Sicily is an Italian island in the Ionian sea between Italy and the African coast. Greece, Rome, the Arab world, and Norman Europe left remnants there that you can still experience.

Chef, blogger, and tour director Ric Orlando tells us why Sicily feels different from the rest of Italy. His “deep dive” trips take the Anthony Bourdain approach seriously: spend time with locals, follow the market stalls, and let conversations set the pace.

We get into Palermo’s layered history, the Palatine Chapel’s mosaics, Monreale, Teatro Massimo, and the city’s street markets.

Ric also explains how Sicily’s volcanic soil around Mount Etna is changing the island today, from a booming Sicily wine scene to new crops driven by climate change, and why infrastructure outside the main tourist cities still shapes daily life.

Then east to Catania, to the “Black City” built from dark volcanic stone. We linger at the pescheria fish market where small boats sell the morning’s catch. We talk Sicilian flavor, especially the Arab influenced sweet and sour combinations, and we end with cannoli, farm made cheese, and the living traditions of Piana degli Albanesi.

Finally, Taormina brings cliffside beauty, a Greek theater, an artistic past, along with the modern 'White Lotus' buzz, before Ric shares a personal memory that ties family photos back to a real village festival.

Come wander through the best of Sicily with us. Subscribe, share with friends who love food and history, and leave a review.

Our guest, Chef Ric Orlando, leads tours to Sicily.

Podcast host Lea Lane has traveled to over 100 countries, and has written nine books, including the award-winning Places I Remember (Kirkus Reviews star rating, and 'one of the top 100 Indie books of the year'). She has contributed to dozens of guidebooks and has written thousands of travel articles.
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Our award-winning travel podcast, Places I Remember with Lea Lane, has produced over 125 travel episodes! New episodes drop on the first Tuesday of the month, on Apple, Spotify, and wherever you listen to podcasts. All episodes are also on her website: placesirememberlealane.com
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Sicily: Layers of History, Beauty, Pleasure