SOME GOOD NEWS FOR POZZALLO

Pozzallo, so often in the news these days as an arrival point for migrants or in connection with migrant tragedies, had something to celebrate yesterday when its beach again won the right to display the prestigious blue flag. In what must have been an enormous blow to the town, Pozzallo had lost its bandiera blu last year, so it was good to read that it has got it back.

The bandiera blu is awarded annually by the Foundation for Environmental Education [FEE] to over 3,850 beaches and marinas in 48 countries. Water quality, safety, environmental management and education, information and services are among the criteria.

In Sicily seven locations are listed this year and they are:

Vulcano and Lipari [Aeolian Islands]

il lido di Signorino [Marsala]

Ispica

Marina di Ragusa

Pozzallo

Menfi [Agrigento]

In Italy as a whole Liguria was awarded the most blue flags in 2014, Tuscany is second and le Marche is third.  

Some newspapers in Sicily are commenting that seven flags are not many for a place with so many beaches and that the island really ought to have done better. Well done, Pozzallo, all the same!

Pozzallo

SPRING TIDES - 7

Yet another tragedy is unfolding in the Mediterranean as I write this evening and it comes only a day after 40 migrants were drowned off the Libyan coast. The facts about today's sad events are not yet clear but this is what we know so far:

At about 1pm Italian time today, the Italian Coast Guard picked up an SOS call from a migrant boat in trouble.  The boat was 100 miles south of Lampedusa and actually nearer the Libyan coast than that of Italy. Italian Coast Guard boats, merchant and naval ships and a Guardia di Finanza vessel were scrambled to the scene and saved 200 migrants. Seventeen bodies have also been recovered but it is feared that there may be many more, as it is possible that there were up to 400 people on the boat.

Once again Italian politicians have spoken to EU officials in the strongest terms and this time, it seems, they are listening: Cecilia Malmström has said she is shocked and has called upon all member states to consider how they can help. Prime Minister Renzi is to visit Sicily on Wednesday and he, too, is expected to reiterate calls for urgent EU help.

Libya's Interior Minister has told the EU that his country will help migrants to leave it illegally if the organisation does not help Libya to patrol its borders and today a Libyan naval spokesman said that the nation does not have the means to help in this latest rescue operation. Meanwhile Giovanni Pinto, Italy's Director of Immigration, has asserted that more and more inadequate boats are leaving Libya carrying migrants because the people traffickers know that Italian vessels will go as near as they legally can to the Libyan coast to save their passengers.

Italian newspapers are today carrying a video shot by a Syrian migrant on his sea crossing. He had sailed with 232 others and spent 11 days at sea without food or water. Now in Pozzallo, the man handed the video over to the Italian authorities who used it to help them identify and arrest two alleged people traffickers.

Poor Italy - whatever she does in this situation she seems to be doing it alone and whatever she does she is criticised.

Tonight's online edition of La Repubblica has a list of migrant tragedies in the Sicilian Channel from 1996 - 2013.

SABATO MUSICALE

On the night of the Eurovision Song Contest, what else could I post but Italy's entry? 

Emma - La mia città

I only watch so that I can make silly comments on twitter. How about you?

SPRING TIDES - 6

Still they come, the inadequate vessels with their human cargoes fleeing situations which, for most of us, are unimaginable, and the Italian Navy, Coast Guard and other personnel are now saving an estimated 2,000 migrants a day. Operazione Mare Nostrum, the Italian humanitarian mission in the Mediterranean, has become highly controversial as it is being suggested, in some quarters, that it is encouraging migration and helping people traffickers to ply their trade.

On Wednesday alone 2,262 migrants were rescued at sea and brought to safety in Sicilian ports by the Italian Navy. Of these 1,142, among them a new-born baby, were brought to Augusta and 298, including 19 minors, to Pozzallo. Sadly the body of a young Eritrean man was found on one of the migrant boats. Police say he could have died from the hardships of the journey or from injuries sustained prior to it. Murder has not been ruled out as I write this on Thursday. Italian military saluted as the man's body was carried ashore.

This afternoon hundreds of migrants who had been rescued at sea yesterday and taken to the reception centre at Siculiana [Agrigento] escaped and put themselves in danger walking along the motorway towards Agrigento itself. This is only one of many such incidents in recent weeks, for all reception centres in Sicily are now overcrowded and have inadequate facilities.

Most of the migrants want to go north anyway and a lot further north than mainland Italy, where several mayors have made it clear that migrants would not be welcome in their towns. The Mayor of Chieti [Abruzzo] has written to Interior Minister Alfano saying that his town does not have adequate facilities for the migrants and suggesting that those already there are causing "social tensions" in the community. Here in Modica a group of parents protested last week because, having heard that some migrants had been diagnosed with scabies, TB and AIDS, they did not want their children to go on a school trip in a bus that had been used to transport migrants from Pozzallo to Ragusa.  Yes, I know there would be outrage and cries of "Racism!" if such a thing were to happen in the UK but here most people have some sympathy with the parents. None of this, of course, makes for happy communities.

Therefore a certain politician who landed on this island on Monday must have thought he would find fertile ground for his views. I refer to Mr Matteo Salvini, Federal Secretary of the Lega Nord. Mr Salvini said he had been "called" by the Sicilian people and had come to help them "because Sicily and Italy are [dealing with the situation] alone, while Europe doesn't care." Hmmm - last time I checked Sicily was still part of Italy, Mr Salvini but it is true that Europe, viewed from here, seems to be doing nothing. Mr Salvini believes that Operazione Mare Nostrum should be stopped as the money would be better spent on aid to migrants' countries of origin. Aid may well, in the end, be the only answer, but as I've said many times before, Italy cannot leave desperate people to die just metres from its shores.  It is interesting that the leader of a party whose very existence is founded on its disowning of the South suddenly finds himself "called" to be the saviour of Sicily.

