Bill Sargent Travel Blog

The book took us south past Catania into the towns devastated by an earthquake in 1693. Reconstructed from the glowing local limestone, the towns we passed through, Ferla, Palazollo Acreide, Noto, Ispica, Scicli and Ragusa all have outstanding examples of Baroque architecture. Two nights in Noto and another two in Ragusa gave us good time to check out the coastal tuna town of Marzamemi and the others mentioned on the drive.

Noto

We arrived around sun down in Noto and walked the short distance to the main street which is entered through this impressive arch.

At this hour, around 7:30, the street was coming alive with nomads like us, families walking and restaurants setting up.

Men sat on benches lining the street and piazzas. They spoke loudly gesturing like conductors, stared at pretty women as they passed and wondered what accent the man in the black hat was using to say, “Buongiorno,” anytime our eyes met.

In this light, the buildings were impressive and we returned the following day for some close ups and a tour of Palazzo Nicolaci, the home of a Prince and tuna baron.

The helpful woman at the ticket office explained the rooms we were to visit. The entertainment room, she said , was painted to improve the acoustics. She said the Gods Neptune and Apollo represented Sicilian men who saw themselves as Gods.

“Do Sicilian men still consider themselves Gods?” I asked with the hint of a smile.

She grinned, nodded slowly and with brows raised, looked knowingly at Sharon. She joined her in a silent but expressive conversation of nods, head tilts, grins and sideways glances while I was left to suffer the consequences of my ill-considered question.

The rooms were sparsely decorated but interesting all the same.

We gained access to the balconies which are supported by richly decorated brackets.

Though we’d seen many fine examples in all the towns we visited, the horses, lions and mermaids of this palazzo were the standouts. The balcony railings on these palazzos were also interesting in that they were shaped to allow the women’s dresses of the time to fit their curves.

We enjoyed our two days in Noto. Knowing nothing of a place and discovering it is a gem is the best part of a road trip.

Don’t say I didn’t send you a postcard.

Nicolosi lies in the shadow of Mt Etna and has come close to lava flows in the past so taking the thought that eruptions don’t occur in the same place twice, we considered it a safe bet to stay there for a couple of nights. 

We followed the signs of the Giro riders on the road up the mountain past the black, gravelly mountainside dotted with tufts of green, round, flowering plants.

We ignored previous advice and only packed light clothing but the warning of 4℃ had us in hired jackets.

Up the chairlift, into the Jeeps as they were called, along a winding road, in and out of the clouds to a park near where eruptions occurred in 2001. 

When I saw how the guide shed was secured to the ground, I had some concerns for the wind chill factor at this 2900 m level. It was cold.

Led up the path by the guide, we were told the smoke from the crater was just steam and that there will never be an eruption from this site again. We were pleased on both counts as the steam escaped from everywhere on the path and freezing hands need some way of being warmed. Scratch the ground with a shoe, steam escapes and just warm the hands on the campfire.

We were mildly disappointed not to see the bubbling red stuff but the BBC crew visiting in March still have burns that are healing so we were happy to escape with many photographs and a couple of pebbles in our pocket. I hope it keeps erupting, just a little for Nicolosi’s sake, as there were many who took souvenirs. Soon it’ll be as flat as the Nullabor.

Just a side note on a slip of the tongue:

Someone was heard to say in Pompeii.

“These ruins are amazing. Just look at how well they are preserved. And Mt Vesusius is so close. Just imagine if there was a volcanic erection while we slept tonight in Pompeii!”

That moment should be preserved in stone for thousands of years.

9 June, 2017

The Vatican Museum held some treasures so we wondered what natural delights Capo Vaticano might hold. The dreadful state of the country roads in this part of the world lead us to believe we are often on the road to nowhere but Tom Tom gets us there. The Cape was grand and even the graffiti self-destructs over time.

The ferry for Sicily leaves from Villa San Giovanni. You drive to the port, find the large signs that say, “Imbarchi per Sicilia” and buy the ticket at the office that says in large lettering, “BIGLIETTO”. I assumed the man directing people was the ticket office assistant but he turned out to be a man earning his living from the gullibility of foreign tourists.  I thought I was in Morocco again. He directed me to a sign as large as the ferry itself and then asked for a, “Leetle some theeng for mee!” I had one of those laughs that don’t carry a lot of joy, the one that means he got me. As I tossed him a coin, he joined in my laughter, the type that means he got another one.

The ferry over the Straits of Messina was just a twenty minute ride over an azure sea then we were on the road to Milazzo.

We still had lots of time in the afternoon to tour the very impressive Castello.

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We made it home for the sunset over the Aeolian Islands, of which Stomboli is one. It managed two puffs of smoke while we were enjoying a cold one on the balcony.

Before heading south into the mountains, we had time to swim at the famous local rock pool on the Cape.