16-Day Driving Trip in Sicily
Feb 5th, 2016, 01:43 PM
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Annhig, do I remember your name from the New Zealand forum, on which I spent much time last year? (Or was it Norway?)
Less time or more time anywhere: I actually think this itinerary worked out pretty well for the time of year we were there. If it had been a bit warmer, I would have included some islands (the ones up north?). I so enjoyed the olive farm, I might have tried to stay on another farm -- or at least on a vineyard in The Etna area, which is so gorgeous. We also didn't have much time for hiking, although we felt like we walked out feet off! I was intrigued by a hike thru a national park in the Erice area. And we did not do much inland, and the bit that we did driving up to Villa Casale was absolutely stunning in those hills.
Always something more to do, right? I tried hard to spend two nights in each destination, which was great. I wouldn't have spent any less time anywhere or skipped anything. Except I probably could have lived without that veal spleen sandwich! (Tho I was just in a Peruvian restaurant in Palm Beach of all places, and the first three entree choices were beef heart, tripe and gizzards. Fortunately there was also whole roast chicken and mixed fried seafood!)
Less time or more time anywhere: I actually think this itinerary worked out pretty well for the time of year we were there. If it had been a bit warmer, I would have included some islands (the ones up north?). I so enjoyed the olive farm, I might have tried to stay on another farm -- or at least on a vineyard in The Etna area, which is so gorgeous. We also didn't have much time for hiking, although we felt like we walked out feet off! I was intrigued by a hike thru a national park in the Erice area. And we did not do much inland, and the bit that we did driving up to Villa Casale was absolutely stunning in those hills.
Always something more to do, right? I tried hard to spend two nights in each destination, which was great. I wouldn't have spent any less time anywhere or skipped anything. Except I probably could have lived without that veal spleen sandwich! (Tho I was just in a Peruvian restaurant in Palm Beach of all places, and the first three entree choices were beef heart, tripe and gizzards. Fortunately there was also whole roast chicken and mixed fried seafood!)
Feb 6th, 2016, 10:27 AM
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Day 19 Sunday: CENTRAL ROME AND A SCAM
It was the last day of the trip. I slept till after 8. Chris slept til almost 10:30. We aren't big on relaxing on trips and it was catching up with us! Checked the mini fridge and a Coke was 10 Euros. Water: 9.5. Dumb! Chris said if he had a mini nosh today in a couple hours he could be done with eating.
Close to noon we finally rolled out for a self-guided walking tour of the center city. Shortly after we started toward the Via Veneto, a businessman in a car called us over and asked if we knew where the Spanish Steps were. Well yes, because we were just coming from our hotel there. So Chris told him how to go while I took pictures. Then Chris called me over and said this man works for Dior. The man said he's a sales manager and it's so great to meet helpful people. He said he just got turned away twice at gas stations who wouldn't take his American Express. We sympathized; we said we got rid of our AE card for that reason. Then he showed me -- talking three-quarters in Italian -- a purse that he said is from next season's line. He had me touch the leather. It didn't feel like anything special, but I politely admired it. And I thought he told me he's going to give it to me because we're so nice. I was thinking, I don't want that purse, it's too big. But I couldn't quite tell what he was saying. Then he said to Chris, just give me a few dollars for petrol. Because he couldn't use his card. Chris gave him 40 euros and he said 10 more. Now we were really confused. Then he said do you have a daughter and wanted to "give" us a purse for her. He realized the light was starting to dawn for us, so he said Ciao and off he went.
We wondered how could we be that dumb, and then we wondered how did he get that good at the scam? Everything rang true until he started asking for money but by then we were totally in sync with this guy. We figure the bags were knock-offs. Doesn't say Dior (of course what would I know) and it was stuffed with newspapers. Not very Dior-like. Oh well, wish the pic I'd taken of Chris talking to him next to his car had been on my phone camera because then I could give it to the cops; it showed his license plate. It was on my Nikon.