A DELIGHT

I had to take yesterday's post down as the video had been taken off Youtube. I'm sorry I lost some of your comments in the process. However, the video has now become available, with an embedding code, on La Repubblica so let's try again.

As I said yesterday, I have no intention of skateboarding around Modica myself but this delightful clip does remind me why I came here in the first place. Thanks again to my friends at the Antica Dolceria Bonajuto for bringing the video to my attention.

Here's the link to the video on La Repubblica, too - just in case!

Muòrica

IN THE NAME OF "SPORT"

By now, footage and reports of the horrific events which took place in Rome in the name of "sport" on Saturday evening have gone around the world. Even here, amid conflicting reports, it has been hard to ascertain exactly what happened, who started it and the timescale, but what is certain is this:

Ahead of the Italian Cup Final between Napoli and Fiorentina on Saturday, there were clashes between fans outside the Stadio Olimpico and three Napoli supporters were injured, one critically. Italian newspapers reported this morning that this fan, Ciro Esposito, may, if he survives, lose the use of his legs. Inside the stadium, the kick-off was delayed because of these events and Napoli captain Marek Hamsik and the authorities appeared to be "negotiating" with the Napoli ultrà leader known as Genny 'a carogna, who is said to have given his "permission" for the game to start. The authorities say they were not negotiating but were informing Genny 'a carogna of Ciro Esposito's condition.

Eventually, and in the presence of Prime Minister Renzi, the Italian national anthem was booed in the stadium and the game started.

This much, as I have said, has been reported internationally. However, I can find no international press reports about the t-shirt that Genny 'a carogna was wearing, nor of the heartbreak that this has caused a Sicilian widow:  The t-shirt slogan read "Free Speziale", a reference to Antonino Speziale, who is serving time for the murder of Sicilian police inspector Filippo Raciti in 2007 during an incident of football violence. Marisa Grasso Raciti told Corriere della Sera that the State seemed to have given in to the will of violent fans on Saturday and that the whole incident was an insult to her husband's memory. She is, understandably, particularly upset by the t-shirt and said that no one in authority had called her to express solidarity or sympathy. As you may imagine, she received a telephone call from Prime Minister Renzi shortly after publication of the interview.

In case anyone is interested, Napoli won the match.

I wrote about the murder of Ispettore Raciti here and here in 2007.

Thanks to Corriere della Sera for making this available:

SABATO MUSICALE

It's nice to see clips of Al Bano and Romina Power  performing together again in Atlantic City and I cried when I saw them dancing in the second one!

Al Bano e Romina Power - Ci sarà

Al Bano e Romina Power ballano  [Ti risceglierei] - Atlantic City

MAY DAY PIZZA

I am calling this my "May Day Pizza" because I invented it on this day but you can call it "Red onion and aubergine pizza" if you like!

First of all, make your pizza base: I guess we all have a favourite pizza base recipe and mine is in Claudia Roden's Mediterranean Cookery. I only use half the quantity, though.

While the dough is rising, slice 2 large red onions thinly and soak the slices in cold water for about 15 mins. Drain the slices well and pat them dry with kitchen paper. Then you need to cook them very slowly, in a heavy pan with the lid on, with 85 gr unsalted butter and some seasoning. This will also take about 15 mins. Stir them from time to time.

Rinse 6 - 8 slices aubergine preserved in oil, rinse them and drain again. Pat dry with kitchen paper.

When the pizza base has risen - after about 1 hour - roll it out into a rectangular shape on a floured board. Pull it a bit with your hands to get it the right shape for a baking tray. Put it on a lightly oiled baking tray and spread the contents of a 400 gr tin tomato pulp on it. [You could use a thick passata if you cannot get this.] Put the aubergine slices on top of this, then 200 gr mozzarella. [In Italy we can buy it already chopped up for pizza.] Lift the onions out of the saucepan with a slotted spoon and spread them over the top. Finally, add a few sprigs of fresh rosemary.

Cook the pizza at 180 - 200 C for 25 mins.  Add a few more fresh rosemary sprigs to serve.

Buon appetito.

Incidentally, I have read that Claudia Roden's The Food of Italy has been updated and republished to celebrate its 25th anniversary. Congratulations to one of my favourite cookery writers!

SPRING TIDES - 5

More "boatloads of sorrow" unsurprisingly arrived over the Easter weekend, when at least 2,000 desperate souls were brought to safety as part of Operazione Mare Nostrum, and it is estimated that a similar number arrived last weekend.

Among these were 395 migrants, including 12 newborn babies, who were rescued by the Italian military and Coast Guard and brought to Pozzallo on Friday. The reception centre at Pozzallo is full, despite the fact that transfer flights to other parts of Italy for some of the migrants have been operating. The centre remains full because others just keep coming. The Mayor of Pozzallo has expressed his exasperation at the lack of response from central government and has called upon Premier Renzi to intervene.

Also on Friday, a pregnant woman who was taken from one of the boats to hospital in Siracusa, where she gave birth to a baby girl, found care, kindness and solidarity:  realising that she had no baby clothes or other necessities for her daughter, the staff decided to collect what they could. Another mother on the ward immediately gave the woman the blankets she had brought for her own baby and, inspired by this gesture, all the other mothers gave the little one sheets, clothing, shoes and other items. I am happy to be able to tell you that both mother and baby are now fine and they have been discharged from hospital.

In a statement issued a few minutes ago by the Viminale, the seat of the Italian Interior Ministry, it is estimated that 800,000 migrants are now waiting to sail for Sicily from Libya. One solution that was put forward by concerned agencies on Tuesday was the idea of sending a European task force to Libya, to stop the departures in the first place. I am no politician so I do not know what the chances would be of obtaining agreement for such a project from inside Libya, but I should have thought they were slight. The second problem is one I have mentioned before: people will always attempt to flee hunger, war and persecution and their right to do so is surely enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which talks about its "recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family." 

