Scicli

Our first stop in Sicily was in a town called Scicli (pronounced Chic-ly.  Not warm-ly, or calml-y, but chic-ly)  This is a second stage for the refugee.  We are here because we are hosted by Mediterranean Hope.  This house is called:  Casa Della Culture or House of Cultures.  They provide classes along with the housing.  If only these girls could stay in this safe environment forever!

While there, a group of boys were brought to the house.  (photo below).  They had been at the hotspot (1st stage) and this is the 2nd stage at the House of Cultures.  Each boy arrives with a green bag with their belongings.  Each boy has a number attached to his wrist and that corresponds to the green bag.  This is all that they have in the whole world.  

These are the boys.  They have been in Italy for 5 days.  Notice the white wrist bands they have on.  And the generic clothes that they are issued.

The boys have landed in a good spot.  The first thing the director does is take off their wrist bands so they don't feel like a number.  They receive a warm welcome and will have a bed and food and a way to call home and classes and legal/medical attention.

This little girl is Sarah.  She was born to a mother who arrived pregnant to the House of Culture so Sarah was born in Italy.  The mother has since left the House and is on her own, working each day.  Sarah is loved at the House and she is welcome to join in with the kids while her mother works.

This House of Culture is funded by Italian taxes.  An interesting thing.  Each Italian pays a percentage of their taxes to a charitable organization, OR it will go to the Catholic church.  Do you remember in Belgium how everybody paid that tax as well but they had no choice, it DID go to the Catholic church.  The Italians have a choice and many of them choose their small part to go to protestant churches which pool all their money and it all goes for humanitarian causes.  The LDS church is also eligible for this tax but they are the only church which does not accept this tax!  Med Hope is funded by these protestant churches.  The Otto 8 per mille is the government organization that is the umbrella for how these funds are dispersed.  

This House accepts volunteers, but for a minimum of one month.  A year is preferred.  A volunteer was updating this poster where photos of the refugees are pinned to their countries of origin.  The volunteer was an American from Wisconsin.

The House is attached to a kindergarten, where refugee children are welcome to attend.  This little class of Italian boys were learning English.  I had a great time quizzing them on their colors.  How many kindergarten classes do you know in America where a second language is taught???

Scicli.  It has a lovely old town.

We climbed up to a church on a hill and this is the view over the city.  It has 100 churches!  And they aren't just small ones, they are huge cathedrals!  But not any LDS churches.

Just outside of Scicli is where one of the hotspots is:  Pozzallo.  We had a taxi driver take us by Pozzallo and just as we arrived they said that a boat was being accepted in the harbor that had been waiting for 3 days for authorization to enter the port.  There was a lot of 'buzz' about the place.  You can't enter without authorization, which we didn't have, so we just looked from the outside.  We still hope to enter...we go back in May with a medical group, so we have a good chance.

The interior of Sicily is verdantly green.  I thought it was beautiful.  It's the breadbasket of the island.  Loved all the wild flowers and the clouds and endless sky.