So moving on, we strolled down the Via Veneto, which doesn't look that different from other streets except it's wider. It has a Hard Rock Cafe and a couple of really fancy hotels. One is called the Regina I think because it's where the queen stayed when she waited to have the Palazzo Margherita built for her. Coincidentally, that's part of the compound that makes up the American Embassy which was quite close. We circled around that. Its iron elaborately patterned gates are like a fortress.
On to the best part of the day: freaky catacombs in the Santa Maria Capuchin Church. Thousands of Capuchin friars' bones were dug up and delivered to this church where they made artistic catacombs of them. Flowers made of pelvises. Skulls in arched patterns. Skeletons dressed in robes and standing up like they're walking. Just weird, but fascinating. (The best thing is that the gift shop sells tshirts with a bunch of skulls on them.) They don't allow photos and I didn't try to sneak any; just doing anything out of the ordinary in this place seems disrespectful. The catacombs are preceded by a museum which explains how the capuchins came to be; all their artwork has at least one skull in them. One of the paintings is a Caravaggio.
After that we wandered down to the Trevi Fountain which was open again after having been closed for renovations. The crowd was the biggest we'd seen in Rome or Sicily so far. Fountain of course is Roman over-the-top. From there we went to the Pantheon where we've never been, and it's extremely cool. It has a hole in the top where the rain comes down in perfect sheets. Wow. Who thinks of that? Raphael is buried here as is King Victor Emanuel who unified Italy. Don't know if it's just because it's Sunday but there were tons of people sightseeing and parading around, and many street performers. One guy was such a realistic
statue I was taking a photo of him before I realized he was alive! Had to throw a coin in his bucket.
Our last stop would be Piazza Navona but we were starving. So we found a pizza spot where we could sit outside and people watch. Habana Cafe. Jammed up against a Dutch young adult and his mom, chatted with them. Sausage pizza, thin crust, pretty good, but felt taken advantage of when the waiter indicated he didn't have a single glass of wine but could bring me a small amount. Turned out to be a 12 euro half bottle. Aargh. Never order without seeing the price.
Piazza Navona is huge and beautiful. Lots of people enjoying Sunday afternoon. Tons of vendors selling the kind of mass-produced art we bought when we were 24. The beautiful Baroque church in back of the fantastic fountain of four rivers was St Agnes and the Agones; my mom's name was Agnes so course we had to go in. She was a 12-year-old girl who was murdered after she refused some big guy's advances because she was devoted to the church. Her skull is in the church. The Agones sounds like agonies but it actually had to do with foot races that were held in this giant plaza. By now it was getting dark, so we headed back to the hotel: another 14,000 step day and my bursitis felt it! Ice bag required.
After a rest we headed at 8 down the street to a restaurant called La Botte Antica that had a fabulous display of artichokes outside. Chris had pasta aglio olio, which was chewy pasta with some spice. I had artichokes. Their desserts looked good (tortes) but after continuous disappointment with the taste of Italian desserts we moved right on to the gelato store. It's no wonder gelato is so popular in Italy! Then packed and got ready for the plane tomorrow.
Day 20: ROME TO THE AIRPORT
The hotel had the taxi ready for us, a flat rate to the airport. The driver, a Sicilian grandfather, delighted us with the Chopin piano music he played the entire way there. A fitting end to a classic Italian trip!
Thanks everyone for reading all this way!
It was the last day of the trip. I slept till after 8. Chris slept til almost 10:30. We aren't big on relaxing on trips and it was catching up with us! Checked the mini fridge and a Coke was 10 Euros. Water: 9.5. Dumb! Chris said if he had a mini nosh today in a couple hours he could be done with eating.
Close to noon we finally rolled out for a self-guided walking tour of the center city. Shortly after we started toward the Via Veneto, a businessman in a car called us over and asked if we knew where the Spanish Steps were. Well yes, because we were just coming from our hotel there. So Chris told him how to go while I took pictures. Then Chris called me over and said this man works for Dior. The man said he's a sales manager and it's so great to meet helpful people. He said he just got turned away twice at gas stations who wouldn't take his American Express. We sympathized; we said we got rid of our AE card for that reason. Then he showed me -- talking three-quarters in Italian -- a purse that he said is from next season's line. He had me touch the leather. It didn't feel like anything special, but I politely admired it. And I thought he told me he's going to give it to me because we're so nice. I was thinking, I don't want that purse, it's too big. But I couldn't quite tell what he was saying. Then he said to Chris, just give me a few dollars for petrol. Because he couldn't use his card. Chris gave him 40 euros and he said 10 more. Now we were really confused. Then he said do you have a daughter and wanted to "give" us a purse for her. He realized the light was starting to dawn for us, so he said Ciao and off he went.
