Posted by dylan on Monday, May 15, 2017 in 2017 Blog post.

Looking from my apartment’s balcony over the Via Carlo Ortolani di Bordonaro in the early evening, one can see pedestrians below. It’s not necessarily an hour of peak traffic, but the people on the street reveal some interesting aspects of Sicilian culture.

Down below, there’s a mix of individuals, couples, and larger groups of about four or five. Most people are, as one might guess, Italian, but around a third are tourists from all over Europe: Germany, France, the UK (judging from their accents and the languages they speak). The tourists tend toward the older end, but for both Italians and the tourists, most of the pedestrians are middle aged or older. Every once in a while, a group of children will pass by, generally in a group of six or seven. Everyone seems to be somewhat more nicely dressed than is typical for Americans; most people wear collared shirts or dresses, with some of the tourists dressing a little more tackily in their traditional tourist garb of fanny packs, sun hats, and sunscreen.

The couples will saunter down the street holding hands or leaning on each other, while the bigger groups will give each other more space. I’ve also noticed that the Italians are generally closer to each other than the tourists are. Most people are walking at a leisurely pace, but every once in a while there will be a jogger, biker, or car that passes through the street. Generally, everyone just passes through, but sometimes they’ll stop at a store, or go into a restaurant; Sometimes, if they see someone they know, they’ll stop and greet them (the Italians usually do this with a hug and kiss), or if they’re farther away, they’ll yell at their friends in whatever language they happen to speak. Besides these cases, generally people just talk with a normal conversational volume—the young children do tend to be louder, though, haha. While talking, the Italians do have very expressive body language (as is the stereotype), while the tourists are more reserved, sometimes pointing something out, but generally keeping their hands still.

The only people that really stand out are those who are moving quickly. Nearly everyone walks quite slowly compared to what I’m used to from America; the Italians in particular walk really slowly. The tourists tend to be the ones who break this and walk more quickly. I think this reveals something really central to Sicilian culture; they’re very calm, taking their time to get from place to place, taking the time to enjoy their friends, and it’s partially this calm culture that continues to attract the tourists that keep the city diverse.