At the moment I am reading Claude Lanzmann's memoir, The Patagonian Hare. His chapters about the Second World War are a timely reminder of the kind of régimes people might be fleeing.

SAINTLY POSTSCRIPT

All roads certainly led to Rome on Sunday and, whilst the eyes of the world were upon the rejoicing city, a little town in Sicily was remembering a miracle which happened there and which played a largely unpublicised part in the great events of the day:

In May 1967 Giovanna La Terra Majore was 54 years old and had been bedridden for 23 years in her home town of Chiaramonte Gulfi. A friend who had visited Rome had brought back a picture of Pope John XXIII for Giovanna and advised her to use it to help her pray. Giovanna did so but what she actually prayed for was death, to release her from her pain. On 13th May Giovanna had received the last rites. Suddenly, she felt the bed shake and a kind of pressure on her spine, as though someone was trying to push her up. Then, feeling as if she were being supported by two strong hands, she seemed to be propelled to the middle of the room - and she was standing, watching her own shrivelled feet uncurling. The next day, the "Good Pope" appeared to her in a dream and told her that she could now walk without fear.

Giovanna and her fellow-Chiramontani had no doubt that a miracle had taken place and to whom it should have been attributed. Although the event was considered during Pope John's beatification cause, it was excluded from his canonisation process. However, Suor Caterina Capitani, whose recovery from terminal illness was officially attributed to the intercession of Pope John XXIII, visited Chiaramonte Gulfi several times and met Giovanna. In a nice postscript to the story, the two women later visited Rome together and received Holy Communion from the hands of Pope John Paul II.

SABATO MUSICALE

Once again this week, the whole of Italy is talking about one performance - yes, it's Suor Cristina from Comiso, singing in the knockout round of The Voice of Italy! I don't think any more needs to be said:

Suor Cristina Scuccia -  Hero

CAUGHT NAPPING

Duomo di San Giorgio, Modica

At the end of March, I wrote that there seemed to be some hope for Modica's prospects as a tourist venue because at last both the Council and local tour operators had realised the importance of keeping tourist sites open at times when people are actually likely to come.

How disappointing, then, to learn that, although at least 40,000 tourists visited the city over Easter, they could not find help or information because the tourist office was closed. Why? Because it is staffed by council employees, who had taken it for granted that they would not have to work on the bank holidays. Most shops in the old town had also closed on Easter Sunday and Monday [Good Friday is not a holiday in Italy] and at the moment, the newly-formed tourism consortium is being blamed for its "lack of planning" in not having foreseen both situations. Strangely, I am not surprised.

Modica's two cathedrals and the Church of Santa Maria di Betlem - the one with the famous crib -  were, however, open and I suppose this fact represents some progress.

There have also been complaints because the promenade at the Marina di Modica had not been cleaned before the holiday but, according to the new director of the Modica retailers' association Ascom, this does not matter because the Marina is only used by locals. Hmm - I wouldn't be so sure of that!

Come on, Modica - wake up!

WILL DAY

The subject of this post is not the second in line to the British throne but a much older Will, the bard of Stratford-upon-Avon, whose 450th birthday - or the generally accepted date of it - is being celebrated today.

Yesterday evening a friend who also comes from Stratford-upon-Avon gave a little party in the poet's honour, and tiramisù alle fragole, made to Matthew Fort's recipe which I've mentioned before, was my attempt at a themed dish:

As I tend to do everything arse-backwards, I'd decided on the quote I wanted to use first, and then tried to think of a dish. The quote, in case you cannot see it clearly, is,

"The strawberry grows underneath the nettle"

- Henry V

The "leaves" at the top were my best effort at making pasta di zucchero nettles and, by the time I came to the second one, I decided to leave out the fancy work on the edges. Most of the strawberries, of course, were underneath the mascarpone!

At the party the place settings were decorated with rosemary "for remembrance":

These were just some of the lovely treats:  Ah, sausage rolls!

 Another friend had brought hot cross buns all the way from the UK!

As you see, there was quite a mix of traditions

and in Sicily, in spring, there had to be ice cream!

My friend also provided what, as a teacher, I would call some "realia":

Then there were some readings from Shakespeare's works. [I read Sonnet XXIX, for  my Dad, who died 41 years ago this Easter.] Three friends made rather fabulous witches, I must say!  Finally, I lowered the tone by reading a little ditty I had composed: 

Will Day

Will Shakespeare, yours was quite a muse

from errors down in Syracuse

to propaganda for Queen Bess –

- your plays were thirty-eight, no less.

Poor Hamlet – what a tortured bloke,

for him existence was no joke.

He could have saved some brouhaha

if he’d just said, “Siamo qua.”

But let us find a cheerful fellow,

Macbeth won’t do, nor will Othello.

Bottom, Touchstone, Mistress Quickly

meddled in the plot quite thickly.

Down the ages comes their laughter,

hope it reaches the hereafter.

If it’s true what some folk say,

you never loved Anne Hathaway,

the sonnet lady was a lad,

we don’t care ‘cos your rhymes weren’t bad.

They claim that Bacon wrote the plays –

- one must admit, he turned a phrase,

but not like you, dear Stratford bard,

held for centuries in regard.

We celebrate your birth this eve

and some among us really believe

that though the thing is still the play,

you were Sicilian, anyway.

© Pat Eggleton, 2014

Notes

"Siamo qua" = "We are here" - a common Sicilian saying. It took me some time to realise that it is not an acceptance of physical location, but a reference to the fact that we are still alive and should be grateful!

The idea that Shakespeare was Sicilian is taken quite seriously here and books have been written about it.

