Sicilia por favore..

Whatever Sicily conjures up in your mind at first should be discarded, tired cliches, Hollywood movies and stereotypes can be thrown away with last nights ragu. I visited Sicily this weekend, 4 days, 3 nights, 3 cities with one of my oldest friends (17 years and counting) Rebecca. 

Our selfie on the bus from Palermo to Catania.

We only decided to go in March so I had nothing in mind apart from Mount Etna and I didn't read up anything on Sicily apart from the bus and train schedules and the flight details. I knew Rebecca would read the Lonely Planet guide from cover to cover and would be able to quote it at me if necessary and I was right, she did and found most of the good places we ate at.

The view over Palermo from our hotel

Teatro Massimo

One of the many markets in Palermo

We flew to Palermo and spent our first night in the city. It is great, old, big, busy, horrible traffic, great food, great buildings, great people. I think everyone there is a little flirtatious or it feels that way. People tried speaking English with us whenever I tried to speak my terrible mix of Spanish and Italian. It was amusing, they laughed and encouraged me or politely corrected me. I think I fell in love with Sicily after one night in Palermo. It is a place I must return to, there is so much more to see and taste. Few places have grabbed me so quickly. Palermo is not the prettiest city though it's setting is amazing, it isn't clean, it isn't easy to get around (traffic jams are very common) but it has charm, more than any other Italian city I've visited apart from Rome. 

Teatro Massimo

So after a lovely evening in Palermo including a very flirty waiter and a very sweet Canolo we got up very early and made our way to Catania on a bus driven by a cigar smoking man who reminded me of an Italian walrus. He smoked his cigar throughout the 3 hour journey, he chatted on his mobile phone as we sped along the autostrada at 100kph. Fun and not in the slightest bit scary as the Sicilian scenery is amazing and a total surprise. I think not reading too much before a trip is a good idea. Read the essentials but let the rest be a surprise, it works and is fantastic.

Catania is another big city with lots of charm but it cannot compete with its gigantic neighbour, Mount Etna and this was the main reason we were there. We booked a tour and were pleasantly surprised when it turned out to be a 5 hour personal tour, us 2 and the guide, Caterina, she was so nice, knowledgeable and friendly. I recommend her and her company EtnaTribe, the tour was fantastic, we went in a lava cave, and went to the refugi at 2000m to see old volcano craters from recent eruptions and the lava flows that covered villages. Amazing.

A house covered in lava

So after a lovely day and a lovely evening in Catania including a very nice meal which was huge and I know I ate far too much spaghetti and clams but when in Sicily eat like they do. Sunday we headed to Syracuse but thought we wouldn't get there.

Typical street scene in central Catania

Sunday morning we head to the bus station and board a bus to Siracusa, but this wasn't the bus, it was the local bus that took us to the depot that had the real bus. I left my sunglasses on that bus in the rush to get on the new bus as the Italians don't queue and it was a scrum to get off the bus and onto the new one! The new bus was comfortable but the gearbox was damaged and the driver couldn't change gears properly so we rolled backwards down a few hills and the 1 hour journey took 1.5 hours. Lots of fun.

We arrived in Syracuse in the rain but found our hotel very quickly, it was very close to the bus station and we found by accident. 

Syracuse is lovely, a lot of ruins from ancient Greek era and roman era and has kept the modern world on its edges. The main part of the city is on an island called Ortigia and it is fascinating, temples, churches, narrow alleys and very calm. It was a lot more touristy than Catania and Palermo but not overwhelming as it has no cruise ship terminal so it isn't overwhelmed with that crowd. Thank god. I didn't spend very long in Syracuse, less than 24 hours but it was nice. 

Temple of Apollo Siracusa

Piazza Duomo Siracusa

Ortigia 

So my last day involved a 3 hour bus ride to Palermo in dense fog and rain and included an argument with an Italian couple about me reclining my seat (they didn't like me reclining my reclinable seat even though they reclined theirs), a 1 hour bus ride from Palermo central to the airport, a 1.5 hour flight to Barcelona then another bus ride to my apartment. I was exhausted and full, I ate a lot, spent far too much time on buses and went up a volcano and spent 4 days with a friend I have not seen for a long time! All good!

May 20 2014