A Quick Tour OfItaly - Southern Calabria

If you are looking for a European tourist destination, consider the Calabria region of southern Italy on the Tyrrhenian Sea and the Ionian Sea. Calabria is the toe of the Italian boot. There are excellent tourist attractions. While you won't have to fight crowds, you may have to fight hot, hot summers. This article examines southern Calabria. Be sure to read our companion article on northern Calabria.

Beautiful, relatively undiscovered Tropea lies between the gulfs of Sant'Eufemia and Gioa overlooking the sea. You'll love its untamed white sandy beaches, old houses, and ancient churches. Its Norman Cathedral displays unexploded U.S. World War II bombs that bear a note of thanks to the Madonna. Near the main square is the medieval Santa Maria della Isola church and monastery. Tropea's most (in)famous citizen, Umberto Anastasio, aka Alberto Anastasia, a leader of Murder, Incorporated died in a hail of bullets in New York City.

Reggio di Calabria is Calabria's oldest and largest city. It is home to the National Museum of Greater Greece, a very important archeological museum. Look for the two statues of bearded warriors. The famous poet Gabriele D'Annunzio called the seaside Falcomata promenade the most beautiful kilometer in Italy. Don't miss the old city's Greek walls and Roman baths. Other sights include the church of Saint Gaetano Catanoso, the Venetian-style Villa Zerbi and the Town Art Gallery. The mile-high Aspromonte mountain range has a spectacular view. You can find a ski resort at Gambarie east of Reggio di Calabria and an absolutely spectacular sanctuary Madonna di Polsi with an annual fair in late August and early September. Gerace sits on a hill composed of sixty-million-year old fossils from the sea. The site has probably been populated for ten thousand years. Churches to visit include the Norman Cathedral, the Thirteenth Century Church of St. Francis with a beautiful Baroque altar, and the Tenth Century San Giovannello (Little St. John). You'll enjoy Gerace's medieval town and the remains of an old, perhaps Tenth Century castle.

Stilo was founded by the Greeks. In 1940 the area was the site of the Battle of Calabria, one of the biggest naval encounters of World War II. Its most impressive sight is the beautiful Ninth Century Byzantine Cattolica di Stilo. Other churches include the Cathedral, the Church of San Domenico, and the Church of San Nicola da Tolentino. And don't forget to visit the Norman Castle and the Fountain of the Dolphins.

Reggio di Calabria 's best gelateria, Tonino in the Corso, makes a red onion ice cream (and others based on squid ink and nduja, the local spicy salami). Most Calabria wine comes from its northern sector. If you can find it, try the sweet Greco di Bianco DOC wine grown from a southern Calabria version of the Greco grape, and the similar non-DOC Greco di Gerace.