Giarre is an Italian

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...

 town and comune

Comune

In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...

on the east coast of 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,...

 in the province of Catania

Province of Catania

Catania is a province in the autonomous island region of Sicily in Italy. Its capital is the city of Catania.It has an area of 3,552 km², and a total population of 1,073,881 . There are 58 comunes in the province, see Comunes of the Province of Catania...

. It is bounded by the comuni of Mascali

Mascali

Mascali is a comune in the Province of Catania in the Italian region Sicily, located about 170 km east of Palermo and about 30 km northeast of Catania....

, Riposto

Riposto

Riposto is a comune in the Province of Catania in the Italian region Sicily, located about 170 km east of Palermo and about 25 km northeast of Catania.-External links:*...

, Acireale

Acireale

Acireale is a coastal city and commune in the north-east of the province of Catania, Sicily, Italy, at the foot of Mount Etna, on the coast facing the Ionian Sea. It is a diocese, famous for its churches, including the Neo-Gothic St. Peter's Basilica, St...

, Santa Venerina

Santa Venerina

Santa Venerina is a comune in the Province of Catania in the Italian region Sicily, located about 160 km southeast of Palermo and about 20 km northeast of Catania...

, Milo and Sant'Alfio

Sant'Alfio

Sant'Alfio is a comune in the Province of Catania in the Italian region Sicily, located about 160 km east of Palermo and about 25 km north of Catania...

. Giarre forms a conurbation with the coastal town of Riposto.

History

Some historians suppose that the ancient Greek city of Kallipolis was situated in the same territory of the present-day town of Giarre, but nowadays there is no relevant proof of it.

Since the late 16th century until 1815 Giarre was a village of the county of Mascali

Mascali

Mascali is a comune in the Province of Catania in the Italian region Sicily, located about 170 km east of Palermo and about 30 km northeast of Catania....

.

During the fascist era Giarre was joined to Riposto

Riposto

Riposto is a comune in the Province of Catania in the Italian region Sicily, located about 170 km east of Palermo and about 25 km northeast of Catania.-External links:*...

 under the name of Jonia but separated again in 1945.

Main sights

The neo-classical

Neoclassical architecture

Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...

 cathedral, begun in 1794, is dedicated to the Spaniard St. Isidore, patron of Madrid

Madrid

Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...

.

Other sights include:

• Oratory of St. Filippo Neri (18th century)
• Sanctuary of Maria Santissima della Strada, the oldest church in the town (dating to 1081). Today little remains of the original medieval structure, having been replaced by a neoclassicist edifice.
• Museum of Uses and Customs of the Etna people
• Mediterraneum Aquarium