Catania has been knocked down and rebuilt so many times that it has made a style out of resilience. Lava from Etna overran parts of the city in 1669, and then in 1693 a devastating earthquake flattened it almost entirely. The rebuilding produced one of the most striking Baroque cities in Italy, built with dark grey lava stone set off against pale limestone, with wide straight streets designed to offer escape routes in future disasters. The centre is part of the Late Baroque Towns of the Val di Noto World Heritage Site, and Etna looms over everything, often smoking at the end of the Via Etnea.
In the Piazza del Duomo stands the city's symbol, a lava-stone elephant carrying an Egyptian obelisk, known affectionately as u Liotru. The cathedral holds the relics of Saint Agatha, the patron saint, whose festival in early February brings huge crowds onto the streets for days. The composer Vincenzo Bellini was born here, and his name graces the opera house, a park and a pastry or two. The fish market, la Pescheria, behind the cathedral, is a riot of noise, colour and swordfish heads every morning except Sunday.
Riding in Catania itself is an exercise in assertiveness: traffic is chaotic, scooters weave in every gap, the cobbles are slippery when wet and parking is creative. But the city is a gateway to some of the best riding in Sicily. The roads up Etna, from Nicolosi to the Rifugio Sapienza or around the north side through Linguaglossa, are superb, and south towards Siracusa and the Baroque towns of Noto, Modica and Ragusa, the Iblei hills offer twisting roads and wonderful views.
Petrol, tyres and mechanics are easy to find in a city this size, and the food alone justifies an overnight stop. Locals will argue that the fried rice ball here is the masculine arancino rather than the Palermo arancina; pasta alla Norma, with aubergine and salted ricotta, is named after Bellini's opera; and summer breakfast means almond or pistachio granita with a soft brioche to dip. Keep valuables off the bike, use a guarded garage overnight, and be ready for the volcano to dust everything, including your visor, with fine black grit after an eruption.