Savoring Sumptuous Sicily

March 23, 2025

Greetings from Riga!

I hope this finds you very well today!

As I finish up this newsletter on Saturday evening, I’m basking in the glow of a long walk on the seashore in lovely Jūrmala, which is just a 10-minute drive from Riga. This is such a great luxury to be so close to one of the longer, sandy beaches in this part of Europe, which is kept free of almost all commercial activity, making it a wonderful unencumbered space for families to take long walks, play in the sand, and, in the summer months, enjoy swimming and other water sports. The seashore is lined with gorgeous pine forest and beautiful sand dunes which today were shimmering in the early spring sunshine. The earth felt as if it was absorbing the warmth and light, ready — any day now — to come alive again after the long, dark Baltic winter.

This was just the break Dmitry and I needed after a busy week of work and administration, as I prepare for my next big trip to Japan and Alaska. I’ve been putting the final touches on my new talks covering Japanese cuisine, Japan’s Imperial Family, the History of Silk, and the History of Tea, and a companion piece for my talk on Common Phrases with Nautical Origins https://jennifereremeeva.com/nautical-expressions/(which you can enjoy here on my website), which looks at the Origins of Nautical Superstitions. These are legion, and it has been a real treat doing this research and discovering some of the more esoteric beliefs treasured by mariners throughout the ages. Did you know, for example, that black cats are lucky at sea? They carry the wind in them, sailors believe, and you can always tell which way the wind will blow from how they wash their faces. The number 13 is considered highly unlucky — no surprises why — but this extends to any word that begins with the thirteenth letter of the alphabet, which is “M.” Truly superstitious boat owners avoid giving any vessel a name beginning with this letter.

There are a lot more of these, and as usual, I’ll put up a full list on my website in the next few days, so you can enjoy looking through these.

Spotlight on: Sumptuous Sicily

Fresh of the heels of updating one of my favorite (and more popular) blog posts: The Best Books to Read Before a Trip to Italy | 2025, I was overjoyed to see that Netflix was bringing one of them to the screen: perhaps the greatest modern Italian novel: The Leopard by Guiseppe Tomasi de Lampedura, which follows the fortunes of Sicilians during the turbulent Risorgimento, or unification of Italy in the 19^th century. Netflix’s version of “The Leopard” is an excellent candidate for your next binge watch: a compelling drama with a great cast, but also mouth-watering use of Sicily’s exquisite landscapes — the lush coastal areas, soaring volcanic Mount Etna, and some of Europe’s finest Baroque facades. I can’t recommend it highly enough — the perfect way to escape to sunny Sicily without leaving your home!

I’m excited to return to Sicily proper this autumn on my beloved Seabourn Ovation, and I’m certainly planning a return visit from Giardini Naxos to the Valley of the Temples where there are some of the best preserved examples of Greek temples outside of the Aegean. I’ll also be visiting two of my favorite cities: Lipari, known as the mythical kingdom of the winds in The Odyssey, and Trapani, birthplace of the beloved Pesto alla Trapanese, a uniquely Sicilian version of Pesto Genovese, which you can learn more about here.

This is just one layer of Sicily’s incredible history as a crossroads of civilization. Layers of Byzantine, Arabic, Norman, Frankish, and Spanish occupiers have left indelible imprints on the Mediterranean’s largest island, imbuing its vibrant cities with a unique style of fusion art, architecture, and cuisine. Under pioneering and visionary rulers such as King Roger II, Sicily became an important center for the exchange of ideas from all over the Mediterranean, leading to great strides in the sciences, including geography and cartography — innovations that would lead directly to the ultimate success centuries later in the Age of Exploration.

I’ve enjoyed both land and cruise visits to Sicily, and can recommend both highly. I would happily spend several weeks exploring Sicily by car and foot — there are excellent trekking options all over the island, as well as incomparable trips along the slopes of volcanic Mount Etna. Sicily’s coastline is stunning, and sailing or cruising is also a great way to appreciate the sumptuous topography.

It goes without saying (but I’ll hammer it home anyway) that Sicily is one of Europe’s more important agricultural and culinary hubs. The temperate, sunny climate and rich volcanic soil give forth an abundance of citrus and other fruits, which were combined with year-round ice and snow from the mountains by the Arabs in a riff on their own beloved sherbert, which ultimately gave Sicily both its signature granita and Italy’s beloved gelato. The Arabs also encouraged the cultivation of durum wheat on the islands — abandoned after the fall of Rome. This would also ultimately make its way up the spine of mainland Italy as pasta.

Sicily is also home to unique varietals of grapes, which flourish in the volcanic soil and produce lovely crisp, fruity white wines and rich reds: both leave one refreshed and elevated rather than knocked out. It is exciting to see all the strides in winemaking of late in Sicily, and visiting tasting rooms is becoming more and more popular on Shore Excursions, as are visits to olive oil presses and Sicily’s ancient salt flats near Trapani, which date back to Roman times, when legionnaires were paid in “sale” or salt, which gives us our modern word, “salary.”

