If you love Baroque art and good food, Sortino is the right destination for you, but if you also love nature, history and archeology, then you can't help but visit Sortino!
This small town in Province of Syracuse, populated by about 8 thousand people, is located on Iblei Mountains, but is less than 30 km from the sea, is rich in Baroque churches, but is located a short distance from one of the most fascinating prehistoric necropolises in Sicily, invites you to visit its museums, but then awaits you at the restaurant… It is Sortino, a small treasure chest in south-eastern Sicily, which awaits you with its treasures!
Sortino, 3 curiosities that will win you over
In Sicilian culinary tradition, Sortino has a respectable position, thanks to his most excellent product, honey (of thyme, orange blossom, eucalyptus and millefiori) which was already known since ancient times: Virgil and Ovid speak of Hyblean honey and it is said that the art of producing this delicious food was transmitted to man by Aristaeus, divinity agriculture Greek. Today, therefore, in Sortino it is possible to taste the sweet and precious honey of the gods. Those who prefer salty food can try the pinch it, typical leavened Syracuse, filled with delicacies such as cured meats, vegetables and cheeses.
Sports enthusiasts can organize one vacation in Sortino during the dispute Cup Val d'Anapo Sortino, to witness the vertical climbs of the Sicilian four wheels: in October, for about 36 years the enthusiasts who participate and follow this exciting race on the track have been gathering.
From Sortino, you can easily reach it Pantalica, the rocky necropolis just 5,5 km from the village. Here in the "place full of caves" there are the greatest traces of the passage from the Bronze Age to the Iron Age in Sicily and these traces have earned the archaeological site the acknowledgment of UNESCO as World Heritage Site in 2005.
Sortino, what to see during a holiday in the village
If you have already found 3 good reasons to visit Sortino, discover the other marvels that await you in the town: the churches, the remains of the old town and the beekeeping museum are some of the main attractions of the village, where you will also find excellent restaurants where you can taste the local cuisine, such as sweet and sour rabbit, Sicilian rolls and traditional sweets, as well as honey and pizzolo. And if you want to relax 100%, treat yourself to one walk in the mountains between Iblei Mountains, or head to sea, towards Santa Panagia or Syracuse, where the beauties of the sea are those of the Ionian ... But let's go back to Sortino, in the center.
There are many sacred buildings to visit, in fact, between churches and convents, there are at least 12 important structures in the town: the Mother Church of Sortino is consecrated to Saint John the Apostle and Evangelist and is a magnificent example of Sicilian Baroque, which announces its beauties already from the churchyard; among the other churches not to be missed, we remind you of Saint Sophia Virgin and Martyr, Church of the Souls of Purgatory , Church of San Sebastiano, Church of the Nativity and Convent of the Collegine SistersWithout forgetting the Convent of the Capuchins, founded in the XNUMXth century. Walking through the historic center, you will also come across the other beautiful churches of Sortino.
We had promised history buffs an ideal destination and Sortino keeps that promise: in the ruined Sortino, the old town, you can visit the remains of the city which had been lively up until 1693, when on the night of January 9th the Val di Noto earthquake destroyed much of eastern Sicily and with it, Sortino. Today, walking through the streets of the old City it is still possible to recognize deposits, private homes and tanneries.
Finally, in the heart of Sortino, in via Gioberti, is the House Museum of Beekeeping Traditional, where honey lovers and the curious will be able to discover the ancient traditions of divine origins, as well as the tools used in the past in the production of the famous Hyblean honey.
Sortino is waiting for you
Il historic center of Sortino, as well as its surroundings in the province of Syracuse, also hold other wonderful treasures, which however we leave you the pleasure of discovering ... For visit Sortino, reach the country on the train, getting off at the Syracuse station which is about 24 km away, and continue the journey with bus or shuttle; if you arrive instead in the car, take the A18 Messina-Catania and take the junction for Melilli (11 km from the centre) then following the signs for Sortino.
© Image by Photo: Nunzio Bruno, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
