In Santa Cristina di Gela we felt, for the first time, inside Sicily. Villages are perched on the hills and mountains remind of the rocky walls of the Alps.
Walking around town (famous for Sicily’s best cannoli) you can hear people talking Arbëreshe, a language derived from ancient Albanian.
This plateau was unoccupied until the XV century. It was then colonised by Albanians escaping their country following the ottoman invasion. While in search for a place to call home, they stopped at the feet of Mount Pizzuta to rest. The priests brought along a sacred image that, laid on a rock for a short time, left an imprint. They interpreted this as divine will and decided to settle.
From that point, marked by a church, we climbed up Mount Pizzuta, crossing pine woods and exploring limestone caves. From the top we could enjoy a wonderful landscape. To one side the sea and to the other the inner mountains, like humps of sleeping animals, each one with its story, that we look forward to unveil in the coming days.