We wondered how could we be that dumb, and then we wondered how did he get that good at the scam? Everything rang true until he started asking for money but by then we were totally in sync with this guy. We figure the bags were knock-offs. Doesn't say Dior (of course what would I know) and it was stuffed with newspapers. Not very Dior-like. Oh well, wish the pic I'd taken of Chris talking to him next to his car had been on my phone camera because then I could give it to the cops; it showed his license plate. It was on my Nikon.
So moving on, we strolled down the Via Veneto, which doesn't look that different from other streets except it's wider. It has a Hard Rock Cafe and a couple of really fancy hotels. One is called the Regina I think because it's where the queen stayed when she waited to have the Palazzo Margherita built for her. Coincidentally, that's part of the compound that makes up the American Embassy which was quite close. We circled around that. Its iron elaborately patterned gates are like a fortress.
On to the best part of the day: freaky catacombs in the Santa Maria Capuchin Church. Thousands of Capuchin friars' bones were dug up and delivered to this church where they made artistic catacombs of them. Flowers made of pelvises. Skulls in arched patterns. Skeletons dressed in robes and standing up like they're walking. Just weird, but fascinating. (The best thing is that the gift shop sells tshirts with a bunch of skulls on them.) They don't allow photos and I didn't try to sneak any; just doing anything out of the ordinary in this place seems disrespectful. The catacombs are preceded by a museum which explains how the capuchins came to be; all their artwork has at least one skull in them. One of the paintings is a Caravaggio.
After that we wandered down to the Trevi Fountain which was open again after having been closed for renovations. The crowd was the biggest we'd seen in Rome or Sicily so far. Fountain of course is Roman over-the-top. From there we went to the Pantheon where we've never been, and it's extremely cool. It has a hole in the top where the rain comes down in perfect sheets. Wow. Who thinks of that? Raphael is buried here as is King Victor Emanuel who unified Italy. Don't know if it's just because it's Sunday but there were tons of people sightseeing and parading around, and many street performers. One guy was such a realistic
statue I was taking a photo of him before I realized he was alive! Had to throw a coin in his bucket.
Our last stop would be Piazza Navona but we were starving. So we found a pizza spot where we could sit outside and people watch. Habana Cafe. Jammed up against a Dutch young adult and his mom, chatted with them. Sausage pizza, thin crust, pretty good, but felt taken advantage of when the waiter indicated he didn't have a single glass of wine but could bring me a small amount. Turned out to be a 12 euro half bottle. Aargh. Never order without seeing the price.
Piazza Navona is huge and beautiful. Lots of people enjoying Sunday afternoon. Tons of vendors selling the kind of mass-produced art we bought when we were 24. The beautiful Baroque church in back of the fantastic fountain of four rivers was St Agnes and the Agones; my mom's name was Agnes so course we had to go in. She was a 12-year-old girl who was murdered after she refused some big guy's advances because she was devoted to the church. Her skull is in the church. The Agones sounds like agonies but it actually had to do with foot races that were held in this giant plaza. By now it was getting dark, so we headed back to the hotel: another 14,000 step day and my bursitis felt it! Ice bag required.
After a rest we headed at 8 down the street to a restaurant called La Botte Antica that had a fabulous display of artichokes outside. Chris had pasta aglio olio, which was chewy pasta with some spice. I had artichokes. Their desserts looked good (tortes) but after continuous disappointment with the taste of Italian desserts we moved right on to the gelato store. It's no wonder gelato is so popular in Italy! Then packed and got ready for the plane tomorrow.
