Sicily

Sicily, beautiful Sicily.

I have roots there, Trapani to be exact.

I don’t have fancy words for Sicily, because its nature is just so much more. We all know the saying “la dolce vita”, the sweet life, a peaceful life. But what makes it that way? Is it the clear blue water surrounding the island? The slow mornings made for granita and brioche? Or the people, and the simplicity in the way they live?

We spent the first few days near Mount Etna. In one of the nearby villages we stumbled across, we found a small honey shop, where they had at least 10 different kinds, from honeydew to orange to wildberry, and I remember feeling so far from home, yet completely at peace. Why? Maybe it’s the slower rhythm of life in Europe. Maybe it’s the warmth of the people. Maybe it’s simply being somewhere else, away from what’s familiar.

The first few nights we stayed at Kepos Etna Relais & Exclusive Spa. Breathtakingly beautiful, surrounded by rosemary plants, lemon trees and views of the volcano. In the morning, we were served breakfast, which included locally grown fruits, homemade pastries, fresh cheeses and honey produced right there by their own bees.

Sicily felt different from any other place I’ve been in Europe. There’s something small about it, but not in a limiting way. Small in the sense of comfort, like being wrapped in warm blanket. Sicily doesn’t adapt to you, you adapt to it, to its rhythm, its people, its culture. When we were in Trapani, we got to see how lively the city becomes at night, everyone out eating, talking, and not thinking twice about having gelato.

Moments like these make me think about how different life feels when time isn’t constantly measured, when there’s no rush, no resistance.

Sometimes I wonder : why is the pace here so slow, yet ours back home so fast? How do we switch between them so easily? Are our bodies naturally drawn to that slower, steadier energy? Could we ever live like that long term? or would we eventually crave the hustle again? Maybe it’s part of how we’ve been shaped : to move fast, to produce, to chase. But if I’d never experienced the fast life, would I be satisfied enough with the slower one?

A lot of questions, I know. But one thing I do know is this : Sicily reminds me to pause. To enjoy the little things.

I may not have the ocean to ground me or the sun year-round to brighten my days, but I do have the memories. And they’re enough to keep me vibrant, even here, far from Sicily, but still carrying its warmth with me.

With sincerity, Camelia