Aci Trezza is a town in Sicily

Sicily

Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...

, southern Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

, a frazione

Frazione

A frazione , in Italy, is the name given in administrative law to a type of territorial subdivision of a comune; for other administrative divisions, see municipio, circoscrizione, quartiere...

of the comune of Aci Castello

Aci Castello

Aci Castello is a city and comune in the Province of Catania in Sicily, Italy. The city is located 9 km north of Catania on the Mediterranean coast. The primary economic sectors are agriculture and industry...

, c. 10 km north of Catania

Catania

Catania is an Italian city on the east coast of Sicily facing the Ionian Sea, between Messina and Syracuse. It is the capital of the homonymous province, and with 298,957 inhabitants it is the second-largest city in Sicily and the tenth in Italy.Catania is known to have a seismic history and...

, with a population of around 5,000 people.

Located on the coast of the Ionian Sea, the village has a long history of maritime activity. Aci Trezza is a popular spot for Italian vacationers in the summer. The patron Saint of the town is St. John the Baptist. The Festa of San Giovanni is celebrated each year during the last week of June 24 in his honor.

The Islands of the Cyclops

Of the coast of Aci Trezza are three tall, column-shaped islands. According to local legend, these great stones are the ones thrown at Odysseus

Odysseus

Odysseus or Ulysses was a legendary Greek king of Ithaca and the hero of Homer's epic poem the Odyssey. Odysseus also plays a key role in Homer's Iliad and other works in the Epic Cycle....

 in The Odyssey. The islands are referred to as the "isole dei ciclopi" (islands of the Cyclops, or Cyclopean Isles

Cyclopean Isles

The Cyclopean Isles, noted for their rows of basaltic columns piled one above another, lie not far from Mount Etna off the eastern coast of Sicily in the Mediterranean Sea.-Geology:...

) by locals. This compliments the notion that the Cyclops once had a smithy below Mount Etna, which looms over the village to the northwest.

Cultural references

Giovanni Verga

Giovanni Verga

Giovanni Carmelo Verga was an Italian realist writer, best known for his depictions of life in Sicily, and especially for the short story "Cavalleria Rusticana" and the novel I Malavoglia .-Life and career:The first son of Giovanni Battista Catalano Verga and Caterina Di Mauro,...

's novel I Malavoglia

I Malavoglia

I Malavoglia is the best known novel by Giovanni Verga. It was first printed in 1881. An English translation, The house by the medlar-tree by Mary A...

("The House by the Medlar Tree") is set in Aci Trezza.

In 1948 Luchino Visconti

Luchino Visconti

Luchino Visconti di Modrone, Count of Lonate Pozzolo was an Italian theatre, opera and cinema director, as well as a screenwriter. He is best known for his films The Leopard and Death in Venice .-Life:...

 filmed his neo-realist film La terra trema

La terra trema

La terra trema is a 1948 Italian dramatic film directed by Luchino Visconti...

, based on Verga's novel I Malavoglia, in Aci Trezza. The entire cast were local inhabitants rather than professional actors. A small museum dedicated to the film can be found in the town, and is run by one of the cast members.