SOUTH COAST of SICILY

TRAPANI TO MARINA DI RAGUSA

Pretty outlook in Trapani Harbour

We said goodbye to my cousins in Trapani and left the harbour the next day to sail south to Marsala.

We travelled from Trapani down to  Marina di Ragusa in the South

Marsala is of course famous for its sweet fortified wines, not really to our taste, but there were some good Enotecas in the town with an excellent choice of very acceptable Sicilian Wines.

One of many baroque churches

 Fig Tree + healthy parasite in one of the Piazzas

The Marina was a good walk out of town but it was worth the trek into Marsala.  It's relatively low key place with a pleasant pedestrianised historical centre, spacious piazzas and honey coloured baroque buildings.  Marsala is also famous as Garibaldi's point of entry into Sicily in 1860 with his army of 1000 red shirts - one of the pivotal points in the movement towards a united Italy.

Captain 'ever vigilant' in case we bump into .....

..... a freighter

Granitola

From Marsala we sailed SW - we anchored in a quiet bay off the small town of Granitola.  This coastline lacked the drama of the Northern Coastline, it was also much more built up.

We continued following the coastline SW until we reached moderately large port of Sciacca.  Sciacca is typical of many Sicilian coastal towns - apartment blocks crammed cheek by jowl and the port area was quite dilapidated looking.

View from old Sciacca looking down on port and marina

Renovator's dream

Old Sciacca was on top of a steep hill overlooking the port - I climbed up the steps early one morning. Some efforts had been made in restoring the old town but there were still some 'renovation opportunities'.  The town is famous for its ceramics...........

Sciacca is the largest town on this area of coast, it's also home to a very large fishing fleet.

Trawlers in poor evening light

There are some excellent restaurants down in the port area - if you can reach them!  There are no footpaths and we were competing with 'formula one' traffic, the food was worth it though......

No laundry at Sciacca so I got the rubber gloves out.............

Alan inspects the barbecued meats...............

Further down the coast we stopped at Port Leone, just past Agrigento.   We anchored near the small but busy harbour - suffering the constants wakes of small motor boats.  Then later that night the sea developed a horrible rock and roll motion - we upped the anchor at 4.00 am and moved on!

LICATA

View of Licata from the Marina - mausoleums on hill line.

Licata was our final stop before reaching our destination of Marina di Ragusa.   The marina was large and new, obviously a pivotal point for the locals as they took their passeggiata there each evening.  It was a pleasant enough town but without much historical interest.  We did have an excellent supper at Hosteria L'Oste e il Sacrestano run by a delightful young couple.

NW SICILY

We spent a few weeks exploring the NW Coast and found several pretty coastal resorts with long stretches of white beach and dramatic backdrops of high mountains.

CASTELLAMMARE DEL GOLFO

Castellammare del Golfo - looking towards old port from the boat

Looking down on old port (after climbing dozens of steps)

View from boat - mountains surround town

View of coastline surrounding the town

Lots of steps to get to the centre of town and our favourite restaurant

Cefalu, which I've already written about. is perhaps the prettiest seaside resort on this coast but it draws a lot of tourists.  We also enjoyed Castellammare del Golfo, a lovely fishing town West of Palermo.   An old Saracen castle stands at one end of the port and the harbour itself is lined with unassuming restaurants, cafes and fishermen selling their catches.  Unfortunately our favourite restaurant Scala Antiche was in the centre of town and required a hike up the steps, good for the appetite.....

SAN CAPO DI VITO

This resort has wonderful beaches and draws hordes of sun worshippers - the town has grown to accommodate its summer visitors but there is little else to entice the visitor apart from the beach. However the situation right on the NW promontory is dramatic.

Alan, Catherine and Peter Swords

CACCAMO CASTLE built in 10th Century

My Irish cousins spent two weeks with us in this NW area of Sicily.  One day we hired a car and Peter drove us into the interior to visit Caccamo Castle.  That day was full of incident!  First we had to fill the car with petrol, that required finding a petrol station - not easy with one way systems and a town that's bisected by a busy railway line + Italian drivers!  An elderly lady actually drove into us as we waited at a tiny level crossing.  We finally succeeded in filling up the tank and finding our way out of town (not easy!) - our first stop was at an old Church where we managed to lock ourselves out of the car!   Then the road became impassible due to rough surface so we joined a motorway and headed West to the old Castle of Caccamo.   Originally a Norman stronghold, the castle was enlarged by the noble Chiaramonte family in the 14th C.

EGADI ISLANDS

Levanzo hamlet, the bay next to where we anchored

Peaceful bay of Cala Fredda, South Levanzo 

From Capo di Vito we sailed west to visit the Egadi Islands.  We just had time to visit the one island - Levanzo.  Today the islands attract tourists for the clean waters and quiet environment.   The Egadi islanders have always lived off the sea and they are famous for tuna catches.

TRAPANI

Peter and Catherine posing in pedestrianised Corso Vittoria Emanuele

Old Fortification

On our early morning walk - North side of old Trapani

In the Square there was a gathering of vintage Fiat 500s - so cute......

