to the ship to settle and rest, looking forward to the following day at Sea. We knew we needed to save up our energy for VENICE! That night we had our last formal dinner and had a monkey waiting for us at bed time!