the SICILIAN 0111

8/7/2019 the SICILIAN 0111

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turn into?can one really become,

turn into or simplyconvert to a

genuine sicilian?

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find that place.look no further forthat special place.

its right there.just open your eyes.

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are you sure?did they just call me a

skunk? a practical guideto the sicilian language.

and beyond.

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t h e S I C I L I A N01 11


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it might just be there.welcome to the first the SICILIANissue.

a. riserva naturale di vendicari. cittadella.

ok. so I got robbed here. it was bound to happen to me. sooner or later. for thevery first time. thank you for surviving this. but did they have to take my brandnew trekking shoes? and who could possibly be needing a pair of 44 in sicily?should we get angry about this? should we file charges?

b. city of noto.

should we take everything so serious? maybe a bit of nonchalance would do usgood. to all of us.

laughter of noto policemen: priceless.

disapproval of siracusa doctor: included.

c. could that be me?

ever wondered why we constantly keep standing in our own shadow? try to jumpout of your own frame at the beach. any beach.

horrified tourists: guaranteed.

a

b

c


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turn into?a guide to sicilianity.

there is no way in-between. either youwere born sicilian or you were not.

period. no blending in. no shallowattempts. no fake marriages. and no

evening classes. you will neverbecome a genuine sicilian.

unless you stop trying.

siculamente.

mark my words: sicilians are extremelyproud. of themselves. of their island. oftheir culture. their food and wine. theirdistance to parliamentary rome andeven more so to ever-consuming

brusells. and while we are at it: theyare not africans, even though someplaces are closer to the northernafrican shore than any italiangovernmental power. and finally:sicilian is not an italian dialect. youwould never ask a person from quebecto speak proper french. so dont ask asicilian to speak real italian. in mostcases they cannot. or dont want to. orboth. sicilian is a language of its own.no dialect. no culture-merging leftover. its simply sicilian.

a. eat it?

you can try. but you will quickly realizeyou will gain weight faster than anycultural blend could enlighten you. atleast some of use might do.

caff sicilia. noto.

b. cook it.

the kitchen is simple and still refined.take whats fresh on the market andyouve got the twist. no mistakesallowed here.

cooking session. monteluce.

c. drive it?

thats an easy task. in the long run youshould do in rome as romans do.especially when driving. thats easy.and surprisingly relaxing. sicilians havegood driving manners. and moreparking skills. they invented them.

the real cinquecento. noto.

d. stand it.

if you have survived through sicilianbureaucracy you are almost done.almost. and dont laugh at them. theymight smack it right back into yourface. everything makes perfectlysense. at least to them.

post office. noto.

a b

d c


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b. silent.

sicily can also be misty, mysteriousand surprisingly silent. discover thisunique hilltop gem. dont mind thecurves leading up to it. you might getseasick. but the views are rewarding.

il castello normanno. erice.

c. tasty.

everything tastes and smells moreintense. more real. more genuine.even a bite into a simple tomato canmake your sense explode. raw. pure.as nature intended it.

citrus fruits. monteluce.

e. wet.

although dry during the hot summermonths, the island holds manysurprises for the water addicts.beaches. rivers. canyons. lakes.streams. snow. all of it.

gole di alcantara. francavilla.

f. sexy.

believe it or not: sicily and the siciliansare sexy as hell. in every way. eventhough they might be short in certainaspects. but my humble comment tothis subject is: fatti cazzi tuoi.

bar turrisi. castelmola.

a. vibrant.

less mafia and chaos than you think.but a hell of a lot more vibrant culture.italian arabia with a norman touch.tons of mosaics for the byzantinezealot and an unmistakable kitchen.

la kalsa. palermo.

d. it may sound greek.

sicily (siracusa) was the capital ofmagna greece. the former absolutepower in the mediterranean. tracescan be found all over. not just inagrigento, siracusa or taormina.

tempio di concordia. agrigento.

a b c

d e f


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h. abloom.

flowers grow everywhere. not just onthe ground or on trees and plants.even in the streets. yesin the streets.the noto flower festival in spring is anabsolute insider tip. so far.

infiorata. noto.

