Historical Sicily #2: Taormina

Here is my second post on the lovely Sicily!

I didn’t feel it was fair to leave out the hotel I stayed at, and the historic town of Taormina.

The Town:

Taormina always existed as a little village, but was mostly made up of fishermen and farmers. This was until 1863 when a young Prussian baron called Otto Geleng travelled to Sicily several times to paint the amphitheater (in my previous blog post!). His Professor at the Academy where he was studying art loved the paintings, and suggested he took them to the European Capital of culture; Paris. The French were in fact very skeptical of the images of a snowy Mount Etna, with blossom trees and blue skies in the same image, and thought they were in Otto’s imagination! The cheek! Here is a picture I took to prove poor Otto was right:

After he took some of his critics to see Taormina to prove it, suddenly this little part of Sicily started getting a lot of tourists. As you can imagine, this meant the town exploded…

Possibly a more modern addition!

It owes much of its character to these early artistic tourists, many of who remained in the town.

 

One of Taormina's many arches. The people are a bit permanent too.

The beautiful Mount Etna looms behind Taormina. I was assured there are craters around it to “catch” the lava (you can imagine my skepticism), but it frequently erupts. It can be mostly lava, but on some of the roofs you can still see some of the ash that occasionally blights the town. Here is footage from the most recent eruption, in January 2014!!

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3YMTfssX2EQ

The Hotel:

(http://www.grandhoteltimeo.com/web/oght/grand_hotel_timeo.jsp)

I was lucky enough to stay in the Grand Hotel Timeo, (not my treat thankfully!). It was an Orient Express Hotel but it is now owned by the same company, which has renamed itself Belmond.

Now onto the history… The hotel is a very important part of Taormina’s history, as it backs right onto the Greek theatre. It was built in 1874 and has had some of the most influential guests you can imagine! Charles Stempel was a Latvian noble who resided in Taormina, and for a few weeks his friends Prince Yusupov and Archduke Pavlopic sheltered in the hotel to escape being apprehended for the murder of Rasputin.

Both Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany and Edward VII stayed several times at the hotel too. I also was shown a sneak peak of the Presidential Suite they would have stayed in. This part of the hotel is the original, when it would have just been a few rooms:

Beautiful! So that’s about it for Sicily. I was only there for 4 days, so hopefully this is enough to convince you that it has history to rival the rest of Italy…

Historical Sicily #1: Teatro Greco

I recently made a quick stop in Sicily, which is south of Italy and on the slopes of Mount Etna. It’s well known that Rome has most of Italy’s history, then Florence. Somewhere down that list is little Sicily, but it doesn’t get as much recognition for its history as it deserves! So I will do a few blog posts over the coming days so you can get a proper idea of this lovely place:

This first post is on the “Teatro Greco”, which is in the town of Taormina (there is a second one in Siracusa). Sadly the weather was awful as you can tell by these photos, but hopefully it will still show some of its beauty:

At first, I was totally confused as to why it’s called the “Greek” theatre. Surely it’s the Roman theatre? Has someone made a dreadful mistake?!

  

I was promptly informed that the Greeks were actually very prominent in Italy BEFORE the Romans. You learn something new everyday....even with history!

The theatre itself is built on the Greek foundations of what was likely a theatre beforehand, but the bricks are Roman. The theatre is recorded as having been built in the 7^th Century B.C. As you can see it’s not in great shape, but it still has a beautiful feel about it, as Mount Etna looms behind it.

It’s worth noting that the volcano regularly erupts, but the fact the theatre is still there shows that the town is relatively safe! You can see the smoke from the volcano around it on a clear day:

On my last day in Sicily - not very lucky!

Most of the original seats have not survived, but they have set up modern ones instead as there are still concerts and events held here. (Blue and James Blunt are the latest)

The theatre is accessible from all the way around, meaning that you get the wonderful views:

On the left hand side, there is a little Museum, with some of the inscriptions they found throughout the theatre:

This included financial recordings and other inscriptions (although how they could tell from this, I don’t know):

The main attraction is definitely the views. It cost us about €4, which was worth it in my opinion, as there aren’t many places accessible this high up….

Higher up on the hill there was an inaccessible medieval fortress, which a nearby tour guide was explaining. So close but yet so far! (Again, sorry about the weather quality):

I decided to do this post on the theatre first as it’s the most historical and memorable feature in Taormina in my opinion. However, there is lots more to come as it is the most wonderful town, and is also the place where DH Lawrence wrote Lady Chatterley’s Lover. So keep your eyes open...

"Fashion Rules" at Kensington Palace

I visited Kensington Palace at the end of last year, which explains the gloomy-looking weather! My verdict on the "Fashion Rules" exhibition is below….

History of the Palace:

Kensington Palace was built on the site of a mansion in 1689. The joint monarchs William and Mary built it, as they wanted a residence that was further from the river and better situated for the asthmatic William. The architect Sir Christopher Wren (who also built St Paul’s Cathedral!) was commissioned to expand the original mansion, adding all of the features a palace would need. For the next seven decades, the Palace remained a favoured royal residence.

