The thing that fascinated us the most about our trip was getting to know the true face of the land.
It’s no coincidence that we crossed paths with Pierfilippo Spoto, pioneer of experiential tourism, that is a type of tourism aimed at showing visitors the authentic side of rural Sicily through the voice of its people.
In a few words, he was one of the first to think that meeting a shepherd or a baker could have been as interesting as a visit to an ancient temple, if not more.
With him we talk about villages that are facing the risk of disappearing, or endangered professions such as shepherds, bakers, farmers, shoemakers. He tells us about his idea, born around twenty years ago. “I wanted to tell visitors what we are.”
He brought us to Sant’Angelo Muxaro, in the heart of the historic region of Sicania. It’s a landscape known for its gypsum, caves and local cuisine.
Many caves have been explored in the great gypsum layers underpinning the old village. Some of them are natural, other man-made. The latter are fascinating burial sites like the Tomba del Principe (tomb of the prince), found in the early 20th century and maybe so old to be the potential resting place of King Minos.
From the buried treasures we move to the living treasures going to a little, iconic bakery. Angelo and Maria, who have been working here for a lifetime, welcome us with an abundance of smiles and dressed bread. They’re just enthusiastic to tell us about the old days, when everyone in town prepared tomato sauce together, or bread dough at home to cook it later in their oven.
All this isn’t just an ancient beauty, like that of Segesta or Selinunte temples. It’s a living beauty, with whom you can talk. The nice thing of it is that the first to be enchanted is Pierfilippo, who comes back here often and instils in others the ability to appreciate such charm.
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