Sicily was to be my final exotic assignment with the military abroad. It was another amazing place of discovery based in a culture I learned to love.
My assignment was in Sigonella – a joint U.S. and Italian navy airbase. My comfort zone was in a housekeeping room in the Officer Bachelor quarters a short bus ride away from the main base where I taught my classes. I would be there for two six-week academic terms, a full three plus months of teaching and exploratory sightseeing.
Panini sandwiches and Sicilian wine inspired students. Many created business plans to bring these Italian treasures to the U.S. Starbucks had already capitalized on the excellent coffees. Many students saw additional opportunities. International marketing was my most popular course offering. It was a joyful time of entrepreneurship as my students learned the mechanics of the business trade.
Subtle cultural factors were lessons learned along the way. Culture is powerful. If misunderstood it can derail relationships and potential sales. A flower vendor spared me social embarrassment when I purchased flowers as a hostess gift. While in the process of purchasing a lovely bouquet of carnations, the vendor asked whom they were for. I said a hostess gift. He asked, “ Sicilian family or American?” Sicilian hostess was my reply. No good he said firmly. Carnations are funeral flowers in Sicily. I quickly chose roses instead and he approved with a kind smile.
Snacking was a delicious pastime in Sicily. A small addiction to cappuccinos, lemon gelato and marguerita pizzas required that I use the on-site gym to keep my body in shape. Seafood restaurant meals were amazing and best of all were the blood oranges. Sicilian soil with its volcanic ash from Mt Etna is perfect for growing the best blood oranges ever.
As always, when arriving in a new place, I got a map of the area and a stack of materials on what to do and see. I checked out the Morale Welfare and Recreation (MWR) tourist office and loaded up on brochures. My teaching load included three courses per term plus some additional weekend seminars. The weekend work gave me additional “play money” which I used to tour the island and beyond. Every free weekend became a discovery of new places.
It was spring and religious festivals dominated. Sicilians are savvy marketers for tourism and target both locals as well as tourists when creating festivities. Our destinations always had some unique feature such as a bread and pastry festival, pasta and cheese making lessons, a sumptuous dinner on a typical Italian style long table in an orange grove, and a nighttime religious processional in the fortress of Enna where participants dressed in white hooded garments similar to Ku Klux Klan attire.
Our destinations were similar. Typically, toward the center of the town was a church and a plaza where elderly men sat in groups enjoying conversations in the sun. Our guide always took us into the local church. With a large sweep of her arms took us to the altar and proudly pointed out the “Madonna”. Police on horseback added a visual flair. The officers tended to wear a clutter of metals pinned to the jackets making me think of four-star generals instead of simple police. They wore the metals with pride and a slight touch of arrogance that added some additional pizzazz to the scene.
I learned much about the history of Sicily. Its Greek influence is still visible in the many temples around the island. Beautiful mosaics of Moorish influence are displayed in the western part of the island and Palermo.
Sicily is famous for the Mafia – a secret police that was necessary to protect neighborhoods at the time when crime was rampant. The Mafia still exists in various forms. It is common if you are in town and park your car, a person may come up and offer to protect your car. They are remnants of the Mafia culture and now serve as their own security force. They will protect your property for a small price. The fee is well worth it. Your car will be safe. This is also true for a house one is renting. Many Americans casually paid the protection fee for their house – it always worked.
The active volcano, Mt. Etna, was visible from my room. When coming home at night I could see the fire spewing out majestically. While living there, three tourists came too close to the rim and fell in. Etna claimed more victims during my time there.
I took frequent weekend bus shopping trips to Catania – the city where Mt. Etna is located. It was an invigorating foodie experience. A typical Sicilian bustling market town it has a large open market heaped high with local produce and seafood.
Restaurants surround the market with excellent local dishes and friendly servers. I ate in one restaurant but did not have the option to select from the menu. Instead, the owner promised me a good lunch and invited me to wait and watch, as she swept her arms towards the market and excitedly told me to enjoy the, the PANORAMA of the market place. This she did with typical Sicilian enthusiasm. The meal was an excellent seafood dish typical of the delicious meals I would enjoy in my time there.
I visited Syracuse where Santa Lucia, my patron saint lived. Her sad love story resulted
in her taking her sight. Lucia is the saint of light.
My weekend trip to Naples and Pompeii almost ended badly due to my ignorance about the drug culture in the area. I had brought my cameras including a video camera and “innocently” panned the scene around me while waiting for a train. I heard two employees at the train station say “no good, no good” but ignored them while panning the scene. I later realized I had focused on a drug deal down the road. The train employees called for extra police while I continued photographing, still ignorant of what was happening. The scene changed. Many young men ready to take away my camera equipment surrounded me. I started to move around in a slow circle as others waiting for the train watched silently.
When the train arrived, it was full of uniformed police. One officer escorted me to the front of the train cars and sat with me while the others patrolled the rest of the cars filled with the young men who had circled me on the train station to get my cameras. I was safe. The police officer accompanied me as far as Pompeii warning me not to show my cameras again. Then he asked me in a flirty way to have lunch with him. WOW!
My time in Sicily was a wonderful experience. I will always treasure my time in Sicily and continue to love the Italian personalities.
