Visit the Home of a Monster
“No, hug Scylla’s crag – sail on past her – top speed!
Better by far to lose six men and keep your ship
than lose your entire crew.”
The Odyssey, by Homer, Book XII, lines 119 – 121
Translated by Robert Fagles, Penguin Books, 1996
My Favorite Visit in Calabria: Scilla
It’s not every day that you are able to visit the site where six men were devoured by a monster. Nor swim beneath the cliff where the monster lived. Or at least where someone we call Homer placed the story 2,700 years ago.
According to legend, Scilla, on the Mediterranean coast in the southern Italian region of Calabria, is where the six-headed monster, Scylla, attacked the boat carrying the Greek hero Odysseus and his men on their way home after the Trojan War. As the sailors passed near the giant cliff, trying to avoid dangerous whirlpools (“Charybdis”) adjacent to the far shore, the monster scooped down and took six of Odysseus’s men into her six mouths. From the boat, Odysseus watched as Scylla devoured his men, seeing them “writhing, gasping out their lives” like little fish on a long rod. (Line 276)
Today Scilla, located at the northern entrance to the Strait of Messina, is a mini-Gibraltar complete with a castle at the summit. The six-headed monster is now a statue located in a small piazza on top of the cliff. A lovely beach with a string of seaside restaurants extends south of the rock. A fisherman’s harbor, residential village, and the commercial part of town snuggles close on the north side. I rate Scilla as my favorite place to visit along Italy’s southern coast. History, a beach, a castle to tour, a harbor to view, crystal clear water, excellent restaurants, fresh-fresh seafood, Scilla has it all. Pictured is my sister Mary Beth, taking a selfie in Scilla, with the 14th century castle behind her.
When I first visited Scilla, it was late fall, but I enjoyed a wonderful seafood lunch in one of the second-floor restaurants that overlook the beach. I savored a seafood mixture stuffed into clam shells accompanied by a glass of white wine while I watched great ships enter and exit the salt-water highway that separates Sicily from the Italian mainland. After lunch I walked to the top of the great rock. For a small fee you can tour the Castello Ruffo near the precipice and enjoy the views. Check days and hours. The castle goes back to the Normans in the 11th century and is one of the largest and most complete of the many castles built along Italy’s southern coastlines. It was upgraded into a deluxe residence in the 16th century.
Scilla Gallery
The website www.calabriastraordinaria.it offers a section on Scilla.
Travel Tips: Now is the time to dream, to research, to plan.
- Located near the southern limit of the Tyrrhenian Sea, Scilla is a 30-minute train ride north from the central station of Reggio di Calabria. Fee is 2.70 Euro. Scilla is easy to reach by train and is on the mainline that runs from Rome and Naples south to Calabria, and in some cases on to Sicily.
- Scilla’s beach is an easy walk from its train station, but if you arrive with luggage headed for the village that surrounds the harbor, a taxi is recommended. Let your host arrange. There is no taxi stand at the very small train station.
- The town now offers an elevator that for one euro will lift you from beach level to the level of the upper town.
- Like many small Italian towns, the railroad station consists of a machine selling tickets and a small covered area to get out of the rain. No staff. Be sure to buy tickets before boarding. You can buy on board but will pay a five Euro service fee for the convenience.
c. Joel Strangis 2023 All text and images are copyrighted and may not be reproduced in any form without written permission. If no owner is indicated, I am the owner.
