Sicilia Adesso!

I woke up and found myself in a room full of strangers and suddenly remembered I was in Sicilia at a unisex youth hostel! After an early colazione, I bid farewell to the young Swedish couple and promptly found a cheap camera (35euros) by sheer luck at the family-run Inn Piero. The no-fuss cosy joint had a terrace overlooking the gorgeous coastline and vast open sea, while the vista from my room no. 3 was only slightly obscured by some brilliant bushy cyprese trees.

Armed with a map and stomach full of pasta and beer, I embarked on 2 recommended trails; one through the main shopping street shooting the ancient Greek-Roman monuments, historical churches and local pasticceria with windows of gleaming diabetic marzapane and cakes in all shapes and colours.

Unable to resist the dolci, I bought a range of different Paste di Mandorla (local specialty sweet almond biscotti) and gleefully stumbled on the winding foot path past lush home gardens to the charming Isola Bella (literally meaning 'beautiful island'). A protected U-shaped cove, the deserted pebbled beach was flanked by two inlets and dotted with pretty summer umbrellas.

The sea was too cold for a swim (at least by my Singaporean standard)so I snacked on my almond biscotti and dipped my tired feet into the clear cool waters, running my toes over the smooth polished pebbles. On my way back to town, I took the lazy option by hopping onto the funivia (1,80 euros) which made its steep ascend up the hilly slopes in time to catch the lovely sun casting its warm glow all around Taormina. I couldn't say this enough - the sunsets here were simply breathtaking.

At night I indulged in more Sicilian specialties at the nearby Trattoria-Pizzeria San Pancrazio, which caught my eye earlier in the day with its mouth-watering menu of seafood dishes. I was happy and hungry so I fired away my orders at Nino, the resident waiter-cum-manager who could manage un po' inglese. My piatto primo is a mezza portion (5euros) of Spaghetti with prawns, cherry tomatoes and pistachios (which I gobbled down in 2mins!) in the most savoury sauce ever.

This was followed by Nino's highly recommended Fresh catch of the day -the 'Alalunga' (11,50 euros) which is a long-fin white tuna considered to be the finest species in the tuna family and one of the local highlights (apart from the perennial favourite 'spada pesca', swordfish). Nino was spot on - the juicy slightly bloody grilled steak looked and tasted almost like meat and was truly 'buono' with a twist of limone, nothing more. He probably thought I was mad; this lone Asian chick smoking and nursing a birra, while copying the menu frantically and discreetly taking pictures of the food. Needless to say, I slept like a pig before midnight and woke up at 5.45am the next morning for a full-day excursion.

I had paid 47euros for a full Thursday trip onboard a coach-load full of mostly retired loud American tourists to Agrigento for the Valley of Temples and other equally impressive Greek ruins. Figuring it'd be too much of a hassle and expensive to spend a night there, the tour would be cheaper and less stressful. Or so I thought, until the Italian guide Santo's cheesy jokes started winding up the old foggies and fuelled their insane chatter. Oh god, help me.

Rescue came in the form of this friendly English couple, whom I got to know better over the lunch of grilled swordfish and vino bianco at a seafront restaurant. We then visited the Roman 'Ville del Casale' at Piazza Armerina for its century-old yet amazingly intact thermal baths and mosaics. There were awe-inspiring scenes of fierce battles, ancient game hunting, athletic bikini girls and heroic Hercules, composed from the tiniest prettiest mosaics on whole stretches of walls and floors, even in the servant quarters.

At night, I kept my promise to Nino and went back to San Pancrazio trattoria for the 'Cotoletta Palermitana' (8,50euros); grilled thin veal cutlets Palermo-style, coated with breadcrumbs, peanuts and pistachios, finished off with a dash of olive oil. As I was the last customer, Nino and I enjoyed a great conversation in Italian (the poor fellow was struggling in inglese!) and he told me about his wife and kids in Taormina and life in Sicily.

When I asked him about the food, he beamed proudly and raved about their produce from the nuts to the vegetables and seafood, and kindly offered me a complimentary dessert of Mandorla torta (sweet almond cake) and the prickly cacti fruit 'Ficodindia' from the dessert buffet counter inside.

You won't miss the cacti plant which grew abundantly all over Sicily, thriving on the dry climate. I'd always wanted to try the fruit but never got round to it until now. Nino told me with a laugh that it was also affectionately nicknamed 'Bastardone' as it was only available in autumn when summer was over! Under the curious gaze of the two cooks freed from the kitchen, he expertly removed the fruit's prickly skin and handed me the whole thing, insisting I eat the big crunchy seeds too. Its taste reminded me of a fresh firm juicy cucumber with a tinge of sweetness akin to a green rock melon. Yummy. We shook hands and I thanked him for his gracious hospitality. I think if I ever return to Taormina, Nino would still be working there and perhaps he'd remember me too.