Waiting for good weather in Sicily

Last night in Brisbane it bucketed down with rain. It felt good - almost unfamiliar. At a singing rehearsal in East Brisbane with Tongues of Fire, most of us went on to the balcony of the hall to feel the water as it gushed and overflowed from the gutters of the roof. We thought a stray cricket ball might fall out too ( the school hall is right next to the Gabba cricket ground ) but nothing plonked down - save for a few leaves and twigs from the fig trees around the hall.

The best recorded rainfall from yesterday was 81 millimetres. Sadly, around the catchments for our water supply, the best recorded was just 3 millimetres.

Right: dry crotch - no pants-wetting anxiety here; this is merely the aftermath of another heavy downpour. Umbrellas did not protect much, moreover the wind was often strong enough to blow them inside out. The daggy but practical poncho kept me (mostly!) dry

The last time it rained like this while I was around was in Catania, Sicily. It drummed down heavily for three days. Needless to say, dams would collect more than 3 mm from the heavens over this time! In fact parts of Catania flooded, especially where storm water drainage or plumbing is medieval or earlier.

Those funny looking 'Croc' shoes were indispensable as some streets backed up to ankle depth with water. Sometimes this did not smell pleasant - medieval plumbing sometimes means wading through effluent in this once affluent town.

The unearthed ruins of a Roman forum near via Garibaldi beginning to fill up with water and mud

So what do you do when you put aside two days to visit Mt Etna and the wet and poor visibility scratches those plans? Well, after you've visited the Duomo - and walked past all the museums to find they are closed for the season or opening later in the week after you leave - there's not a lot to do.. umm, visit the Bellini Gardens and look at the floral clock and calendar:

The composer Bellini lived a short life, like W A Mozart. He is not well known, but was responsible for some of the repertoire that made Maria Callas famous. Catania reveres Bellini as one of its most favoured sons.






Catania's markets were colourful and exciting. Spruiking and haggling were good spectacles to pass the time, as was watching pigeons, stray dogs and cats trying to steal scraps from the vendors. Fresh seafood was a big component of the produce on offer, along with chestnuts (of course), citrus, fresh and dried tomatoes, and artichokes. Yes, fruit from the prickly pear was sold by the tray-full as well!