Sicily is a beautiful city located at the bottom of Italy. Since it’s an Italian city, many people get excited to experience the italian culture there. Although this is true, many people don’t realize that Sicily has a big Greek influence. This is because Sicily was colonized by Greeks in the 8th century BC. Although the most important colony was established at Syracuse in 734 BC, many other colonies were established. This includes Gela, Akragas, Selinunte, and Zankle, to name a few. Eventually, however, Sicily was conquered and became a province of the Roman Empire. In fact, Sicily wasn’t declared a region of Italy until 1946.
It’s rich history is something that makes Sicily so interesting. One of the great things about this city is that although the Greeks colonized in Sicily so many years ago, you can still see Greek architecture on your travel vacation in Sicily. For example, one of their biggest attractions is the Valley of the Temples, which is a Greek archeological site. Even more, the Taormina amphitheatre is the second largest amphitheatre in Sicily, which was built in the third century BC by Greek colonists.
When you’re enjoying your vacation package, you’ll realize that there is still a Greek influence on Sicilian culture. For instance, Greek colonists had a preference of olives, fish, board beans, pistachios, and fresh vegetables; these things can still be found in Sicily’s cuisine. Additionally, the Griko people (Greek community in Sicily), traditionally speak Italiot Greek, which is a form of the Greek language. As of recently, less people are speaking this language than before, but it can still be heard on the streets.
Sicily is a beautiful place for a travel vacation because of its rich culture. Not only will you be able to indulge in Italian culture, but also Greek culture as well. At Arik Travel, we have many vacation packages available for those of you that want to experience Italy.
