The Men in Suits Will Get You

On a cold snowy day in Rome a few friends and myself decided that a trip down to Sicily for the Easter weekend was more than necessary. Some beach time, sunshine and tropical blue water were certainly in order after such a cold Roman winter.

The month of April and my last planned trip had somehow snuck up on me. The final weeks of my abroad adventure were here and I was determined to make the most of them, beginning in Sicily.

Even though most people travel to Rome for Easter, I had decided to take the Roman approach and leave the city and influx of tourists for the weekend. We were determined to make this trip a relaxing one with no preplanned sightseeing except for some beach time, cannolis and tanning.

We stayed at the Mondello Palace Hotel located in the Mondello Beach area of Sicily near Palermo. Mondello is known for its beautiful beaches and seaside town full of seafood restaurants. The best part of the hotel was the included breakfast. After over three months of the typical Italian breakfast (a cornetto and caffe) we were ready to indulge. Scrambled eggs, bacon, cereal, yogurt, cornettos, juice, coffee, fruit and more filled out plates every morning. It was all worth waking up early (by a college students standpoint) before 10 am on vacation just to get our fill.

 Cefalù

On our first full day we set out to explore Cefalu, a nearby city known for its beaches and tourist attractions. Without a warning, we hopped on the bus that stopped right in front of our hotel, all dressed in beach attire while the Sicilians were wearing full jackets, boots and scarves. Unable to buy tickets we rode the bus anyway, figuring that it was just like Rome where it is very rare that officials check tickets, until three men in matching suits and ties came onto the bus and asked to see our verified tickets. Thinking we could escape them we ran off the bus only to be caught and reprimanded in Italian for trying to cheat the system.

After what felt like a march to "transportation jail," the men in suits brought us to a ticket window and explained that we would be fine 135 Euro each for not having tickets (keep in mind that a ticket only costs 1.30 Euro). After explaining in our best Italian that there was no where to buy tickets the man behind the window let us free as long as we bought bus tickets for the remainder of the day.

An hour-long taxi drive filled with techno and American oldies music later we arrived to the coastal town of Cefalu where we parked ourselves on the beach for the next three hours. Beautiful blue crystal clear water and soft white sand welcomed us along with the strong shining sun. Eager to obtain tans we laid out, sans sunscreen, and certainly paid the price with sunburns all over. Afterward, we walked through the town to escape the sun for a bit and found charming shops and restaurants along the coast. We stopped for a quick drink and snack at a restaurant with stunning views of the water before heading back on a train to Palermo.

Mondello

Mondello Beach is a popular beach destination for Italians during the summer months. Since we were visiting right before the summer season the town was not very crowded. It was nice to escape the busy city of Rome and the large tour groups for a quiet and peaceful weekend. Most of my time was spent walking through the town and hanging out with everyone on our balcony taking in the beautiful view. Easter Sunday attracted many families and couples to Mondello who were strolling along the water and taking in the beautiful weather. On Easter we braved the rainstorm that evening to go out to a group dinner where I tried clams for the first time and actually liked them!