Nicolas Calia wants to teach you what the Sicilian lifestyle is all about. The 32-year-old blogger, originally from Salemi, a small town in the southwestern province of Trapani, in Sicily, is the creative mind behind the popular @visit__sicily Instagram page. Calia promotes his home region by frequently posting videos and photos of life in Sicily to his 230,000 Instagram and 156,000 TikTok followers.
Ordinary moments like collecting olives from olive trees, slicing up juicy prickly pears, and diving from jagged rocks into crystal clear waters are captured and posted with the intention of fostering wonder and curiosity for the Sicilian culture and way of life. Calia also shares insider tips on the most authentic Italian and Sicilian bakeries and restaurants around New York City, his current homebase, and shines a light on what living as an Italian in the metropolis is really like.
Calia left Sicily in 2012 to learn English in London. After two years in the English capital, he moved to Ibiza, then Dubai, and then Miami in 2015. On a week-long trip to New York City, he fell in love with the city’s 24/7 accessibility and bright lights and made the decision that the Big Apple would be his new home. He officially moved in 2016, and ever since has been spending his days trying to find authentic slices of home in the city, taking his followers along with him for the ride.
America Domani sat down with Calia to chat about his Sicilian upbringing, the inspiration behind his Instagram page, and what it means to live as an Italian in New York City. The following interview has been edited for length and clarity.
America Domani: When did you start your Instagram page?
Nicolas Calia: When I came to this country, I realized how many people love Italian culture. And people were always coming up to me and talking about their travels in Sicily. I felt like it was maybe time to promote my land. And I wanted to show what my mom and dad do for work, which is not easy to find in the United States. So I decided to start a page. That was in 2017. Ever since; I’ve never stopped posting.
AD: What do your parents do for work?
NC: My mom is a tailor, and she also likes to cook, which is why I also started an Instagram page for her. My father is now retired, but he has two pieces of land where he grows grapes. He doesn’t make wine but he grows grapes and sells them. Before that, he was a butcher for 40 years.
AD: Do they still live in Sicily?
NC: Yes. In Sicily, they have a beautiful life. My father grows everything, like tomatoes and oranges. It’s a simple life.
AD: How often do you return home to Sicily and Italy in general?
NC: I go back twice a year. In March I’m going back to film some videos, and also for St. Joseph’s Feast. Then I usually go for the month of July, which I think is the best month. I go to the beach, and all around Sicily, like Cefalu or Castellammare, to film a lot of content. I want to make people fall in love with what I do.
AD: What are your thoughts on the Italian culture in New York City?
NC: I’ve been all over the United States, but I think New York is the closest you can get to Europe. Not only is it close to Europe, there are also more Italians than anywhere in the U.S. It’s also the best place to get Italian food in America. Of course, there is a lot of American food around, but if you know places you can find quite good Italian food. I diversify my page by going and filming Italian or Sicilian business owners in New York to suggest authentic restaurants.
AD: What do you think of Sicilian food in New York?
NC: I found one restaurant that I really like. My favorite Sicilian restaurant is in New Jersey. It’s called Osteria Italiana, run by a family that comes from Bagheria [a town on the outskirts of Palermo]. I have to go there once a month. It’s about an hour from the city, but I really find it to be authentic. I couldn’t believe how good it was.
There’s also this good bakery in Brooklyn called Villabate Alba – they make good cannoli. They also make the best coffee, their espresso is one of the best. The feeling of their coffee bar, it’s the closest I’ve ever gotten to Italy. The first time I went, everyone was Sicilian in the bar. It was unbelievable, I felt like I was home. You can really get close to Europe in New York if you know where to go.
AD: What do you hope to achieve with your page?
NC: I’ve always wanted to be the link between America and Europe. I want to show the different ways of life. In Sicily, we take everything for granted because that’s what we grew up with. Living in a big city, you have all the resources around you that a small town doesn’t.
AD: What would be your biggest dream come true regarding the visit_sicily page?
NC: I want to have a business in Sicily, or a bed and breakfast. I’d move back for the summer. I want to make a tour for people and bring them around to have the real Sicilian experience.
Asia London Palomba
Asia London Palomba is a trilingual freelance journalist from Rome, Italy. In the past, her work on culture, travel, and history has been published in The Boston Globe, Atlas Obscura, The Christian Science Monitor, and Grub Street, New York Magazine's food section. In her free time, Asia enjoys traveling home to Italy to spend time with family and friends, drinking Hugo Spritzes, and making her nonna's homemade cavatelli.