A Sicilian Adventure 2023

IF READING ON YOUR PHONE, TILT SIDEWAYS FOR THE BEST VIEW:)  September 27, 2023 : This next morning we sampled the continental breakfast buffet and I settled on a croissant filled with Nutella (big smile on my face).  Didn't want to eat too much because we had a Planeta Wine tour which included wine pairings and lunch coming up at 11! I was a little concerned about the 45 minute drive as the email and instructions repeatedly said, "only use this link for directions. Do not use Google Maps or other map applications." Hmm. Must be way off the beaten path and in Sicily...! Well we headed off and all seemed well until within 5 minutes of our apparent location out in the farmlands and vineyards, the road came to an abrupt end, dropping down into a rocky ravine. Aggghhhh! I knew it!!! I called the phone number and got an immediate response at the Planeta main facility, but between her broken English and our broken Italian it's hard to say "Where the hell are we??!...

IF READING ON YOUR PHONE, TILT SIDEWAYS FOR THE BEST VIEW:) September 26, 2023 : We skipped breakfast at our lovely B&B and started out around 8:45am this morning. As we drove to the property gate, we found it to be closed which we hadn't experienced before. As we went about trying to figure the opening process, I noticed a car behind us and someone signaling to us... the owner! He came up to our window and, in his broken english, said, "Do you maybe want to pay now?" Oh man! Have to keep reminding ourselves we're not in Kansas anymore and they may not necessarily be leeching off of your credit card while on premises! I actually felt bad after that because he gave us small bottle of olive oil as a parting gift and I suppose that staying with them for 3 nights might have warranted at least a goodbye... On the road now and the 2 hour drive + a couple of stops flew by. We took the northern route past Palermo and cut down to the south, dropping into Selinunte and our ...

  IF READING ON YOUR PHONE, TILT SIDEWAYS FOR THE BEST VIEW:) September 25, 2023 : This would be our last day in the north/central area of Sicily and we wanted to venture out of the coastal areas. I think there is a tendency when traveling in Sicily to stay along the coastal routes so seeing some inland villages sounded different and appealing.  We had another leisurely breakfast at the B&B. Our fellow travelers were all different people today. With the tables set up for pairs, there isn't much mingling in conversation with others, but there were more British travelers on this particular morning.  How to chose a central village to visit...Well, we didn't want to drive more than 1 hour south so that narrowed down the choice! We picked Castellana Sicula which was about a 45 minute drive on what turned out to be some beautiful farmland roads (see video for a short segment). As we wound down into the village and entered the streets, there was a feeling of understanding a...

IF READING ON YOUR PHONE, TILT SIDEWAYS FOR THE BEST VIEW:) September 24, 2023 : We got up the next morning and were 'confronted' with even more wonderful food! Continental breakfast is much more than we're used to in the United States. See the video for a full  explanation from our host! It's interesting to watch what breakfast choices the other guests at our B&B make. The Australians and British tended toward only the toasts, tomatoes and spreads, the Germans seemed to prefer the grains, cereals and some meats while we Americans preferred the gluttonous "sample everything in front of you" method.  The grounds are just gorgeous and also serve as an olive orchard with many other fruit and nut trees that support the owners and also provide the basis for all of our lovely meals.  Prickly Pear Almonds Figs Pomegranate We enjoyed walking the grounds and sampling everything that seemed to be in perfect season. Not depicted were pears, grapes and plums! This se...

IF READING ON YOUR PHONE, TILT SIDEWAYS FOR THE BEST VIEW:) September 23, 2023 : The drive from Savoca to Cerda was about 3 hours and, thankfully, uneventful! I neglected to mention earlier that we had passed 2 wildland fires along the North coast while driving from Cefalu to Savoca. It was a warmer day and with an offshore wind, spot fires were popping up everywhere within site of the coastal towns.  Luckily our drive was taking us through the center of Sicily, away from the fires and with the opportunity for new views. This route was free of the toll roads with farms, small villages and even some ancient strongholds dotting the landscape. One beautiful old city we passed was Enna which was built on the level summit of a hill and surrounded by cliffs making it easily defensible to attack around 400BC. An impressive site to see just from the road and I look forward to exploring it! We arrive at our farmhouse B&B in the mid-afternoon: Terra Di Himera. The owners bought the dilap...

IF READING ON YOUR PHONE, TILT SIDEWAYS FOR THE BEST VIEW:) September 22, 2023 : Had some breakfast at our B&B with a wonderful host and cafe americano hitting the spot. We had a 2hr 40 min drive ahead to the surprise location for a late lunch and a last-minute booking at a local house rental.  Tips for freeway driving in Sicily: Attempting to stay within the white lane lines, following the speed limits and signaling your intentions are a red flag to your sissy-American status and an open invitation for some near-miss flybys and tailgating so close that you'd think the car behind you was attached to your trailer hitch. Then after passing you, the offending vehicle will return, not to its lane, but to a position straddling the center line. That being said, what a beautiful drive! We made a stop along the way in small town outside of Messina to get gas and look at some local pottery. Then it was back on the road to Savoca.  Savoca is a tiny village tucked into the mountains ...

 September 21, 2023 : A leisurely start this morning had us waking up and grabbing a cappuccino at a local cafe before walking to the parking garage to get the 'bigger car.' It was about 10am when we started out. Our original plans regarding Messina got derailed, but we figured we'd start the 3 hour journey there anyway and stop into the town of Cefalu for a couple of hours of beach time. Hmmm. Traffic getting out of Palermo wasn't traffic at all, but normal and harrowing! We failed to really capture it, but here are some rules: there aren't any. Scooters dominate, stop signs at intersections are non existent, the boldest vehicle wins, cars park anywhere (on corners, double parked, middle of the street), no one pulls over for emergency vehicles and there is no structure to the maze of streets within the city. I thought I couldn't wait to get onto a freeway, but oh how wrong I was! Back to the car... HYBRID! So, we clued into the battery indicator light which was...

  September 20, 2023 : No problem getting to sleep last night around midnight. Woke up around 8:30am which felt so late (!), showered and up to the rooftop for cappuccino, breakfast a beautiful view of our surroundings.  On booking the hotel originally, I didn't realize how centrally located we would be for touring some of the  top sites. In fact, the street itself, Via Vittorio Emanuele, was the location of many of these ancient structures. A nice surprise!  The area was alive with music, families, tourists and residents going about their daily lives. We started at a church called Cappella Di San Giuseppi Del Falegnami which was right across the street.  Constructed in the early 1600's, the beauty, sculptures and architecture were really a site to behold. To the right is the alter area and above, the ceiling of one of the vestibules (click to enlarge).  Next it was to Quatro Canti. This area, in the middle of Vittorio Emanuele, is surrounded on the four co...

September 18-19, 2023 : Overall our travel day went very well! The food on our Swiss Air 777 was pretty darn good. It's been years since I had a hot meal served onboard a flight --PanAm maybe? --- and was really impressed. There were actual courses to some extent (free cocktails!, appetizer, main course/dessert, coffee followed by a bar of Swiss chocolate) and flight attendants seemed  in a constant motion of efficiency and purpose. These are some talented folks who spoke, at minimum, German, English, Italian and Spanish. We are SO lazy in the U.S! About 10 hours to Zurich, Switzerland which, judging by the gorgeous green and lush view through the airport glass, is somewhere I’d like to revisit. Only an hour between flights and we were off to Palermo.  Ha, ha...what a contrast! Went from green to brown and efficient to,  well, not so much. Kind of a sad situation onboard as well with the older Italian woman in front of us throwing up for the entire 2 hour flight. Ug....