Stone upon stone: an Italian sojourn: Arrivederci, Sicily

Moovit has been a boon this trip. However did we manage without detailed bus schedules and map apps all at your fingertips when you need to hop on a bus in a city. It really doesn't matter where you are: Moovit finds you, then points you in the shortest direction you need in order to walk to a nearby bus stop that will take you to whatever destination suits your fancy at that moment. Voila! No wonder tourist information offices are becoming redundant. There are just so many travel apps around that we now do it all without the bother of hunting an office down.

Today we had time to dawdle. We had no big plans until late afternoon when our apartment owner is kindly dropping us off at the airport for our night flight to Perugia: where it is raining ice. It is barely an hour away by flight, yet reports are that it is cold. Here it has been so mild for most of the month that we have come to expect this weather. We are in for a shock, I fear.

So, with nothing planned we took a bus that seemed to follow an interesting route and hopped off near Corso Italia, along Via della Liberta, and instantly found a gorgeous little coffee shop which we made a beeline for. And it won praise all around: so much attention to detail in everything.

Teapot, it is called. We particularly loved the rusted exterior which is so well used in Australian outback venues, too. And the pretty colour combinations inside were cute too. You might find such a coffee shop in Paris or London. We didn't really expect anything quite like this in Sicily. Which underrates Catania, again: for in the next couple of hours we wandered along Corso Italia and its surrounding streets and found shopping as good as any you might find in Rome, Paris, or London. In fact, Catania, we learned today has been called 'the Milan of Sicily' for the quality of its clothing stores. And it wears this label deservedly.

Even the entrances to some of its apartment complexes in this area are somewhat special. And some stores sprinkle Swarovski crystals, polish them into the marble floor tiles, then allow you to walk on them. We did. It is just luxurious.

The Giardini Bellini Park in Via Etnea is built on natural terraces: the lave has never quite covered this section. This land was once owned by the Prince of Bascari who had a maze on it, but the city bought the land in the 1800s and have now created a beautiful relaxing space for Catania folk and tourists to enjoy.

Salumi shops are doing a brisk trade in luncheon panini. Their exteriors frequently decked in ornamental citrus plants: so Sicilian.

And yet, Catanians consider themselves to be different. Not typical. The relationship between Palermo and Catania, for example, sounds like that between Sydney and Melbourne, when the locals tell you their take on it: competitive, not wanting to be seen in any way similar. Catanians even tout that they have different DNA from the Palermo folk. They want this difference to be acknowledged.

Our last hour or so in Catania we spent in the Fero o' Luni market, in the back streets, before we wound our way home. We longed to buy much of the produce and all of the fish we saw: so plump and fresh, and inviting it was. We will soon have to explore Perugia markets for our fare. It will be interesting to see the differences.

Some marketeers were closing up shop and trundling their wares home on wheeled market carts as we left. Others were more functional: using just the corners of a sheet, which allows a quick getaway in countries where they cannot always afford the fee to set up their stall; if and when an market inspector might be spotted not far off.

We have enjoyed Catania. And Sicily: so very much. We have been thoroughly well looked after and had such fun, each day, that we will remember it all with such fondness.

Arrivederci, Sicily! We will miss your warmth and kindness.