Trapani was a delightful surprise to us all.  Situated on the NW corner of Sicily, it's a busy port serving the Egadi Islands and a major centre for tuna fishing.   The Spanish landed here in 1282 and began their 500 year occupation, many of the buildings show their influence.   The town follows the usual pattern of having a historic centre as well as a modern town.  The port is in the historic centre which is on a narrow promontory, so sea views on both sides as you walk along the old streets.   We really liked this underrated place, the boat was moored in a friendly marina which led out past the trawlers and the fish markets – there was also the best stocked Enoteca we’ve come across.  The central walkway in the old town – Corso Vittorio Emanuele was lined with splendid old buildings in the Baroque style.  Sadly it was here that we farewelled my cousins, but first we managed a visit to the old walled town of Erice. 

ERICE

Views and part of the walled fortifications at Erice

More fortifications and views inland

There were many churches - The Duomo is still a 'working' church many of the others were used as museums

One of the 60 odd churches in Erice

very slippery paving stone - especially on an incline 

Attractive doorway on one of the squares

Erice is on Mount Eryx, 750 m above sea level and looks down over Trapani - thankfully there was a cable car and the ride gave us incredible views.  The old walled town was full of narrow lanes mostly covered in very slippery but highly attractive paving stones!  I was temped to walk in my bare feet.............   There were also 60 churches (maybe years ago every family had their own church!) - we managed to visit a few!  However the views were the most outstanding feature of Erice.

PALERMO

Palermo, a city of contrasts.......

One end of the Marina - huge cranes in the port area

Hotel Villa Iglea at the other end - a palatial residence and a great place to have a sundowner

We moored 3 Km north of the city in a typically dingy port area, however the marina demonstrated the contrasts of Palermo well.  At one end we had a view of the splendid Hotel Villa Iglea standing out in dramatic contrast to the huges cranes at the other end.

Palermo is a unique and extraordinary city situated on the NW Coast of Sicily.  It is crammed with grimy dilapidated buildings, litter strewn streets and chaotic traffic conditions, yet out of this disorder there miraculously remain the treasures bequeathed by countless invaders over many centuries.  

The Phoenicians founded Palermo 3000 years ago, they were followed by the Carthaginians and then the Greeks.   The Arabs arrived in AD 831 and the port flourished for two hundred years under their enlightened rule.   Roger I took over after the Norman Invasion when Palermo became the most cultured city in 12^th Century Europe.   Following the Normans the Spanish were in power for 500 years until Garibaldi landed and defeated the Bourbons in the lead up to the Italian Unification.  Two World Wars sank the city into massive disrepair, a state from which much of it has never recovered.

Corn seller in foreground

           

We took a taxi into the centre of the old city – Quattro Canti - four corners.  This intersection is surrounded by a circular shape of four curved facades – each façade is lit by the sun at one point in the day.

Fontana Pretoria

Nude statues of Fontana Pretoria

Next to Quattro Canti is a large piazza – Piazza Pretoria which is dominated by the Fontana Pretoria with its numerous nude statues, a rather incongruous position with the many fine churches surrounding the piazza.  

I loved this oriental looking church - Chiesa Capitolare di San Cataldo

Mosaic floors

One of the most striking churches is the pink domed Chiesa Capitolare di San Cataldo it is practically bare inside as the founder was murdered before it was finished in 1160.  I think the lack of ornamentation underlines the beauty of interior structure.

BALLARO Market

Too big for pigs trotters

Photo doesn't demonstrate the size of the onions!

There are many fresh food markets, we wandered into The Mercato di Ballaro with its wonderful variety of produce as well as the venders whose faces were truly cosmopolitan - all corners of the Globe were represented.

CATHEDRAL

Detail of Portico

Construction of the Cathedral started in 1184, it was built over the sight of an old Mosque and was meant to rival the Cathedral of Monreale (N. of Palermo).  There have been many additions and alterations throughout the centuries such as the three arched portico which took 200 years to complete. The Cathedral houses the remains of Roger II and Frederick II, two of Sicily's greatest leaders.

Lot of treasures as you walk the streets - magnificent doorway with ornate lamp

Old Palazzo - now Gallery of Modern Art

PALATINE CHAPEL

This is the jewel of Palermo.  The chapel is housed in the Palazzo dei Normanni, it's beautifully intimate and was designed by Roger II in 1130.  It's a real combination of Arab and Norman aesthetics. After a recent 5-year restoration every surface reveals precious vibrant inlaid marbles and exquisite mosaics.

Every surface is covered with precious marbles

Golden mosaics mostly created by Byzantine Greek artisans

Arabic designs to the walls, decorated with marble inlay,

Chapel lies off the first floor

Stunning ceilings of Roger II's bedrooms 

Roger II's quarters above and below

Another side of PALERMO

We wandered haphazardly off one of the main boulevards and found ourselves in what looked like a war torn zone, it made a huge contrast to the luxurious richness of the Palatine Chapel

Typical Palermo street 

Sword fish for sale outside the Marina

Teatro Politeama, a venue for music lovers,  dominates the Piazza Ruggero Settimo

After several hours of pounding the pavements we resorted to the 'red tourist bus' - it was very welcome to get the weight off our feet.