Day 9: Taormina
Taormina Walking Tour
We started our day with a local guide giving us a walking tour. We started on the Piazza Duomo and moved along Corso Umberto to the other end of town admiring architecture and amazing views along the way.
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Giardini della Villa Comunale
We then headed a little way down the slope to the public gardens that is below the Greek-Roman Theatre. It was originally a private garden for the 19th century noblewoman from England, Florence Trevelyan. She fell in love with Sicily while on her grand tour. She never returned to England. Her garden is now open to the public. The gardens consist of beautiful terraces sprinkles with statues and 'follies,' or fake ancient looking buildings that decorate gardens and estates. The views, and plants, are fantastic! It was an enjoyable stroll after our tour of the theatre.
Operatic Concert
We saw a sign for this in the lobby of our hotel, and out on the streets. So, we decided to book tickets for ourselves and see what we got. It was fabulous! The singers and pianist were all wonderful, and during intermission we sat out in the lit courtyard and had a drink that was included with our tickets. We could also easily walk to it from our hotel, so I highly recommend this enjoyable experience.