Picture Taormina" © (24"x24") acrylic on Canvas)

Almost halfway down the southern coast of Sicily from Messina lies the delightful little town of Taormina. It's a touristy little place set about halfway up a mountain overlooking a small beach and a miniscular harbor. The town is some 2,500 years old and was likely as much a tourist mecca when the Greeks and Romans trekked its cobblestone streets as today when those streets are paved with a checkerboard of colorful tile. The scene above is the town square with its whitewashed church, medieval gate, sidewalk cafes, and street artists selling their wares. The Postmodern addition of my hands and arms (three-dimensionally rendered on the canvas using modeling paste) snapping a digital photo of the place emphasizes the fact that I, too, was one of those tourists in the touristy little town we tourists deprecate by calling it "touristy." For the history-minded there are museums and a Grecco-Roman theater with a stunning view of Sicily's Mount Etna. For those tourists intent on spending lots of money, there is a wide variety of high and low-end shops along the town's crowded, narrow streets. Me, I spent all my money on Italian ice cream and very nearly missed the bus back to the ship.