Sicily: Where, Why, and Who

Sicily is an island off the boot of Italy, in the Mediterranean Sea.  It is part of Italy but its position close to Africa, Greece, and mainland Europe have put it in the path of the Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Normans, and Spanish and made it a crossroads for all these cultures. 

It is known for its Phoenician, Greek, Roman, Norman, and Baroque art and architecture ...

Mosaic lion in the Museo Regionale di Palazzo Bellomo, Ortiga 

Doric columns of the Greek Temple at Segesta

....its fresh and flavorable food (locally caught seafood (swordfish, tuna, octopus, squid, big shrimp) and locally grown fruits (pomegranate, oranges, lemon, lime, grapes) and vegetables (spinach, tomatoes, capers)...

Selling local nuts and herbs at the market in Ortiga, 

and its beautiful scenery, especially the lovely blue Mediterranean.  

Fishing harbor in Sciacca on a quiet Sunday

Ben and I were thinking about doing some sightseeing in Europe, and our good friend Lotus suggested Sicily, which she had heard about from her friend, Giovanni, who is from the island.

After doing some research online and in Sicily guidebooks, we were in.  We've done a lot of hiking, eating, and touring with Lotus here in the Denver area and felt we would make a good traveling team (and we did!) Since Paul is working and had just been to Ecuador he stayed in Boulder to keep the home fires burning. 

We decided to stage our two weeks on the island with stays in three spots, marked on the map below.  We'd use a rental car drive from spot to spot and to make several day trips, which are highlighted in yellow. 

We planned to spend three nights in a condo in San Vito lo Capo, a beach town about an hour from the airport and a good jumping off point for the medieval town of Erice, the modern city of Palermo, and the Greek temple and theater in Segesta. 

Lotus relaxing on the patio of the San Vito lo Capo condo

We would spend three nights in agritourista farm/hotel near Naro, a medieval town close to the Valley of the Temples, a major site for Greek architecture. 

Old farmhouse turned hotel outside of Naro

The third leg would be five nights in an apartment in Siracusa, within walking distance of the historic area of Ortiga and a reasonable drive to the famous tourist towns of Taormina and Noto. 

View of Ortiga from the balcony of our Siracusa apartment 

The last night would be in little Cinisi, an easy drive to the airport for our morning flight back home. 

Patio at our room in Cinisi

Our plans were made, and we were off!  eIn the next post I'll show some photos from our stay in San Vito lo Capo.