Day 20: ROME TO THE AIRPORT
The hotel had the taxi ready for us, a flat rate to the airport. The driver, a Sicilian grandfather, delighted us with the Chopin piano music he played the entire way there. A fitting end to a classic Italian trip!
Thanks everyone for reading all this way!
Feb 6th, 2016, 01:07 PM
#44
We wondered how could we be that dumb, and then we wondered how did he get that good at the scam?>>
practice, practice, practice, pthomas. We nearly fell for a similar scam in Tunisia, a long time ago, [the old "my father's car's broken down, can you take me to my uncle's house to get help, oh btw he runs a carpet shop" trick] and another one last month in Havana, where the waitress tried to con us into paying $45 for a meal costing $25 by claiming that she couldn't bring us a written bill.
Yes, that would have been me on the NZ forum [though actually, there is only an Australasia form, within which you can search for NZ threads] but not Norway.
BTW, the Trevi was the site of another scam relating to the money which is thrown into it, which for years was collected every day by the same man. it was only when he failed to turn up one day [it turned out that the was ill] that it was realised that contrary to what everyone had thought, he was not official in any way, but had been indulging in a bit of private enterprise.
Thanks for taking the trouble to post your TR, it's been very helpful and informative, not to say entertaining.
practice, practice, practice, pthomas. We nearly fell for a similar scam in Tunisia, a long time ago, [the old "my father's car's broken down, can you take me to my uncle's house to get help, oh btw he runs a carpet shop" trick] and another one last month in Havana, where the waitress tried to con us into paying $45 for a meal costing $25 by claiming that she couldn't bring us a written bill.
Yes, that would have been me on the NZ forum [though actually, there is only an Australasia form, within which you can search for NZ threads] but not Norway.
BTW, the Trevi was the site of another scam relating to the money which is thrown into it, which for years was collected every day by the same man. it was only when he failed to turn up one day [it turned out that the was ill] that it was realised that contrary to what everyone had thought, he was not official in any way, but had been indulging in a bit of private enterprise.
Thanks for taking the trouble to post your TR, it's been very helpful and informative, not to say entertaining.
Feb 7th, 2016, 02:19 PM
#45
pthomas, guess what?
This morning DH asked me if I'd like to go to Sicily for my birthday trip in September! I have a "big birthday" this year so it would be a special trip. We can fly direct from Bristol to Catania, so we will probably do 10 nights [they fly Mondays and Fridays] basing ourselves in the east of the island.
The big question is - where to stay???
This morning DH asked me if I'd like to go to Sicily for my birthday trip in September! I have a "big birthday" this year so it would be a special trip. We can fly direct from Bristol to Catania, so we will probably do 10 nights [they fly Mondays and Fridays] basing ourselves in the east of the island.
The big question is - where to stay???
Feb 19th, 2016, 01:25 PM
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I think if I only had 10 days, including getting there and leaving, and I was flying into Catania, I would stick to the east side of the island. Maybe go south from Catania, through Syracuse and the Baroque towns, to Agrigento, back up through Villa Casale to Taormina/Etna. Taormina is only about an hour from the Catania airport.
Feb 19th, 2016, 02:13 PM
#47
Hi, pthomas156. Thanks again for your report. I had missed the very end of the Rome section--annoying about the scam.
As it turns out, since I started reading this I made plans to revisit Italy this summer. Unfortunately I won't be able to revisit Sicily. Next time!
As it turns out, since I started reading this I made plans to revisit Italy this summer. Unfortunately I won't be able to revisit Sicily. Next time!
Feb 20th, 2016, 03:01 AM
#48
I think if I only had 10 days, including getting there and leaving, and I was flying into Catania, I would stick to the east side of the island. Maybe go south from Catania, through Syracuse and the Baroque towns, to Agrigento, back up through Villa Casale to Taormina/Etna. Taormina is only about an hour from the Catania airport.>>
amazing, pthomas - that's EXACTLY what we've decided to do - not, I might say, without a good deal of help from my fellow fodorites:
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...elp-needed.cfm
amazing, pthomas - that's EXACTLY what we've decided to do - not, I might say, without a good deal of help from my fellow fodorites:
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...elp-needed.cfm
Feb 22nd, 2016, 05:48 AM
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Annhig, I just read your thread and that has to be one of the most entertaining advice threads I've ever read! LOL.
