I decided to stay on Ortigia, which is a small, densely populated island section of the city connected by bridges, with hundreds of great restaurants, cafes and shops. My hotel was located in a ZTL, and I anticipated parking would be difficult, so I decided to pay 25 Euro a day for valet parking. This is one thing I wouldn’t do again after having spent several days walking and getting to know the city. You can (easily) park at the Parcheggio Telete for 15 Euro for 24 hours. My valet service wanted an hour notice to bring me my car, which was inconvenient, and because of this, I basically decided to just not use my car or drive to areas beyond walking distance during my stay. It was nice to be off the road, and it forced me to focus on the city, which I enjoyed. Parcheggio Telete is on Ortigia at the far end of the famous street market, and my favorite (next to the bone chilling abandoned Bourbon prison (Carcere Borbonico circa 1834).
Aside from ancestral research and exploring the island of Sicily, one of the things I wanted to do was learn mor about Sicilian cuisine. It is quite different than the mainland of Italy, and has a heavy focus on fish. I was fortunate to find a local woman named Teresa Zimmitti who offers tours of the Ortigia market and cooking classes at her home. She walked me through the market, exchanging banter in Italian with the shop owners, and explaining how she chooses and uses the variety of items available from fresh vegetables, meats, cheeses, fish, dried herbs, nuts, preservatives and sweets. After we picked up the items needed for our cooking class, she drove me to her home where we prepared a wonderful lunch, including: veal meatballs, stuffed squid, pumpkin gnocchi, and eggplant parmigiana (I think I’m going to start saying aubergine, because it sounds better). I think my gnocchi technique still needs work, as Teresa discarded several of my creations before posting a photo to her Instagram page. To finish off lunch, Teresa allowed me to sample her homemade liquore including: Cedar (a popular citrus here which is a close relative of the lemon), Cinnamon, Limone, and Mandarin. I learned a lot and came home with a folder full of other recipes to try. Turns out Teresa’s family is also from Melilli and she has relatives in Middletown. Small world. So if you find yourself in Siracusa and would like a local guide to walk you through the market or show you authentic Sicilian cooking, look Teresa up on Instagram, Google or AirBNB.
