If you followed along for 7 days in Puglia with one carry-on, you know the drill by now — same bag, same handful of pieces, endless outfits. After Puglia, I didn’t go home. I kept moving, same suitcase, straight into Sicily: 24 hours in Palermo, 24 hours in Taormina, 24 hours in Syracusa, and four slower days in Agrigento to close it out. Different island, same philosophy: comfortable, versatile, easy to move in. Sicily in summer means a lot of walking, a lot of sun, and outfits that need to go from cobblestones to dinner without a costume change. Here’s how the carry-on held up.
Palermo for 12 hours: Landed very late, went to hotel, woke up and took on the town. Sprinted through markets, churches, and walked a lot, so the outfit had to keep up. I leaned on my most breathable pieces and comfortable shoes I could walk in for hours without thinking about them. Nothing precious, nothing that couldn’t take the heat. Rewore this Wayfr cotton A-line dress to feel put together but take on the heat. I got the cutest leather clutch for 5 Euros from a man sitting with his friends in the market selling old trinkets they had collected. They were all retired, some had lost their wives but kept coming to the market every day as that is what they were used to.
Taormina for 24 hours: Taormina is all hills and views, so I wanted something polished enough for the piazza and our anniversary lunch at Rosso, in San Domenico Palace at the Four Seasons so I wore my Staud dress. After taking in all the wonderful views, wondered through the gardens, I changed into shorts and a bodysuit, practical for the climb up to the Greek theatre and the afternoon heat. This is where the mix-and-match really earned its keep — the same pieces from Puglia, restyled to feel a little dressier for our wonderful lunch. Don’t miss the Fondazione Mazzullo, the gardens are beautiful!
Syracusa for 24 hours: Syracusa’s Ortigia old town is made for wandering, and the heat here was some of the strongest of the whole trip. I kept things light and loose, layering the same basics differently so the carousel never repeats itself even though the suitcase barely changed. Amazon skirt that is an MVP in my closet, versatile, comfortable and I can wear it from day to evening. This little hat came in handy as we wondered in town after breakfast but at a slower pace. We already walked everywhere the day before after dinner, much cooler.
Agrigento for 4 days: This is where the trip slowed down, and where the wardrobe had to flex the most. My hotel looked straight out over the Valley of the Temples, so mornings were spent by the pool, afternoons walking the Scala dei Turchi, and evenings watching the temples light up at sunset. Four days meant real rotation — poolside cover-ups by day, the same comfortable walking pieces for the Scala dei Turchi’s chalky white cliffs, and easy, breezy layers for evenings among the temples. Pareos, same Amazon skirt styled with an oversized tee this time, same as I did back in Hamburg last month.
The takeaway: One carry-on, two regions, thirteen days, and not once did I feel like I was missing something. That’s the whole point of “style what I own” — not more clothes, just smarter ones. Pieces that mix, that breathe, that don’t ask you to choose between comfort and looking put together.Full outfit breakdowns and shop-the-look links in previous posts — as always, you can catch the day-by-day on Instagram @mariajabad.