Hello From Sicily – Presentation: The family Sciglio – 55 years of hotel property in Taormina
I really enjoyed my location at Hotel Villa Nettuno, this family hotel 13 rooms on the north side of Taormina. As it was a rainy day today anyway, I decided to find out more about this group of workers who have dedicated their lives to making foreign travelers feel welcome in Taormina. So I sat down with Vincent and Salvatore, the father and son who together with Mary, the mother of Salvatore, runs Hotel Villa Nettuno. Naturally, the interview was conducted in Italian, and I sometimes had to use my dictionary plus my hands and feet from my point of view.
Vincenzo took me a few family photos in the room and began explaining the history of the family long for me. Vincenzo, himself an octogenarian, said his grandfather was born in 1833, while his grandfather was born in 1867. The city came to be around 1850 and originally consisted of only 4 rooms. In 1887, Vincenzo grandfather initiated an expansion and added a 4-room addition above the original rooms.
The white stone surrounding the windows and doors was imported from Siracusa and Vincenzo grandfather was an expert stone carver. By the way, he carved the door surrounds for Taormina’s famous Grand Hotel Timaeus, only five-star hotel Taormina. A coat of arms above the entrance says “Prince of the Giglio, which means lily in the Prince fleyr. There is obviously a noble ancestry in the Sciglio famly.
Then in 1900 the villa was rented for 25 years at an American artist by the name of Clifford Putnam who created a series of walkways and steps in the steeply sloping garden of the villa. Vincenzo himself was born in 1924 and even 83 years, is still strong, not even thinking of retirement.
When asked about slowing shrugs and says: “What would I do?”. It is obvious that her life is so closely interwoven with this hotel, I can not even imagine life without it. Of course, you do not mind working hard. Same goes for Mary, who gets up every morning at 6 am to begin preparing breakfast. Moreover also in charge of the garden, a paradise of multicolored ‘subtropical shrubs and flowers.
In 1952, Vincent and Mary finally decided to create a terrace outside the house and add a third level, with a total of 13 rooms of Hotel Villa Nettuno. Ten of these rooms are double, while three are single. Vincenzo goes on to explain that Maria always used to manage the kitchen because the hotel used to provide three meals a day. Today, the Hotel Villa Nettuno offers breakfast.
A major renovation of the property happened in 1971 when each room was equipped with its own bathroom. Salvatore’s son, has a background in accounting which is very useful to help manage the hotel. It manages all reservations and Internet communications with customers. Salvador indicates that the majority of their clients are European and include people from France, Germany, Belgium, Sweden and Ireland. Customers in the United States and Canada also frequent Hotel Villa Nettuno, primarily due to the inclusion in one of the books of Arthur Frommer’s guide. The property is waiting for the family busy for the month from November to January when things slow down a lot.
The three family members have some outside help: one lady helps with breakfast, another young man contributes to heavy work in the garden, a maid takes care of the rooms other assistant is responsible for Ironing and laundry. Running a hotel involves a lot of demanding work, not only to take care of the room, but the garden of the Hotel Villa Nettuno also need serious attention.
I was also curious about how the hotel business has changed over the years and Salvatore explained that the company has become more difficult. Years ago people used to stay longer, several times a week, or two or more than the tourists on the road today generally stay two or three days. Salvatore added that many of them rent a car and completed a tour of the island, so naturally they stay a short period of time in each destination. Regulation has become more difficult and Italy has set up strict rules on hygiene and health.
Interestingly, in 1960, Taormina was more of a summer destination, and hotels tend to be closed in winter. Today is almost the opposite of people come here especially to enjoy all the way from February to October. In particular, spring and fall are enjoyable seasons while summer temperatures are very hot, usually in 28 to 32 degrees Celsius. Italian tourists usually come for two weeks in August. Most guests at the Hotel Villa Nettuno, is to fall into the age of 40 to 60. Salvatore added that young people like to stay in Giardini Naxos where all the dance clubs.
When asked what they do to relax, Vincenzo said a family member must always be there, so that makes leisure time a bit difficult. However, revealed that for the rest his family owns a small house about 10 km from Castelmola, a village perched on the crest of the mountain just outside of Taormina. This property is an old barn with two bedrooms and a black stone floor. Vincenzo built a wood oven so he would be able to cook there and returned to the property as a very “rough”. After all this work now there is room for 10 beds. He explained that his house looks like a “crib” and after my attempts have not understood what he was saying that collapsed and looked in a dictionary: it looks like a nursery />
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Vincenzo said he invited me to come see his house weekend in the mountains and I wish there would have enough time with my plans Sciglio busy work schedule and demanding at the Hotel Villa Nettuno. Anyway it was to have met a family from Sicily as a good worker who was in the hotel industry for 55 years.
In this full article, including pictures is http://www.travelandtransitions.com/stories_photos/hotel_villa_nettuno_taormina.htm
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