Scilla

The Strait of Messina narrows to a corridor of dark current between Calabria and Sicily, and Scilla sits right on the edge, its Chianalea fishing quarter dropping directly into the water. Boats knock against house walls at high tide. Dawn brings the passarelle — traditional swordfish boats with long iron prows — gliding out to hunt in the strait.

Scilla is a small coastal town in Calabria positioned at the narrowest point of the Strait of Messina, the mythological home of the sea monster Scylla described in Homer's Odyssey. The Chianalea district, known as the 'little Venice of the south,' is a fishermen's quarter where houses are built directly on the rocks and the sea washes against doorsteps. Above it, the Castello Ruffo overlooks the strait from a rocky headland that has served as a defensive position since at least the 5th century BC. Scilla's swordfish tradition is centuries old — the passarella boats still operate from May to August using a technique that requires a lookout high on the mast to spot fish from above. The town's restaurants serve swordfish carpaccio, swordfish with mint, and grilled swordfish steaks caught from the strait that same morning.