Overlooking the Straits of Messina, with the mainland city of Reggio di Calabria across the sea and to the east, Messina lies  at the foot of the Peloritani Mountains.  Only 5KM (3 miles) separate the city of Messina from the Italian mainland.  For most passengers arriving from the mainland, the tacky industrial and port city of Messina is their gateway to Sicily – a shame, really, because it’s not the island’s most aesthetically pleasing place.  But, since you’re here. What the hell? You might as well enjoy what Messina has to offer – and it does some treasures if you’re willing to seek them out.  

Sicily’s third most populous city wasn’t always this dismal.  Mother nature did a better job with Messina than mankind did.  Earthquakes, warplanes and sickness have had a lasting effect on Messina and because the city had to be re-built so many times throughout history, Messina is the most modern city on the island. 

Messina was founded in the 8^th century B.C. by the Siculans, who named it Zancle “sickle” because of its hooked promontory protecting the harbor.  The Greeks from Cumae and Chalcis occupied the site in the 5^th century.  It fell to the dreaded Anaxils, tyrant of Reggio, who changed the towns’ name to Messana to honor his native Messinia in the Peloponnesus.   

By the 3^rd century B.C., Messina had come under Roman influence.  Messina’s fame in the Middle Ages rested on its position as a launching pad for many of the Crusades. It was a flourishing city until the 17^th century, when it lost trading privileges.