Annhig, si , I think the dodgy end of Palermo may be not dissimilar to parts of Naples. But I don't have as much experience of Naples so cant be sure!!

An nhig

You really need to visit Sicily. I know you will love it. You have the opportunity to visit so much more often than I do. You should go!

Thoroughly enjoyed reading your trip report. We too have been to Siciliy this year, staying in Lipari for a week and Siracusa for a week. So many of the experiences you wrote about were similar to ours. We stayed at Diana Brown's in a self contained apartment with its own roof terrace. It was spotless and they changed the towels every second day. We enjoyed eating out and in, and also the aperitifs each evening.
We had similar experiences with the buses and trains in Sicily. We caught the train to Noto and the bus back. We caught a train from Naples to Milazzo and the hydrofoil out to Lipari. Milazzo and Noto stations are both in the middle of nowhere. When we came back from Lipari we caught a bus from Milazzo to Messina before the train to Siracusa. It was much more convenient.
We had our 2 best meals of the holiday in Sicily. In the fresh food market in Ortygia there is a deli that does tasting plates of local produce. For 31.50 euros for both of us,we had a fantastic array of meats. cheeses, caponata and other slads as well as bread, wine and mineral water. At the beach in Acquacalda, on Lipari, we had an antipasti plate of caponata, parmigiana, zucchini slice and a beautiful octopus salad. The place was called Cafe Aurora and the waiter told us that Aurora was his grandmothers name and they were all her recipes.
When we left Sicily to fly to Malta from Catania we used the bus from Siracusa. Catania airport was chaos with very unfriendly staff.
I would reccommend a holiday in Sicily to anyone.

I've really enjoyed reading this Gertie. Your writing conjures up vivid impressions, yet is succinct and to the point.

Sicily is still high on my to-go list, more so after reading this. My daughter was in Ragusa earlier this year and tells me it is wonderful and beautiful - but that might have something to do with the fact she accepted a proposal of marriage there!

I do admire the way you get around on public transport. I don't think I'd be brave enough to drive there, so your information is most useful.

Hi gertie - just found your lovely TR again while researching for our trip to Sicily which is actually going to happen next September - plane tickets booked and everything.

What i really need is help with my itinerary, if you wouldn't mind having a look:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...elp-needed.cfm