The city of Avola, land of Nero d'Avola, almond and lemons, stands about 25 km south of Syracuse on a charming plain between the Asinaro river and the Cassibile river. It is wet east by the Ionian Sea and surrounded to the north-west by the Iblei mountains, which favor the mild climate even during the winter. The countryside in the surroundings of the city are characterized by the green of lemon and oranges and suggestive is the show of the almond in bloom that announces the imminent arrival of spring.
The city of Avola is also famous in the world for its grape variety, the "Nerello d’Avola", from which the famous and full -bodied "Nero d’Avola" red wine is produced.
The three bees reproduced on the city coat of arms symbolize the laborosity of the Avolese. In fact, the trade and the production and conservation activities of food are lively, such as the package of typical desserts (of almond, honey, ricotta) the presence of the various dominations that have followed in Sicily is visible and found in the history of the city. It is documented, in fact, that the Arabs subtracted the territory of the city from the Byzantines, who ruled it in the name of the Roman Eastern Empire. Traces of Arab domain are the numerous words still in use in everyday language, as well as the cultivation of dates, sugar cane, pistachios, Saracen olive trees and the presence of tanks, seteries and aqueducts. The Arabs followed the Normans with Ruggero, who was appointed Count of Avola. Under the Swabian and Angioine dominations, Avola It was transformed into Baronia and subsequently in Marquisate under the Aragonese until 1693, the year in which it was destroyed by the terrible earthquake of 11 January. The plant of the city is inspired by the reasons for the Renaissance fortresses and is developed on the symmetrical form of a regular hexagon, at the center of which the two main road axes cross the large square divided into four songs. At the beginning and end of the same roads, four other squares arise. All the hexagon is then crossed by ways which, intersecting with each other, give the orthogonal division of isolates, perfectly equal and symmetrical to each other. In each of the squares they arise by Baroque style churches, built with Iblea limestone.
It is not possible to visit Avola without visiting his first Tonnara
Witness of an activity in the flourishing past and which also expresses the strong integral bond between the coastal and sea territory and between agricultural economy and maritime in the plants. The surviving structure, of about 5,000 square meters, consists of a series of warehouses and sheds for the custody, conservation and processing of the fish around a central lodge. A brick chimney allows you to understand that even the tonnara of Avola He formed part of those structures adequate in the new times of industrialization. Among the few preserved documents, there is a historical photo where you can see the characteristic wooden boats inside the evildations. The complex was also equipped with a single -nave church, probably from the late eighteenth century. Today the tonnara is home to a small nautical circle and is found in a fair state of conservation since it can still be read part of the system.
Among the places in the surroundings of the city that certainly deserve a visit there are Avola Antica and the ponds of Cavagrande del Cassibile.
A few kilometers from the center of AvolA, we find the ancient site where Avola stood before being destroyed by the catastrophic earthquake of 1693 which hit the Monti Iblei. This is the Monte Aquilone and, along the hairpin bends they lead to the top of the hill, in addition to enjoying a breathtaking view, you can still see the remains of the ancient Avolese city. As for the lakes of Cavagrande del Cassibile, it is specifically, a natural reserve full of landscape, anthropological, hydrogeological, archaeological and speleological relevance. It is crossed by Cassibile river which in the course of the millennia has created a series of deep canyons. In the valley floor, he ended up creating a complex system of small waterfalls and bathing reservoirs. In the ten kilometers of length of the canyon, you can admire numerous lakes, with fresh and clear waters, among which the small lakes nearby stand out for beauty Avola Antica accessible to the public through a historic staircase, called Cruis scale. Choose Sicily, choose to stay in Avola with us at B&B Morfeo, many special offers and discounts for those who book directly from our site!