In my latest piece, A Guide to Sicily’s Cruise Ports: What to Do on Shore, I go into detail about what to do, see, buy, and eat and drink in Sicily’s major cruise ports, and how to explore the island’s many attractions from these vantage points. I can say with conviction that Sicily never disappointments, but only pulls you in and shows you another layer of of its fascinating history, culture, and cuisine.

New Additions to the Destination Resources

Stream More of Sicily

The Leopard is not the only option to screen Sicily! Mike White’s “White Lotus Season 2 will whisk you to magnificent Taormina for stunning scenes set in the luscious Sicilian city scapes and surrounding countryside, including a memorable scene of Jennifer Coolidge on a moped.

As I put together A Guide to Sicily’s Cruise Ports: What to Do on Shore, my thoughts immediately turned to one of my all-time favorite films, the 1988 sleeper hit, “Cinema Paradiso,” filmed on location in Sicily by native born director, Giuseppe Tornatore. This is a film that never disappoints — I’ve been watching it regularly since the 1980s — and I’ve had Ennio Morricone’s moving, memorable soundtrack to the film auto repeat for about a week now… Highly recommend!

The One Book on Sicily You Must Read!

Writing long form content for my website often feels like a thinly veiled excuse for returning to beloved subjects, books, films, and audio entertainment. This was certainly the case putting together, A Guide to Sicily’s Cruise Ports: What to Do on Shore, which gave me the opportunity to re-listen to one of my all-time favorite books, Sicily: An Island at the Crossroads of History. This past week, I’ve had (routine) medical appointments each morning, including daily two-hour infusions, which have given me the opportunity to listen to this amazing book walking to and from the appointments and during the infusions. I know I’ve mentioned (frequently) how much I love John Julius Norwich’s books — be they on the history of France, Byzantium, or Sicily, they are a superb blend of history, anecdote, and wonderful personal commentary. I relished re-visiting his obsession with Sicily — this book is just one of 40 you can find on The Best Books to Read Before a Trip to Italy | 2025.

The Mood in the Baltics

Thank you to everyone who has written in to ask how the mood is here on the Eastern Baltic Shore. I really appreciate your concern for me in the churn of our rapidly changing geopolitical reality.

This isn’t a newsletter about politics or the international situation, but as many of you know, our home base right now in lovely Riga, Latvia, where the mood can be characterized as “cautiously concerned.” (This is very Latvian!)

Everyone is going about their business as normal as spring makes its very tentative way to this part of the world, but the freedom to go about your business here is never taken for granted after centuries of occupation, oppression, and violence. I thought the best way to convey the overall situation would be to share this excellent recent podcast from The Times of London, Why the Baltics are Preparing for Putin, which features Oliver Moody, whose new excellent book, Baltic: The Future of Europe is out this week and a must-read to understand the wider implications and historical context of how the Baltic littoral plays into current politics, commerce, and the ways forward towards a revised European order. Both the podcast and the book are highly recommended!

New & Noteworthy

Northern Lights | Foundation Beyeler | Basel Switzerland

I’m excited about the Foundation Beyeler’s “Northern Lights” exhibit, featuring studies of the boreal forest by leading Scandinavian and Canadian artists including Hilma of Klint, Emily Carr, Ivan Shishkin, and Edvard Munch. The exhibit is not only an excellent opportunity to consider over 70 works of Nordic landscape art, but also to consider the effects of climate change on our fragile ecosystem.

Learn more.

The Silk Museum | Yokohama, Japan

I have an impossibly long list of things I want to see and do on my upcoming trip to Japan, but Yokohama’s Silk Museum is at the top of my list. My mother, who is accompanying me, has taken a pledge not to buy any fabric on the trip, and visiting silk outlets may represent her steepest challenge. I’m looking forward to delivering my new talk: The Story of Silk on Seabourn Quest, and I used some of the museum’s excellent online resources to research the topic, so an in-person visit is an absolute must! In a related visit — Yokohama’s Cup Noodle Museum is also high on my list — I’m nothing if not a Ramen fanatic!

Learn more

Turner and Constable | Tate Britain | London

It’s not too early to plan your visit to Tate Britain’s “Turner and Constable,” opening in November, 2025 and sure to be one of the more popular exhibits this year (closing April 12, 2026). The two greatest landscape painters — fierce rivals during their lifetimes — are brought together in a comprehensive exhibit set to feature not only their timeless canvases but also a host of personal effects and sketches.

Learn more.

Window Shopping

Sample Sicily’s Fine Wine

Sicily’s wines get their unique taste from the island’s rich volcanic soil and unique terroir. Here are some vintages available in North America that are excellent examples of Sicily’s unique viniculture.

