There are prettier places in Sicily than Aci Trezza but the ones I have seen (Cefalù, say or Agrigento) are all a bit spoilt by tourism. The two things that usually spoil it for me are a) souvenir shops, b) restaurants where the native language is all but unheard.

So there you are; Aci Trezza, the little sister of Aci Castello (one often sees them written as Acitrezza and Acicastello, too): A small fishing town with most charming restaurants, friendly people, a barber, a lady cobbler and a rocky beach lined with kiosks selling exquisite granita. There are tourists - make no mistake - but they are mostly Sicilian from the nearby industrial city of Catania.

I Faraglioni is named after the cliffs right next to the coast, they are also called "isole dei ciclopi" - apparently they once were rocks Polyphemus threw at Ulysses and his companions. The architecure of the hotel is unusual - the central feature is a double-helix staircase - and the rooms have a bewilderingly asymetrical footprint. We had a nice, large room with a view of the Cyclops' Islands and the castle which gives Aci Castello its name. There are small balconies on which you can smoke, a minibar with not much in it and a TV whose satellite connection did not work; but who needs the telly with a view like this? (note to self: must upload a photo)

There is a bar and terrace adjoining the hotel but with no priviledged access for guests. We stayed a the Faraglioni before Easter so the first two days we got an excellent breakfast - cappuccino, fresh orange juice and a cornetto or two - in the bar. Afterwards we had to move to the hotel next door, where the coffee quality was at a considerably lower level.

Anyway, we loved I Faraglioni because of its quirkiness and we loved the village even more. We had a great time and very good food at Da Gaetano, a place littered with memorabilia for "La Terra Trema", the Visconti film shot in Aci Trezza in 1948, but we had some of the best food imaginable in a small restaurant called La Cambusa del Capitano. Usually I wouldn't even share such a rare find but, alas, it is unlikely I will be able to return to the East Coast of Sicily in the foreseeable future.