It was Queen Anne (1665-1714) who had the Orangery built, and it is now a key part of the Palace, as well as the ‘Queen’s Apartments’. After this rather glamorous list of residents, the last monarch to use Kensington Palace as their official residence was George II. It’s worth noting that each monarch changed parts of the palace as they stayed there, meaning that there are many different styles in the decoration and architecture of the rooms. After George’s death in 1760, the Palace was used for lesser royalty.

In more recent history, it was the first marital residence of Prince Charles and Diana in 1981, and remained Princess Diana’s flat until her death. At the moment, the Duke and Duchess of Kent and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge live there (along with baby George!). The public parts of the Palace are managed by Historic Royal Palaces.

My experience:

As it was a while back that I visited, I thought I’d just look at the ‘Fashion Rules’ exhibition that I visited at the time.

The exhibition is sponsored by Estee Lauder and looks at the fashion of the Queen, Princess Margaret and Princess Diana. This is open right up until next summer, and is a wonderful examination of the fashions of the time and the powerful women who wore them.

First, you are introduced to the outfits of the Queen during the early years of her reign, and you are told when and where it was worn:

All of her clothes are beautiful, but you then get to Princess Margaret’s dresses:

These are just as beautiful, but it makes you realise that Princess Margaret had far more freedom in how she could dress! (A tiny bit like Kate and Pippa Middleton)

Interestingly, the exhibition keeps Princess Diana’s clothes very separate. Her dresses were in a single case, and you can see just how often she was photographed wearing them:

Videos are across the walls in various rooms, which gives a bit more context to the people who wore the clothes.

Ultimately, I’d say this exhibition is worth a visit. It’s included in the price of the entry ticket, and the Palace is fascinating to go around. The exhibition isn’t the most kid-friendly of topics, but there are lots of activities around the palace to keep them entertained!

Have you been to the Fashion Rules exhibition? What did you think?

My Etsy Wishlist

It’s worth bearing in mind that I will be doing one of these every now and then, as there is so much for history buffs on Etsy! Here are a few of my ‘wants’ at the moment:

Tower of London Raven necklace:

For those who like bling with a difference, this necklace is a really unusual find. And it’s in the sale for just £5! It features a raven, in line with the saying "If the Tower of London ravens are lost or fly away, the Crown will fall and Britain with it":

https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/179335789/last-raven-of-the-tower-of-london-black?ref=sr_gallery_11&ga_search_query=tower+of+london&ga_ship_to=GB&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery

Book on the Nobility (Vintage 1800’s):

Sadly this one is a bit of a guilty pleasure…. I’m seduced by the lovely front cover. This book is on the nobility and their castles. Although it’s a bit expensive, I would say this is a nice little addition to a bookshelf, as it’s fully illustrated:

https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/184491305/rare-vintage-victorian-our-untitled?ref=sr_gallery_6&ga_search_query=castle&ga_ship_to=GB&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery

Recycled Iron doorstop from 1900’s:

I can just imagine this propping open one of my doors! I’m not entirely sold on the union jack flat side, but the rest of it is pure vintage:

https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/173321882/upcycled-vintage-sad-iron-doorstop?ref=sr_gallery_13&ga_search_query=bookends&ga_ship_to=GB&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery

Anne Boleyn inspired earrings:

I’ve mentioned this little shop before, but I think these earrings are beautiful and nicely inspired by the period. Anne Boleyn doesn’t seem as happy in the picture though:

https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/171896739/anne-boleyn-circular-amethyst-pearl?ref=shop_home_active_22

Vinyl Bowl:

These are incredibly easy to make yourself (just get an unloved record and pop it into the microwave, you can then mould it as you want!) so this is more for inspiration. It’s such a great bowl for nibbles or anything else you can think of:

https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/184479556/carpenters-recycled-vinyl-record-bowl?ref=shop_home_feat_3

“Team….” Badges:

I LOVE these! Although you might get the odd look/punch here and there, you can show your support for key historical figures. So worth it! Got a thing for Richard III? Can’t get enough of Eleanor of Aquitaine? They’re all here:

https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/183460820/medieval-history-katherine-swynford?ref=shop_home_active_20

Jane Austen Travel Journal:

I always include something Austen related in these lists, just because it’s usually gems that are inspired by the regency period. This one is no different, as it’s a Jane Austen inspired journal that looks like the inner front page of her books:

https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/178947735/pride-and-prejudice-journal-jane-travel?ref=shop_home_active_19

Edible sugar doilies:

I like to think of these as Victorian inspired…? You can put these doilies in a cup of tea and they sit at the top until they dissolve. It’s almost worth starting to drink sugary tea for!!

https://www.etsy.com/listing/104852021/12-edible-rosettes-doilies-3-inch?ref=shop_home_active_14