Corleone, Albanians in Sicilian history, and travel in Sicily

In Book #3, the de Rogerio family has fled to Corleone to the estate of Leo de Iannacio, away from the violence and siege of Palermo during the War of the Sicilian Vespers. this area is home to a great deal of agriculture, particularly lemons and oranges, as well as melons, eggplant, cabbage, pistachios and almonds. Check out the link above to see some beautiful pictures of Corleone, where I will be visiting to give authenticity to the third book in the Vespers Trilogy.

Brian Catlos, Sicily, the Mediterranean and other medieval thoughts

So OK, I've been so preoccupied lately with planning my trip to Sicily (and Budapest and Iceland) next year that I've been neglecting my blog. So my friend Josh Birk recommended an author to me, just to keep me in the loop of present-day Mediterranean scholarship. That author would be Brian A. Catlos and I've already begun his book, Infidel Kings and Unholy Warriors, Faith, Power and Violence in the Age of Crusade and Jihad. For all you eggheads out there who are academically drawn to the Mediterranean, get this book. He has a new take on old scholarship and it's clear and well-reasoned. Look up his other stuff too. And if you're out in southern California around November 7 and 8, go see him in person at the UC-Irvine Mediterranean conference. So I'm trying to decide whether to stay around Mazara or Erice because I want to see the Greek temples at Agrigento. Isn't it fascinating that the best Greek ruins are in Sicily and southern Italy (Paestum - heaven on earth -yes, go see Paestum south of Salerno). And in Trapani I plan to visit the medieval salt museum as well as the salt pans since I write about them in our vespers trilogy. Last but not least, before visiting Budapest and soaking my bod in the hot springs of Iceland (Blue Lagoon, here I come!)we'll be traveling around Cefalu and Corleone (remember the Godfather? Although that's not why I'm going -there's actually a medieval connection there). Anyone have any thoughts or suggestions - feel free to comment!

More Travel Links to Sicily - see David Lebovitz!

http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2014/06/sicily-again-italy-travel/


Check it out folks - going to Sicily soon?

Wine anyone - how about Sicilian wine???

Now I know there aren't a lot of wine drinkers out there (lol) but if you like wine, European travel, traveling around Sicily and Italy and might want to try out local wines, check out this article from the travel magazine called Afar - http://www.afar.com/magazine/into-the-vines-the-wines-and-winemakers-of-sicily?&utm_source=newsletter041914&utm_medium=email&utm_content=logo&utm_campaign=weekly_wander