Sicily

Tuesday, September 3

While on the 1.5 hour sunset ferry from Malta to Sicily, the phrase “the sun has set not long ago” poped into mind, my brain filled in “now everybody goes down below” so I asked myself “what was that from?” I Googled to find it’s from Sandra Boynton’s “The going to bed book” and I used to know that book by heart so I guess the heart still remembers.

The Megaron Hotel was a Motel 6 experience.

Wednesday, September 4

We had a case of the “missing bus stop” to contend with and barely caught our bus in time. The “train” ticket was to be a bus replacement leaving from the train station which was thoroughly and obviously abandoned. Great, now where? Walk to one corner, debate, read online reviews, walk to a completely different location, and see the bus pulling in 500 meters ahead. Let’s run to catch the bus.

The countryside was Sicily picture perfect with terraced farms on gentle hills. We stayed in Ortigia, an island of Syracuse. The Old Town was lovely and we walked along the top of the fortified wall while taking in the blue Mediterranean waters and sun bathers. Our lunch was perfect from the delicious tapas and Limoncello to the cool wind, light jazz, and dazzling harbor views. This was the best I felt on the trip so far.

Following one of those graphic tourist maps, we visited various monuments and fountains back to our boutique hotel. After a 15 minute rest, we were off to the Nealopolis, an archeological site that boasted both Greek and Roman ruins. Our tour guide catered to Italian and English speakers so it took twice a long and the heat almost disabled me.

We picked up another rental car but left it where it was parked due to the lack of parking in Old Town. Because our lunch had been so delicious, we returned for dinner and had a gorgeous sunset as an appetizer. We learned to eat gelato quickly because it melts immediately. It was delicious but required we take a shower afterward to rinse off the sticky.

Thursday, September 5

Off to Mt Etna!

Leaving Syracuse, DH2 noted the aggressive driving of the residents and I was happy to leave the city traffic. From 90F in Syracuse to the 40F of Etna shocked the body but provided needed relief. Sadly, the clouds made for a gray day with flat light.

From the base of the volcano, we rode a cable car part way, then transferred to a 4-wheel drive bus to climb further, and then hiked the rest of the way up. Fifty mph winds challenged my ability to place my poles into the unstable skree of the recently past eruptions. The 3 hour hike took us to various craters, calderas, and heat vents. The landscape was bleak dark gray against the medium gray clouded skies. We lunched by a heat vent.

The weather had threatened rain for 2 days but thankfully the downpour didn’t hit until we were back in the car. But what a downpour it was!! Driving narrow, twisting roads with no drainage was “exciting” and we were anticipating the disappearance of the car ahead of us into a deep puddle.

Castlemora lived on top of a steep and high hill. The roads leading up to it were filled with hair-pin turns, curves built out over cliffs, and breathtaking views. Once again we parked outside the walled city and walked the twisty walkways to our hotel. We definitely deserved pizza and beer after that. The Turisso restaurant is famous for its phallic decorations and menu items, so at the end of the meal, I had drink of almond wine in a penis-shaped shot glass. Ah, good times.

Friday, September 6

We wandered the picture perfect city after breaking. Seriously, every view, every turn, and every set of stairs was picturesque and stupidly cute. Why were no influencers there? Probably because it was so hard to get to, so we enjoyed the crowd-free morning.

On our car rides, we listened to Great Courses lectures on the rise of the Roman Empire. I like reading about where I am visiting while I’m there because it provides context and letterboxes the experience.

We drove to Milazzo to catch our ferry to Stromboli.