Mariella and her husband were very warm and made us feel so welcome.

The apartment building is in a narrow road of beautiful old buildings full of character; we could see the sea just a hundred yards or so away, at the bottom of the road. Because of the age of the building and the rather scruffy entrance, we didn't expect the very spacious, elegantly furnished apartment we walked into. It was a delightful place to spend time.

Ortigia has many interesting and attractive places to eat, and because the main tourist hotels are not in these ancient alleys and courtyards, you get a lovely feeling of the local life.

There are lots of interesting, historic places to visit and we thoroughly enjoyed the three wonderful concerts that took place in a nearby bar, while we were there. We really want to go back!