Welshcakes Limoncello, the lady who posts pics of that most delicious region of the world, had this to say in reply to a comment of mine:I thought Sicily was poor before I first came here in 1992, too. Of course, poverty exists and you see beggars occasionally, but not as often as you see them in the UK these days.
The reality is that Sicily is rich in natural resources and imports hardly anything, foodwise. One of the main differences from the UK is that few people have mortgages: nearly everyone has some land left to them by their family and they build on that. Most people I know - professionals, admittedly - have 2 or even 3 houses and that's quite hard for me to take in, given how most of us struggle in Britain to keep one.
When I first brought students over on an exchange visit, the first thing they remarked on was the amount of open countryside that you see, with no buildings in sight. Another difference is that, as all over Italy, everybody eats well, because they eat and use what is available.
I think the only way to get to grips with the many contrasts that make up Sicily is to come and experience it. Part of my purpose on this site is to try to show people that it is very different to how they might imagine it.
Grazie, James.
ReplyDeleteI think the issue of being close to your supply of food and being more self sufficient by community is going to be a crucial marker of succesful regions, small and large and for countries as a whole. The scaling of peoples lives and expectations is going to be crucial in the decades ahead as the oil driven economies contract. Sicily clearly has taken on board many of these principles through their culture, their geography and their values. Who would have thought that a society not built on debt could be so succesful.
ReplyDeleteReally does seem, if not the way to go, at least to be scrutinized for lessons to follow.
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