A SONG OF HOME

It all started when, in response to this post, I was contacted by Maggie Ayre of the BBC. To be honest, at first I thought it was probably someone "having a laugh", as the British say, but I googled Maggie and found that she really was a BBC radio producer! I emailed her as requested, then she called me here and we talked about the Welsh song, Myfanwy.

Maggie explained to me that, in a news programme, people will put up with audio that is not of the highest quality because they understand that it cannot always be delivered, but in a radio feature programme, where there is obviously no visual backup, they will not. Therefore, she asked me if I knew of a studio where the recording of my contribution could be done. I didn't, but a student of mine did, and he kindly took me to a private studio owned by a friend of his in Scicli. No landline was available to us there so our next problem was possible interference on the mobile line but we got over this with the help of my student, who took the phone from my hands and dashed with it to the door before I answered each question. It was a bit of a performance but the studio owner knew what he was doing and was able to send Maggie a perfect audio file.

Now the BBC Radio iplayer link is up on the Soul Music programme website and, if you missed my minute of glory this morning, you will be able to hear it, for a while, by clicking the link. 

I am proud to have been interviewed on the same programme as Welsh singer Cerys Matthews and others to whom the song means so much. I love Cerys's version and here it is in full:

Cerys Matthews - Myfanwy

SABATO MUSICALE

Renato Carosone  - Buona Pasqua

Buona Pasqua a tutti!

HATS OFF TO MARCO

As a linguist, I'm always emphasising the importance of communicating with the people one is trying to attract to one's business, product or city in their own language and of making an effort to do it properly [which will probably involve employing a qualified, mother-tongue interpreter or translator, not using the awful translator sites]. 

Hats off, then, to Marco Zambuto, Mayor of the lovely city of Agrigento, for this advert in which he says a few words in Chinese himself at the end.  Mr Zambuto has not forgotten to invite the rest of us to "invade" his city as well!

Thanks to Corriere della Sera:

IF YOU'VE A MINUTE....

If you have a few moments around 11.30 am BST or 12.30 Italian time next Tuesday, 22nd April and can tune into BBC Radio 4,  you will learn a lot about a very beautiful Welsh song and a certain "Welsh woman living in Sicily" may say a word or two!  The episode will also become available, for a while, on the Soul Music programme website. 

BBC Radio 4 [known as the "Home Service" when I was a child] has, for as long as I can remember, formed the background to my life and I missed it desperately when I first came to Sicily, before you could listen live on the internet. I'm excited to feature in a Radio 4 programme, even for a few seconds and I'll tell you more after the broadcast!

WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM....WHO?

House arrest, in Italy, is not an unusual sentence in cases where the defendant is not deemed dangerous, has health problems or if the person has nearly completed a prison term. Its conditions, contrary to popular belief abroad, are strict, though it is not difficult to imagine that the time would pass more pleasantly if it were "served"  in a luxurious mansion. 

A Milan court  has, since Thursday, been considering whether Silvio Berlusconi should serve the remainder of his sentence in this way or do community service - a far cry, it would seem, from the case of a 54-year-old man from Ragusa who has decided that prison is preferable to eight months at home with his wife. After just 25 days of house arrest, the man has begged police to take him back to prison and "escaped" from home so that they have to do so. 

But we all have our difficulties and house arrest, for Mr Berlusconi, would severely limit his networking possibilities. As it is unlikely that he will be allowed to do community service as patron of an as yet unbuilt centre for the disabled, I understand he would like to help the elderly. Hey, Silvio, that includes me and I could sure do with a little help! 

This bit of nonsense from The Guardian - which I enjoyed immensely -  has made its way into every Italian newspaper I have read, both local and national, and has been reported with amusement here, though also with some bemusement at how the British may spend their time.

SABATO MUSICALE

This thoughtful love song from Francesco Renga came fourth in the overall Sanremo classification this year:

Francesco Renga - Vivendo adesso

SPRING TIDES - 4

Even as I write, migrant boat after migrant boat is heading for Italy from North Africa and last night the Italian Navy and Guardia di Finanza saved a further 800 migrants travelling on rust buckets and dinghies, this time 70 miles off Lampedusa. This was only one of several rescue operations carried out over the last 24 hours and brings the total number of migrants saved by the Italian Navy, Coast Guard and others involved in Operazione Mare Nostrum to 6,000 since Tuesday and almost 20,000 since October.

In response to criticism of Mare Nostrum - I have personally heard people saying that the operation is encouraging migration because people know they will be saved - the Chief of Staff of the Italian Navy, Admiral Giuseppe De Giorgi, has said that the increased numbers are not due to the military operation but to social and political problems in migrants' countries of origin.  He has also said that the rescues are costing Italy €9 million a month and has voiced the opinion that the EU should send funds rather than more ships. 

Melissa Fleming of UNHCR has today called for more help for Italy from its allies. Meanwhile, Sicilian mayors and regional government representatives have requested an urgent meeting with Prime Minister Renzi and relevant ministers and this is expected to happen on Tuesday or Wednesday next week.

Several people traffickers, some of whom had tried to hide among their former "passengers", have been arrested by Italian police in the last few days.

Sadly, a 20-year-old man from Mali who was rescued on Thursday night has died in hospital in Ragusa.

SPRING TIDES - 3

Looking at the situation from Italy, it often seems that the rest of the world notices the migration crisis only when there is a tragedy but today the sheer numbers of people who have had to be rescued, mostly in the Sicilian channel, have made international headlines. The figure this afternoon was estimated at 4,000 since Monday and Italian Interior Minister Angelino Alfano has said that 15,000 have been rescued since the beginning of this year.

