Hello American Baptists from your favorite friendly Catholic priest.
I know many of you would prefer going to the Hawaii, or Porto Rico, or even Philippines. But, would you like to listen my suggestion? How about going to Sicily, an island that belongs to the Italian Republic, that has a rich history and a rich culture (even tough they got raped by basically all the people who dominated them)?
Sicily, being a region from Italy, has this flag, which has a symbol that was there since ancient times (triskelion) and is supposed to represent a gorgon.
Now, were should you go take a vacantion? Well, there are many places to visit there.
Here are some:
Agrigento:
You can come here to visit one of the biggest archeological sites of ancient times: The Valley of Temples. It is also the home of Saint Gerland, a relative of Roger I the Norman. And also the birthplace of the Sicilian novelist Luigi Pirandello.
Catania:
The home of Saint Agatha, an unfortunate martyr who had her breast ripped off for refusing to marry a Roman Proconsul. By celebrating her every Candlemas, the people from Catania keeps Mount Etna from destroying the city with eruptions. It is also home to an elephant statue called liotru, that you can see in the photo.
Messina:
Located in the far northeast Sicily, we are still discussing wherever or not build a bridge to link the island with the rest of Italy. Anyway, this is a beautiful harbor. If you come here during the Ferragosto you can see the two giants, Mata and Grifone, parading with the Madonna. And don't forget to visit the Eolie if you want to see more beaches.
Palermo:
In Palermo, the biggest city of Sicily and its own capital (before becoming part of Italy) you can taste the arancina (oranges filled with rice and meat) and take part to the holiday of Saint Rosalia, who became a Saint after Jesus told her to not marry and become a nun. You can pay her a visit to her shrine in the Mt. Pellegrino. The other patron is the genie of Palermo (in the picture).
Ragusa:
Speaking of Sea Locations, how about Ragusa? There are many places that belongs to the city of Ragusa and they are all closer to the sea. Ragusa has Saint George as their Patron. And if you're looking for some chocolate to eat, you can find a lot of it in the valley of Modica.
Syracuse (not to be confused with the one in America):
The biggest of the Ancient Greek cities and home to Archimedes. Here you can find the Cathedral of Saint Lucy (yes, the same Saint that Sweden celebrates with lights) inside a Greek Temple. Don't forget to visit the Island of Ortigia, which is the main center of the city.
And with that, I've listed some of the most beautiful places to go in the Island.
But there are more. And I hope that I've helped you with your travel of choice.