SICILY (+ Rome & Naples), May 2013
Rome, Naples, Palermo, Monreale, Trapani, Marsala, Erice, Segasta, Calascibetta, Piazza Armerina, Caltagirone, Vizzini, Ragusa, Modica, Siracusa, Catania
Rome: We found a good, inexpensive B&B just next to the train station.
We invested a few euros in a Rome bus map
and were glad we did.
If you want to see the incredible Villa
Borghese, you MUST get a ticket on-line, preferably months ahead—we missed out!
But we went to the Villa Barberini at opening time (9am) and had the place to
ourselves.
Restaurants: La Campana (near Piazza
Navona)—try the animele
(sweetbreads).
Trattoria Trilussa, a bit pricey, but
excellent, in Trastevere. Also Pizzeria Renella for great pizza by the slice
(they cut what you want from a rectangular pizza and charge by weight).
Giolitti has some of the best gelato in
town (and everyone knows it!).
We spent one night in Rome, then took the
train to Naples for 3 nights. What a
dump! The centro histórico has some lovely plazas, but it’s all pretty grubby
and grafitti covered. Other than the opera house, not much of it impressed me.
Buy a bus/train pass—we made much use of
it (same goes for Rome).
Take the cable car to Vomero to see the
fancy neighborhood. Don’t miss the Museo
Nazionale to see all the loot from Pompeii.
We took the overnight sleeper train to Palermo. Beware of scammers in the
station that will tell you the train is cancelled.
Palermo: I found Palermo surprisingly quiet, clean and orderly—not what
I’d expected (Naples actually looks like my idea of Sicily). We loved our
airbnb rental, great location overlooking the very pretty plaza San Domenico.
Have drinks on the terrace of the
Rinascente department store, just across from our apartment.
We visited all the open fruit and veg.
markets in Palermo—by far the best is Ballaro.
The Chiesa
di Santa Caterina is one of the few churches with an entry fee (2
euros)—well worth it!
We rented a car in Palermo for 8 days. Don’t
miss the stunning cathedral at Monreale,
about an hour outside Palermo. From there we drove to Trapani, a lovely, upscale place (the old part anyway)—we stayed
two nights.
Nearby Erice, an ancient rock-built hill town, was the real highlight here.
A day in each town is enough, but Erice seems like a place one might stay for a
while just to absorb the atmosphere.
We also went to Marsala from Trappani. It’s clean and lovely, but only if you have
extra time.
We travelled all the way from Trapani to
Caltagironi in one day—the roads are good.
We arrived before dark, but with more time I would have preferred to
stay in Cefalú.
Segesta: Not far from Trapani are some of the best preserved Greek ruins
anywhere—small site, but lovely. The wildflowers in May there were beyond
anything I’ve seen anywhere in the world. The views of the surrounding
hillsides are superb.
En route we stopped at Calascibetta, right next to bigger and
better known Enna.
It’s an easier stop if you’re just
driving through, but with more time I would have stayed a night at Enna.
We stayed 2 nights in Caltagirone and visited the imposing
Roman mosaics at Piazza Armerina as
a day trip. I would skip Caltagirone and
stay in the old part of Piazza Armerina, which is charming—we wish we had. Be
prepared for tourist hordes at the Roman ruins—annoying, but worth it.
Vizzini
made a lovely coffee stop en route to Ragusa where we stayed 2 nights. Ragusa
Ibla is the old, lovely part, but a bit precious and touristy for me. Our splurge
meal at El Duomo (75 euros each) was memorable and worth the price.
Tel. 0932-651-265 www.ristoranteduomo.it
We stopped at Modica en route to Siracusa. It was one of the livelier small towns
we saw, if not the most picturesque (read: a bit more real).
The old part of Siracusa is super clean, lovely but quite touristy. For some it
would be a highlight-- I was ready to leave after two hours. Don’t miss the
outdoor morning market—one of the best in Sicily.
Catania: We stayed 4 nights here and loved it—my favorite place in Sicily.
We weren’t crazy about our airbnb rental here, but saw a few other places that
looked good. It’s a walking town, so it helps to have a central location:
The Bellini house museum was
disappointing, but don’t miss the Palazzo
Bizcari, where the prince himself gives the tour of this faded but fabulous
palace. It’s free, but you must
reserve—go to the tourist office near the main plaza. Read Lampedusa’s ‘The
Leopard’ about the decline of Sicilian nobility after the unification of
Italy—the palace will provide a wonderful visual setting for this must-read
book.
Catania has an international airport.
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