Over 1,000 of the migrants rescued on Monday have been brought to the Sicilian ports of Augusta and Pozzallo and a naval vessel carrying a further 300 is tonight heading for the Port of Catania. Sadly, this ship is also transporting a dead body found on one of the inadequate boats which got into trouble at sea. 

Mr Alfano has repeated his earlier claim that 300,000 - 600,000 people are currently preparing to risk the voyage from North Africa so no let-up is expected during the summer months. Whether or not this figure is correct, Mr Alfano has, with justification, again lamented the fact that there has been little help from the rest of the EU. 

At the end of March José Angel Oropeza, Director of the International Organisation for Migration's Italy and Malta Coordinating Office, advocated the setting up of "migrant stations" along the routes from Africa so that people can receive assistance and information on how to reach Europe legally. In Italy, it is being said in some quarters that Operazione Mare Nostrum is encouraging people trafficking but how can a humane country which, whatever its problems, is the fourth largest economy in Europe and ninth in the world, leave people to die in its waters?  Dr Christopher Hein of the Italian Council for Refugees says the mission must continue and that legal and safe channels for migration must be opened. 

Meanwhile, with Italy's reception centres bursting at the seams, many of the migrants rescued so far this week are being taken to private accommodation such as hotels. The cost of such measures has already scandalised some Northern League politicians, who recently challenged Prime Minister Renzi and Mr Alfano to put migrants up in their own homes. [I think they should do just that, not only to call their opponents' bluff but also to show humanity.]  Silvia Canciani of Asgi points out that many of the problems which ensue once the migrants are brought to safety in Italy are caused by the country's outdated system for dealing with asylum-seekers.

Update at 12.47 pm., 10.4.14:

A friend told me this morning that she had seen, in Modica, a large group of migrants, some without shoes, who had obviously run away from a reception centre. They were just walking in the middle of the road, presumably with little idea of where they were but trying to continue what they hope will be a journey to Northern Europe.

Interior Minister Alfano has said,

"At the moment Italy is the reception centre of the world. Our ships are going as far as 30 miles off the Libyan coast in order to stop the Mediterranean from becoming a cemetery, to prevent people from dying in their thousands. This is a job we are willing to do, but we ask not to have to do it alone."

A TRUE ART LOVER

Here is a heartwarming tale of honesty:

One day in 1975, a Sicilian man who had moved to Turin to work for Fiat attended a lost property auction at a railway workers' recreational club. As the man was an art lover, his eye was drawn to two particularly attractive paintings, a still life and a portrait of a young woman in a garden. He bought the two paintings for 45,000 Italian lire, worth £19 or $31 in today's values and, until a few weeks ago, both paintings hung in his kitchens, first in Turin and then back in Sicily following his retirement. There, in the heart of the home, he could gaze at them to his own heart's content.

Recently the man's son, an architecture student in Siracusa, happened to be looking through a catalogue of paintings by Gauguin and noticed some similarities with one of the paintings on his father's kitchen wall. After further research by his son, our honest Sicilian pensioner alerted the police and an extraordinary story came to light:

The paintings, now verified as a Gauguin from 1889 and an undated Bonnard, had been stolen from a London collector in 1970 and he, in turn, had bought them at a rather more prestigious auction in 1961. No one knows exactly how they ended up in the lost property office of the Ferrovie dello Stato but it is thought that the thieves were carrying them on the Paris to Turin train when they realised that there was to be a check at the border, so they abandoned them. They are now, obviously, worth a lot more than £19!

Having made enquiries in London, the Italian police have discovered that the art collector was a relative of the Marks and Spencer family and had no direct heirs. At the moment the paintings are still in police custody but, if there are no claims, it is possible that our Sicilian pensioner will be able to continue to enjoy them if he so wishes.

SABATO MUSICALE

I like this new song from Italy's favourite rocker, Vasco Rossi . This week the song is no. 2 in the Italian charts.

Vasco Rossi - Dannate Nuvole

JUST DESSERTS

A selection of lovely, light cakes flavoured with fresh fruit, pistacchio and chocolate at a small party for a friend who is leaving Sicily last night:

This morning, I happened to walk into my local bar for a coffee at exactly the right moment, for I discovered it was the owner's birthday and he was about to cut this very clever cake and offer a slice to all his lucky customers:

Yes, they all tasted as good as they looked!

MUST BE SPRING

TOURISM - IN A WORD

Modica, Santa Maria di Betlem

I've often said that a lot of the problems Modica has with promoting tourism could be overcome if the tourist board and council would realise the importance of one word - aperto [open]. Nothing is more frustrating to a tourist who only has a day to spend in a certain location than to arrive at the most interesting or beautiful building in the place only to see a notice saying, "Chiuso - torni domani" ["Closed - come back tomorrow"].

To be fair, it doesn't only happen in Modica, in Sicily or even in the South but I do have to say that every time I have passed Modica's Church of Santa Maria di Betlem in recent years - this is the church with the famous crib featuring Sicilian characters - I have noticed that it has been closed and felt sorry for any hapless tourists visiting the city that day.

Now, though, an agreement has been signed between officials of the churches of Santa Maria, San Giorgio and San Pietro, a consortium of tourist companies and the cooperative Progresso Ibleo, which will be charged with the security of the churches during opening hours. Under the agreement, the churches will remain open all day during the tourist season.

Far be it from me to be cynical but I do hope that those concerned realise that the tourist season includes August and that "all day", to folk not from these parts, encompasses the hours between 1 and 5pm!

You may be interested in this 2010 article of mine for Italy Magazine, "The Bells of Santa Maria".

SABATO MUSICALE

There's a lot of truth in this eighties song from Fiorella Mannoia - "What Women Don't Say":

Fiorella Mannoia - Quello che le donne non dicono

BROCCOLETTI CON DATTERINI

In case you're wondering what I did with that kilo of broccoletti on Tuesday, here's the salad I invented!