The Crew Choice

After much thought (and years admiring these on many tender team members) I’m pushing play on this Helly Hansen Sun hat. I need something with drawstrings to keep the hat on my head in the wind, or around my neck as I explore. The crew seem to rely on them. I can’t think of a better endorsement. Not perhaps the chicest thing on the planet, but very much in fashion here in Northern Europe!

The Best Lip Balm for Travel

I’ve tried almost everything, and I keep coming back to this Elizabeth Arden Lip Balm, which is often sold in 3-packs at the Duty Free. It’s compact, and goes on smoothly over lipstick or on its own, and smells lovely. It’s great for a minimal make-up day, and it keeps my lips deliciously moist through long days in the sun and wind. I will stock up on my long layover in Warsaw’s Chopin Airport!

Be sure to check in with the Destination Resources Reading Lists, which I update regularly with new books, podcasts, TV and film, and other resources designed to make your travel meaningful. I did a big update recently, changing the format to make it easier to navigate. Visit via this link!

The Creative Corner

Workshop Prep

I’m excited to host another class of creatives on board Seabourn Quest as the ship heads from Japan to Alaska in late April and early May. We have a lot of sea days for this part of our 34-day voyage, and this is a great time to consider tackling a passion project. If you’ve taken some or all of these workshops with me, you’ll know that I passionately believe that being at sea is one of the more stimulating atmospheres on the planet.

I’m going to work alongside my students, taking some time to revisit the second half of the novel I’ve been working on intermittently since 2013. It’s an ambitious project — in theory, the first of a trilogy about three families in Imperial Russia from 1881 to 1924. No pressure, right?

We will work through important aspects of writing, such as narrative voice, crafting settings, building plot, and inventing memorable and empathetic characters. I also hope there will be plenty of time for the students to share their impressions, works in progress, passion projects, and ways they find to bring creativity into their lives as well as creating the space for silent, sustained writing in our sessions.

If you are interested in learning more about this series of workshops, I invite you to download the workshop companion guide, which is offered to all students for free. In it, you’ll have access to all the material I cover in each of my writing and creativity modules.

It would be lovely to hear how you are getting on with your creative project!

What's on the Horizon?

I’m finishing this up on Saturday evening. Tomorrow, I will need to spend much of the day on less-edifying not-glamorous but necessary things like tidying (digital and physical), list-making, ironing, and getting (closer anyway) to email zero, packing (or rather wrangling objects to be packed), which will be contingent on coercing Dmitry to finally unpack from our previous trip (four weeks ago!) in our tiny guest room where we keep our outrageously large collection suitcases and travel bags. He’s headed to the USA for several weeks while I’m in Japan and Alaska. We will regroup in Washington DC in mid May, then head back across the Atlantic together again on the Queen Mary 2 for another trans-Atlantic journey back to Europe.

Hopefully today will also include time to prep our Sunday roast chicken, make a quick tray bake of gnocchi with spinach, carrot top pesto, and lovely Latvian sausage for tonight’s dinner, after a hearty lunch from the enormous pot of borsch (recipe here) I made two days ago (luckily this freezes well!).

I have been relishing being in the kitchen as you can tell!

Yesterday, I got out all my camera equipment to clean and organize before heading to Japan and Alaska. I’m excited about Cherry Blossom season — Mom and I are taking a 10-day pre-cruise land trip to Kyoto through my old employer, Alexander + Roberts — they do a formidable job crafting bespoke journeys in all parts of the world, and it is always a treat to travel with their expert staff on the ground.

Do follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and also on Seabourn Sailors Facebook Group. I will be posting regularly about our time on board, and you can also get links to my latest articles and posts on these platforms.

Thanks to many of you who sent in your favorite “out of the box” experiences in European cities in response to my recent post about one of mine — exploring liturgical tailors in Rome: Who Makes Liturgical and Clerical Vestments in Rome? I loved your suggestions and added all of them to my Notion sightseeing wish list in my City Database

Thank You!

I hope you've enjoyed this edition of the Destination Curation Newsletter. If you'd like to share it with a friend, just forward them this link. Or copy and paste the URL and share it in any way you wish! I deeply appreciate your support for my work! https://jennifereremeeva.com/subscribe/

I always enjoy hearing from you, so write and let me know what you are up to, where you are traveling, and what you are reading! And let me know what destinations you'd like me to cover in my 8-hour Guides and this newsletter! My mission is to make your travel meaningful, so let me know!!

Safe onward travels!

Jennifer Eremeeva

Savoring Sumptuous Sicily

Spotlight on: Sumptuous Sicily

New Additions to the Destination Resources

New & Noteworthy

Window Shopping

The Creative Corner

What's on the Horizon?

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Thank You!

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