This May a group of Syracuse Florence students traded the familiar cobblestones of Tuscany for the sun-drenched markets and volcanic hillsides of Sicily.
From April 30 to May 9, they traveled the length of the island as part of Culinary Crossings, a Signature Seminar designed and led by food studies Professor Olivier De Maret that used cuisine as a window onto centuries of Mediterranean history, culture, and exchange.
The seminar was exclusively food-focused unlike a previous travel seminar led by De Maret in collaboration with retired photography professor Stefania Talini. “This time around we focused on getting to know the people that make up the island’s food system,” he says.
Markets, Farms and Family Tables
The ten-day itinerary moved students through some of Sicily’s most distinctive culinary landscapes. In Palermo, they dove headfirst into the city’s legendary street food culture with a guided tour of the Ballarò market—one of the oldest and most vibrant outdoor markets in southern Italy—complete with tastings.
On the contrast to Florence, De Maret says, “Especially the energy we witnessed in Palermo’s outdoor markets, as well as the kindness, openness and hospitality Sicilians showed us.”