Broccoletti con datterini

Trim, wash and drain 1 kg broccoletti. Bring a pasta pan of salted water to the boil and plunge the broccoletti in. Cook for about 3 mins, then drain. Heat 4 tablesp olive oil in a 2"-deep, wide pan or small wok and cook 1 crushed clove of garlic in it for 1 min. Add the broccoletti, season and stir round for about 5 mins. Add 20 or so datterini tomatoes or the smallest cherry tomatoes you can find and cook, stirring, until these just begin to soften - about 2 mins. Then add a few pinenuts, cook for a further minute and add the juice of 1 lemon. Give it all a good last stir then use a slotted spoon to transfer the mixture to a serving dish. A few shavings of Pecorino stagionato over the top and you're done. 

This is great served warm but it's also pretty good cold!  Serves 4 as a contorno.

A MENTION

It's always nice to be mentioned favourably on other blogs and sites and I am delighted to have received this nice write-up on Ville in Italia. Do take a look, as it's a very interesting site and I'm in good company there! Thank you, Ville in Italia!

"ANOTHER THING"

We all get nervous when speaking in public so let us be kind to poor Davide Tripiedi, a Movimento 5 Stelle politician who, when he stood up to speak in the Camera dei Deputati yesterday, began by announcing that he intended to be "brief and circumcised" instead of "brief and concise". He was corrected by the Deputy Speaker, who informed him that "that is another thing" and, though momentarily embarrassed, Mr Tripiedi apologised, smiled and continued with his speech. I rather think he made the Chamber a more interesting place for a few minutes! Thank you, Corriere della Sera:

UN' ABBONDANZA

... di broccoletti

SABATO MUSICALE - SISTER ACT

There is only one performance that everyone in Italy is talking about this week, and it is this one by Ursuline nun Suor Cristina on The Voice of Italy talent show. All I can say is, "Wow!" and I am sure you will, too.  I am doubly wowed by the fact that Suor Cristina is Sicilian, from Comiso.

She chose the rapper J-Ax as her mentor as he was the first of the panel to turn round. He told Suor Cristina,

"If I'd met you when I went to Mass as a child I'd be Pope by now!"

When asked why she wanted to try her luck on The Voice, Suor Cristina said, 

"Because I have a gift and I offer it to you."  

As to what the Vatican might have to say about her appearance on the programme, Suor Cristina said she was expecting a phone call from Pope Francis. There is no word yet as to whether this has happened, but I, for one, believe that it will and that he will be delighted.

Go for it, Suor Cristina!

Suor Cristina - No One 

MISSING THE BUS

Public transport, as Modicans would be the first to admit, does not work well in this town and I have often lamented the fact that, whilst I can get a bus from Modica Bassa to Catania and arrive with no trouble in less than two hours, it sometimes takes almost as long to get from the Sorda district of Modica where I live to Modica Bassa in the first place.

Therefore, whenever I go to Catania, I feel as if I'm in paradise as soon as I see a city bus. It feels normal! But oh, dear, what is going on? It seems that the Catania bus company is not doing well, the reason being that over 60% of its passengers do not bother to purchase tickets and a further 30% of those who are fined for this omission do not pay that, either.  The problem, it is reported, is widespread in southern Italy but less so in the north, where only 30% of passengers habitually travel without tickets. This, we are told, is not because northern Italians are more honest, but is due to a basic mistrust of bus services among southerners, dating back to a time when the service offered was, indeed, poor, even in large cities like Catania.

In order to combat the problem, more ticket inspections are promised in Catania from April but I would like to suggest another solution: make the system for buying tickets easier! Granted, it is mostly local people who use the city's buses but a stranger or a tourist is likely to be very perplexed at the lack of information about where to buy tickets and it is not obvious to someone from another country that you can buy them in most bars and tobacconists.

Once I found myself stranded on the outskirts of Catania and needed to get into the city at a time of day when everything was closed. I boarded a hopeful-looking bus but, being British, became so terrified of an imminent ticket inspection [despite the driver's assurances that the inspectors don't work between 1 and 4 pm] that I got off three miles from my destination and walked.

Make the ticket-purchasing points more obvious, Catania - and it would help enormously if they were actually open as well!

The Hollies - Bus Stop

SPRING TIDES UPDATE

It is now being reported that the body of a migrant was found on board one of the boats saved by the Italian Navy on Tuesday night. The cause of death is being given as inhalation of hydrocarbon fumes on the boat. Another migrant from the same boat was airlifted to hospital in Catania after he or she was found to be experiencing serious breathing difficulties.

Now it is estimated that a further 1,000 migrants have been rescued by the Italian Navy and Coast Guard in the last 24 hours.

Once those migrants who survive the incredibly dangerous crossing arrive on Italian soil they are helped to an extent but facilities for them are inadequate. Most do not wish to stay here and either escape from the holding centres and try to make their way north - in which case they may again fall into the hands of people traffickers -  or wait for permission, which may not come, to move on. And then what? Some are lucky and manage to legally stay in northern Europe; others are not.

Throughout history, people have fled persecution, poverty, danger and war and no one has the right to prevent them from doing so. And no one, least of all me, knows how to tackle these sources of the problem.

SPRING TIDES

Spring has come to the Mediterranean and better conditions at sea bring with them more boatloads of desperate souls seeking a better life.

On Monday night alone, 13 boats carrying, between them, around 1,532 migrants were rescued in the Sicilian Channel by the Italian Navy and Coast Guard. Rescue ships were still trying to reach other migrant boats that had run into trouble as these figures were being reported.

South of Lampedusa naval ships saved 596 migrants, including 141 women and 116 minors. The majority of these, like the migrants rescued from other overloaded and inadequate boats, are believed to be from Syria, Palestine and Eritrea. The migrants were transferred to another ship on which they were given medical care and where representatives of the NGO Fondazione Rava NPH were on hand to help. Police were also on board to try to identify the migrants. Today some of them were brought to Pozzallo.