As I went in late October/early November I didn't have to deal with crowds anywhere, but I did miss some stuff too. We didn't do anything boat-y, and Ortygia appeared to offer a lot of boat trips that sounded fun and involved swimming. It sounds like you and hubby like that, especially if it's hot. The kiosks were all closed when we were there.
The hotel you found in Syracuse actually looks super cool! However, I have to agree with the others that Ortygia is the place to stay. It's really a beautiful wandering town, especially at night because of how it's lit. And having paraded a mile or so thru Syracuse on foot to the ruins only to find them closed because of predicted rain (!), I'll say that walk wasn't particularly interesting.
And do check out whether there is an evening performance in the Greek Theater in Taormina while you are there. That could be the ultimate romantic Sicily experience!
As I went in late October/early November I didn't have to deal with crowds anywhere, but I did miss some stuff too. We didn't do anything boat-y, and Ortygia appeared to offer a lot of boat trips that sounded fun and involved swimming. It sounds like you and hubby like that, especially if it's hot. The kiosks were all closed when we were there.
The hotel you found in Syracuse actually looks super cool! However, I have to agree with the others that Ortygia is the place to stay. It's really a beautiful wandering town, especially at night because of how it's lit. And having paraded a mile or so thru Syracuse on foot to the ruins only to find them closed because of predicted rain (!), I'll say that walk wasn't particularly interesting.
And do check out whether there is an evening performance in the Greek Theater in Taormina while you are there. That could be the ultimate romantic Sicily experience!
Feb 22nd, 2016, 06:16 AM
#50
pthomas - well the thread was not without controversy but I'm glad you found it entertaining, though it might have been shorter had you found it sooner!
thanks for all the tips about Ortygia - I'd spotted that there are some boat trips which as you say may be good if it's very hot. We have in fact decided against that amazing looking hotel in Syracuse - we felt that walking through Syracuse every day to get to Ortygia where we would most probably want to be most of the time was a bit of a waste of energy, and some of the reviews were a bit luke warm to say the least. So we're staying at the Livingstone in Ortygia itself - a bit of a splurge but after some of the places we stayed at in Cuba we wanted a bit of luxury to start the trip.
I have already looked at the schedule for the theatre in Taormina but unfortunately the season ends in June/July. I'll have another look later in the year in case the situation has changed but I'm not expecting it to as I've read elsewhere that the plays are only on at the start of the summer.
thanks for all the tips about Ortygia - I'd spotted that there are some boat trips which as you say may be good if it's very hot. We have in fact decided against that amazing looking hotel in Syracuse - we felt that walking through Syracuse every day to get to Ortygia where we would most probably want to be most of the time was a bit of a waste of energy, and some of the reviews were a bit luke warm to say the least. So we're staying at the Livingstone in Ortygia itself - a bit of a splurge but after some of the places we stayed at in Cuba we wanted a bit of luxury to start the trip.
I have already looked at the schedule for the theatre in Taormina but unfortunately the season ends in June/July. I'll have another look later in the year in case the situation has changed but I'm not expecting it to as I've read elsewhere that the plays are only on at the start of the summer.
Mar 12th, 2016, 04:57 AM
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Annhig,
Yes, do check back about fall performances at the Greek theater, and not just plays. We were there is early November and missed a concert by a few days, so maybe the schedule starts up again in fall when it cools down.
Yes, do check back about fall performances at the Greek theater, and not just plays. We were there is early November and missed a concert by a few days, so maybe the schedule starts up again in fall when it cools down.
May 7th, 2016, 12:43 PM
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I just found your report, as I am planning a trip to Sicily. Thanks for all the wonderful, detailed information. I am thinking we will not rent a car, but will have a go at it by public transportation, although this is subject to change. Again, thanks for taking the time to post this TR, as well as your TR that covered Japan.
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