i. the marrying kind.

everyone marries. even though allstatistics speak against it. not in sicily.marriages can happen spontaneously.every day. anywhere. at any time. sobe aware: its contagious.

corso vittorio emanuele. noto.

l. arty.

there are not many outstanding placesof accommodation in sicily. this is theone. the best. the most cared for. 9distinguished suites and a neverending hospitality.

www.monteluce.com

m. irksome.

sometimes its too much sicily. there isa non ending abundance of offerings.of things to see, eat, explore or drink.but once in a while, have a relaxingday at the beach. really.

cefal.

g. island kingdom.

sicily is not just sicily. its lampedusa.linosa. favignana. stromboli. vulcano.salina. filicudi. alicudi. panarea. ustica.pantelleria. lampione. marettimo. lipari.levanzo. strombolicchio.

isole eolie.

k. ingenious.

what once was a mean of transpor-tation for goods is now a limousine.make the best of every situation. and ifit doesnt exist, make it happen. itseasy. its necessary. its sicilian.

hotel pick-up service. stromboli.

g h i

k l m


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ignorance.

occhiu ca non vidi cori ca non doliwhat the eye doesn't see, the heart doesn't

grieve over.

what you don't know won't hurt you.

tough luck.

a li proviri e a li sbinturati cci chiovi 'nta luculu macari assittati.

it will rain into the rear of the poor and thejinx even if they are seated.

if you think things cant get worse, you werewrong.

sacrifices.

sparagna l'acqua e si vivi lu vinu.

save water and drink wine.

sacrifice yourself and bite the bullet.

la saluti veni di lalligrizza di lu cori.

health comes from the happiness of the

heart.only he who is happy can also be of goodhealth.

health. happiness.

cu havi dinari, campa filici, e cui nun nhavi,perdi lamici.

he who has money goes on easily and hewho has no more money loses his friends.

with money you live much easier but youalso have many phony friends.

money. friends.

l'omu gilusu mori curnutu.

the jealous husband will die betrayed.

trust is the key to every functioningrelationship.

jealousy.

nun tniri amicizia cu li sbirri ca cci perdi luvinu e li sicarri.

dont be friends with the police because youare going to loose your wine and cigars.

dont get involved with the cops, the mafia iswatching you.

police.

amuri, biddizzi e dinari su tri cosi ch un siponnu ammucciari.

love, beauty and money are three thingsone can not hide.

love, beauty and money are written all overones face once they happen.

love. beauty. money.

a cui ti p pigghiari chiddu chi hai, daccichiddu chi taddumanna.

If someone can take anything you have,give him everything he asks for.

If the Mafia comes knocking, better open thedoor.

mafia.


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so far so good?we havent even started yet.

sicily is much closer than youthink: its in the restaurant

around the corner. on the wine

list of your preferred fridayevening treat. in the assortment

of the ice cream stand alongyour fancy shopping street. in

the fruit and vegetable selectionof your grocery store.

basically you are now all set foryour first or repeated visit to the

biggest island of themediterranean. dont think toomuch about it just do it! go!

hop on to the next airplane andwhile the jet approaches cataniaor palermo turn on your senses.put them on toreceive-mode.

and while exploring the island(s)on your own, dont be afraid ofgetting lost. you will always finda friendly person who is able togive you directions. maybe notreally to destination you werelooking for, but at least to the

next person along the road who

might just know it.and always keep in mind:

its sicilian.

imprint.

the SICILIAN

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issue january 2011publisher: matteo rotatext: matteo rotapictures: matteo rota / karin kusterediting: [email protected]! 2011

all rights reserved. no part of this publication may bereproduced or stored in a retrieval system or transmitted inany means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recordingor otherwise, without the express permission of thepublisher. the content of this magazine is based on the bestknowledge and information available at the time ofpublication.

why me?if you do not wish to keep receiving further issues of the SICILIAN, please

send an email with a short note to the address mentioned on this page.further information can be found at the facebook groupmonteluce: sign into be informed on a regular basis about the SICILIAN, sicily in general aswell as the unknown south-eastern area in particular.

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the SICILIAN 0111