Scilla

Overview

Perhaps Calabria's most picturesque fishing village. If you've read The Odyssey , you'll remember what a terrible time Ulysses had getting past Scylla and Charybdis, which flank what is now known as the Straits of Messina. When the atmospheric conditions are right, you can stand in Marina Grande, gaze out towards Sicily and see the Fata Morgana, an eery mirage that seems to be the city of Messina reflected (right-side up) in the sea waters.

What definitely is not a mirage is the delightful neighborhood of Chianalea , where a narrow row of pastel-hued houses are squeezed between the highway and the beach. Scilla also has an elegant 17th-century downtown and an imposing castle, whose ramparts offer a great vantage point for La Chianalea.

History