Yesterday I did'nt take a single picture and so I thought I edit a few images for your edification. The Sicilian culture is different than anywhere in Italy - they say. I watched a group of about twenty young men - maybe 15 to 18 years old stalk another single kid for about ten blocks trying to get him to stand his ground and get his ass kicked. He retreated for the whole ten blocks and I followed with my camera from the other side of the fence. I didn't stick around to see what happened to him as I lost interest. We did have a city wide blackout a few hours later, and so if he was still around, he might not be so pretty today. Anyhow - the point is that amid what seems like a happy, fun loving culture there is a bit of an underbelly. The entire island of Sicily has been critical to elections in all of Italy for decades and thus politicians have had to entertain to Mafia for just as long. This is the seat of the Mafia here.
People who are affiliated with the Mafia gangs here do wear paint or implements that identify them, although most of the time, they look pretty normal. Some of the older cats definitely look street wise and prison worthy.
The best pic I have was of a young kid - ten or eleven years old. He was playing with a soccer ball near where his mother was running a small street vending stand. I report - you decide.
Carl Deal
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