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The low-growing aloe-like plant with curling spiky leaves shoots out a central stalk that can reach up to 12 m (40 ft).

The famed Valle dei Templi is home to ruined Greek temples that stand, or partially stand, against a backdrop of the distant sea. They are as awe-inspiring today as they must have been to the peoples who constructed them 2,500 years ago (see Agrigento and the Valle dei Templi).

In the grounds of the famous Valle dei Templi lie wonderful Greek temples, and an important sanctuary to the goddesses Demeter and Persephone, the so-called Rock Sanctuary and the oldest at Agrigento. Now almost buried by the ugly mass of modern development is the medieval centre of the town, into which fascinating pieces of Greek structures were incorporated (see Agrigento and the Valle dei Templi).

The Valley of the Temples was the heart of one of the most important cities in the ancient world and is a prime example of the magnificence of Magna Graecia (see Agrigento and the Valle dei Templi).

A vaulted interior, tapestry placemats, modern paintings and antique implements. The menu has a few chosen Trapanese dishes and fresh fish (see Ai Lumi Tavernetta, Trapani).

Another Palermitan favourite, with tables set in a courtyard. Try pasta with swordfish, mint and almonds.

A super comfortable 3-star hotel. Rooms have refrigerators, modern baths and shuttered geranium-clad windows overlooking the Gulf of Castellammare. A good base for visiting northwest Sicily.

Sit on a terrace facing the wharf where fishermen sell their catch under brightly striped awnings. Fish is prepared simply or in more elaborate Sicilian dishes such as sweet and sour stingray.

Bordered by via Vittorio Emanuele and via Maqueda, this rather poor residential area is a maze of streets spanned with billowing laundry. The heart of the neighbourhood is given over to the Ballarò market (see Ballerò, Palermo). Don’t miss the 17th-century Chiesa del Carmine on via Giovanni Grasso with its stuccoed interior and frilly, polychrome cupola.