Latest estimates are that, in the last 48 hours, the Italian Navy, Coast Guard and three Italian Merchant Navy ships assigned to Operazione Mare Nostrum have saved 2,128 migrants.  UNHCR has said that the operations were an example for other countries to follow.

The Italian Navy has been involved in 76 rescue operations since the launch of Operazione Mare Nostrum in the autumn and 10,134 migrants, including 713 women and 1,019 children, have been rescued at sea.

Tonight, as so often since I came to Sicily, my thoughts are with all migrants and those who seek to save and help them.

APPRECIATION

This cheered me up:

SABATO MUSICALE

Belgian singer-songwriter Stromae certainly impressed as a guest star at Sanremo this year and this track has entered the Italian charts at no. 5:

Stromae - Tous les Mêmes

PROF

I am honoured to have had my portrait taken by photographer Luca Migliore 

and to feature in his 11 Donne ["11 Women"] project here.

Grazie, Luca!

THURSDAY, THURSDAY

I've mentioned before that I'm not fond of Thursdays, partly because Thursday is not Friday and partly because it's - well, Thursday. I also think the BBC is to blame for my aversion as, when I was a child, the Watch with Mother schedule ran thus: Mondays - Picture Book, which was sometimes interesting; Tuesdays - Andy Pandy, which at least had the virtue of a loveable teddy bear; Wednesdays - The Flower Pot Men, which only children could understand; Thursdays - Rag, Tag and Bobtail, a hedgehog, a mouse and a rabbit who were as dull as can be; and Friday - The Woodentops, which I loved, mainly because the programme featured "the very biggest spotty dog you ever did see." So there you have it - Rag, Tag and Bobtail spoiled Thursdays for me for evermore and the only duller thing I've seen on television was the much hyped live announcement of the winner of last week's Masterchef Italia final - also on a Thursday.

As regular readers will know, Masterchef Italia has, for three years, been a programme which I have followed avidly and there were some great episodes in this third series. Rachida from Morocco and lovely 67-year-old Alberto from Cremona were eliminated a couple of weeks ago and the semi-finalists were the worthy and non-temperamental Enrica, Almo of the glowing shoes - I have several times had to put my sunglasses on when there have been full-length shots of Almo - and Federico, an analytical and serious torinese doctor, who deservedly won the title.

It has been fun, too, watching the three judges - Carlo Cracco the "sexy chef" [who actually writes extremely good cookbooks], Bruno Barbieri, whose jackets and glasses stunned viewers week after week, and the entertaining and unpredictable Joe Bastianich, whose best trick was to throw dishes he disapproved of across the studio. Fun, that is, until the final went live when, awaiting Almo and Federico in a packed studio, the three were obviously at a loss as to how to fill the agonisingly long minutes. As one tweeter pointed out, they are, after all, chefs rather than professional anchormen and it was all a bit much for them. Even when the two finalists arrived, Cracco played the suspense for all it was worth and, along with several million others, I had started to wonder if he'd ever put us out of our misery by reading out the name. "Please don't go live again!" begged tweeters all over Italy and eventually Sky Uno staff had to admit that the idea had been a mistake.

But now it is all over and here I am on Thursday evening wondering what to do with myself: Junior Masterchef Italia starts tonight and two of the judges are Bruno Barbieri and Joe's mum Lidia Bastianich. [Presumably the producers believe that the audience would not tolerate Joe chucking around dishes created by children.] However, I'm not sure I'm up to the rigours of following such a contest, so roll on, Masterchef Italia 4 and the return of chef Cracco - on Thursdays again if you can manage it, please, Sky.

Masterchef Italia logo - Wikipedia Italia

COURAGE

On International Women's Day last Saturday a 67-year-old Sicilian woman was received by President Napolitano at the Quirinale [the President of the Republic's official residence] and invested with the honour of the Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana.

The woman was Franca Viola, a tenant farmer's daughter from Alcamo [Trapani]. At the age of 17, Franca was kidnapped by her former fiancé, Filippo Melodia and some of his friends. Franca's father had ended the betrothal because Melodia was a member of a Mafia gang. The Viola family home had already been burned down as a reprisal.

Franca was held for eight days and repeatedly raped. Her father pretended to be cooperating with Melodia's gang but actually he was helping the police, who on the eighth day found and released Franca. Her kidnappers were jailed.

In those days, rape in Italy was regarded as an offence against public morality rather than an offence against the person and a man who had raped a woman could be absolved of the crime if he married his victim. The woman would agree to the marriage to save her reputation. 

Franca, however, refused to marry Melodia and her father supported her. This took incredible courage amid the threats that the family received and in the cultural climate of the time but both were determined.

The story has a happy ending, for Franca married her childhood sweetheart in 1968 and had two children. She is now a proud grandmother.

The law whereby a rapist could be absolved of his crime by marrying the victim was abolished in 1981 and Franca Viola was instrumental in bringing about the change. Rape was not designated an offence against the person in Italy until 1996. 

On International Women's Day 2014 the Quirinale was bathed in red light in remembrance of victims of femicide in Italy.

Franca Viola

"A FORGOTTEN VILLAGE"

Do you ever wonder how talk show presenters prepare their programmes? You might think that they would read everything they can about people they are going to interview, bone up on geographical locations that are going to feature or, at the very least, make sure they are well-briefed by people who can do this for them. 

Miss Barbara d'Urso, the presenter of the Sunday afternoon programme Domenica Live on Canale 5, appears to have done none of these things this week and has caused a Sicilian storm by referring to Siracusa as "a forgotten village in southern Italy" whilst interviewing the teacher who arranged a school concert to welcome new Premier Matteo Renzi to the city.

