Sicily

TLDR: It is hard to know what travel destinations will prove to feel magical vs. less than. Sicily was perhaps not magical to us…but we sure did enjoy the Aeolian Islands, especially the volcano of Stromboli!

If you are only here for the pics click here.

As a way to squeeze in one more European adventure before departing we decided to take a two-week trip to Sicily (in September 2025). We arrived in Catania, which admittedly was not a particularly positive city visit for us. The city was fine; but nothing was particularly enjoyable from our perspective. The city was not very walkable, in that it commonly lacked sidewalks and cars/scooters raced through the narrow streets; though there was a fun, eclectic vibe to the apartment buildings and shops. A lot of “Sicilian Street Food” was recommended for this area, so we tried many of the suggested offerings. Unfortunately we were left feeling a bit unimpressed.

Next we took a Ferry to Stromboli Island, which was by far the highlight of our time in Sicily. Stromboli, one of the Aeolian Islands off Sicily’s northern coast. It is a tiny but unforgettable location built around an active volcano, which has been erupting continuously for over 2,000 years. Known as the “Lighthouse of the Mediterranean,” its nightly eruptions light up the sky with bursts of lava. We had the pleasure of a night hike up to the viewpoint to observe the lava explosions. It did not disappoint! We also greatly enjoyed this quiet, relaxed island in general. Life on Stromboli seemed to move at an island pace — there were no cars, few crowds, and plenty of sea-side views. They had humorous little three-wheeled motorized vehicles for moving cargo (or tourists’ large rollie-bags). We also learned there is no high school on Stromboli; so once kids reach high-school age they have to leave to continue their education.

Volcano of Stromboli

Three wheeled scooter truck

Next up, we headed to another of the seven Aeolian Islands: Salina. This was another very charming, quiet island with a large (nonactive) volcano to hike and lots of chill sea views. We did some hiking; but mostly just relaxed and enjoyed the rooftop patio view of our accommodation.

Beautiful view from a hike

We ended our trip with a four-night stay in Palermo. Palermo was a noisy chaos that reminded us greatly of Mexico. Also, similarly to Mexico, the food was indulgent and delicious. I did enjoy the easy access to Prosecco-to-go nearly everywhere we went. Despite the good food (and easy access to cheap delicious wine), we also did not find ourselves falling in love with this location either. Maybe it was the excessive noise, or the trash all over the streets and parks, maybe we were just sad about leaving Berlin (I did cry on my way to the Berlin airport), or perhaps just our mental headspace at the time. It is hard to pinpoint exactly why we did not pick up the Sicilian charm.

We are starting to love getting drinks at the market

Inevitably some travel destinations will prove to surprise, delight, and fulfill every imagined fantasy…equally inevitable will many locations not meet up to the imagined hype. Sometimes it is the weather, a poor in-route experience, illness, or nothing more than over-hyped expectations. I don’t really like to speak poorly of the locations we experience; largely because our very limited exposure is likely not a fair representation of the location and other people may have a very different experience. That all said, for us, Sicily was not the most impressive travel destination.

After Sicily, we enjoyed a week with my family in Vienna before our budget airline, 11-hour flight to Singapore…the end of Europe and the start of our Asia adventures!!