Caltagirone is a city built on ceramics. Perched on a ridge in the hills of south-east Sicily, it has been making pottery since ancient times, and the tradition is everywhere: majolica tiles on balconies, bridges and church domes, pottery shops lining the streets and a museum devoted to the craft. Its most famous sight is the Scalinata di Santa Maria del Monte, a staircase of well over a hundred steps climbing from the lower town to a church at the top, each riser decorated with hand-painted tiles in different patterns and colours. In late July, for the feast of Saint James, the staircase is lit with thousands of oil lamps arranged in designs, a magical sight.
The town was largely rebuilt after the great earthquake of 1693, which devastated south-eastern Sicily, and it is one of the eight Late Baroque Towns of the Val di Noto listed by UNESCO. Churches, palaces and squares show the exuberant style of that period, with curved facades, balconies on carved brackets and grand staircases.
The countryside around Caltagirone is rolling farmland, with wheat fields, olive groves, orange orchards and prickly pears, and the hills offer wide views over central Sicily. Grammichele, a short ride east, is a curious town laid out after the same earthquake on a perfect hexagonal plan.
The riding is enjoyable, with country roads climbing and winding through the hills between towns, and generally light traffic away from the main routes. The main road between Catania and Gela passes nearby and can be busy with trucks. Sicilian roads can be challenging: potholes, broken surfaces and gravel are common on minor roads, and local driving habits require constant attention. Summers are very hot, while spring brings green fields and wildflowers and is the best time to ride.
Caltagirone is a town of over thirty-five thousand people, with fuel, shops and plenty of restaurants. Climb the staircase in the evening when the heat eases, then sit in a piazza with a granita or an arancino, the fried rice ball that every Sicilian town claims to make best, and think about how you will carry a ceramic souvenir home on a bike.