Siracusa: 2,700 years old, the birthplace of Archimedes and the most important city in Magna Graecia. Siracusa: UNESCO World Heritage Site. The city has a Greek amphitheatre to rival those in Greece itself and classical plays are performed there to this day. It also has a Roman amphitheatre and Cicero described Siracusa as "the greatest and most beautiful" of Greek cities.  

Teatro greco, Siracusa being prepared for the performance of a Greek play

Mayor of Siracusa Giancarlo Garozzo is understandably appalled and points out that the city is ranked fourth in Italy [after Rome, Venice and Florence] for its artistic and architectural heritage. He also thinks that Miss d'Urso should have glanced at Wikipedia before the programme went on air. This morning his administration sent a written protest to Mediaset [Silvio Berlusconi's group of television channels, which includes Canale 5]. Both the city council and the tourist board are now likely to invite Miss d'Urso to visit the city. 

Ironically Miss d'Urso is from Naples and changed her name from Maria Carmela - judged "too southern" by her bosses at Tele Milano, a precursor of Canale 5 - to Barbara in 1977. What a pity she didn't change her reading habits too.

IMAGINATION.....

Imagination, especially in the kitchen, is always to be commended in my opinion so I was delighted, on Saturday, to be offered this "mimosa cake" in my local bar. Mimosa blossom is the symbol of International Women's Day in Italy, because it is plentiful at this time of year and women can obtain it without spending money. It was originally the idea of the WW2 partisan and later one of the "mothers of the Constitution", Teresa Mattei. "Teresita" died almost exactly a year ago.

Those are minute pieces of yellow-coloured sponge cake decorating the torta and it was filled with fresh strawberries. Needless to say, it tasted good, too!

SABATO MUSICALE

Here is a song for International Women's Day - Le donne lo sanno ["Women Know"] and men would do well not to forget this fact!

Ligabue - Le donne lo sanno

Buona festa della donna a tutti!

THE CANNOLO THAT FELL TO EARTH

Look out, NASA! You've got competition from Sicily, no less, in the form of the "Sicilian Space Program"! This was the brainchild of three young people from Enna - Antonella Barbera, Fabio Leone and Paolo Capasso - who one evening had the idea of sending a cannolo into space.

Our determined space pioneers paid for the mission from their own funds and equipped themselves with two video cameras, an empty ice cream carton, a GPS system, a helium-filled balloon, a small parachute and, of course, the "cannolo", made from modelling paste.

Next, they had to get permission from Enac [the Italian Civil Aviation Authority], Enav [the company which provides civilian air traffic control to the Italian state] and the military at Sigonella - all of which took 45 days, during which time the three friends finalised the details of their project.

At last, the launch date of 2nd February arrived and the cannolo took off from Rocca di Cirere in the Enna Geopark. It reached a height of almost 30,000 metres before the balloon disintegrated two hours later and the parachute brought the adventurous cannolo back to earth as planned. It was retrieved by the "Sicilian Space Program" team at Bompietro in the Madonie [Palermo Province], 25 km from the launch site. 

Antonella, Fabio and Paolo say they see the cannolo flight as a gift to Sicilians and hope it has made them smile. I think it is safe to say they have achieved this, as the video has now gone viral. They also say they celebrated with a cannoli party - let's hope that this time they were well-deserved real ones!

CARI CORSISTI....

I dedicate this song to all my students who had to have a lesson this afternoon instead of enjoying the last day of carnevale. I'm very impressed that you came!

The Seekers - The Carnival is Over

SPRINGTIME RISOTTO

Even though it's started raining again, you can tell it's spring by the armfuls of Sicilian asparagus being sold from vegetable lorries at the roadside and the other day I decided I could resist no longer!  As there's still a bit of pumpkin to be had, I saw no reason for not combining these two favourite risotto vegetables of mine:

First, take a piece of pumpkin weighing about 250 gr and separate the flesh from the skin. Discard any fibrous bits and the seeds, then chop the flesh into small chunks. Now prepare the asparagus - as I said, I got about an armful! Wash it, then cut it diagonally about an inch below the spears. [Sicilian asparagus is very tender so you can leave more of the stalks on if you wish, or chop and add them separately.] Cook the pumpkin in a pan of salted, boiling water for about 10 mins or until tender, then add the asparagus for just a minute or two. Drain.

In a wide pan at least 2 inches deep, soften a chopped white onion in 4 tablesp olive oil.  As I've said before, there are only two secrets to making a good risotto: one is to use the right kind of rice and the other is contained in that word I would ban in other circumstances - pazienza. Once the onion is softened, add about 2 tablesp out of 500 gr arborio or other risotto rice and stir it around for about a minute. Have ready 1 litre of vegetable or chicken stock. [If you are awfully good and have had time you'll have made the stock from the asparagus stalks and some other vegetables but I'm not and I didn't.] Now add the rest of the rice and about one third of the stock. Stir everything, turn the heat down and go and do something useful such as checking that the world didn't end while you weren't on facebook. Come back, check that the rice has absorbed the stock and if it has, add another third. [If it hasn't, stir and wait!] Repeat the process, adding, with the final third of the stock, some seasoning - I decided it was time to use that nice lemon and mint flavoured seasalt I showed you a couple of weeks ago - some chopped fresh sage and the pumpkin and asparagus. Add the juice of a lemon, stir and let the rice absorb the last of the stock. Once it has and is al dente, stir in a couple of tablesp grated Parmesan, Grana Padano or Ragusano cheese and add a few knobs of butter. Stir vigorously and serve.

Serves 4 generously.

SABATO MUSICALE - ST DAVID'S DAY 2014

HAPPY ST DAVID'S DAY!

Katherine Jenkins - Welsh Medley