Thursday 4th May
The car park of the Villa Romana was a brilliant place to spend the night. Just five of us on an enormous parking area and in the middle of the Sicilian countryside. We were even serenaded during the night by a nightingale.
After a slow start we travelled to the town of Enna. It is geographically in the centre of Sicily and spectacularly sits on a small plateau soaring vertically 500 metres (1600 feet) above the surrounding countryside. It’s total altitude is just under 1000 metres (3200 feet) which makes it the highest regional capital in Italy.
Poor old Basil had to haul us and his own great bulk, up to the summit, where we parked in a car park next to one of the largest and elaborate cemetery’s we’ve ever seen.
The views from the town were spectacular, especially of the adjacent settlement of Calascibetta, which is almost as strikingly situated as Enna. On a clear day Mount Etna should be visible but it was concealed by fluffy white clouds.
The town itself was a little spoilt by the heavy traffic on narrow streets with very little room for pedestrians. Its main highlights were another Baroque cathedral and a Norman Castle. The Holy Roman Emperor Fredrick II had a summer residence in Enna which is now called Frederick’s tower and which we didn’t manage to locate.
A pleasant piazza, adjacent to the Duomo and away from the traffic, was our site for lunch. I had something akin to an aubergine pasty with a brioche type covering and Sarah a slice of pizza. The highlight was our first Cannolo of the trip. Film fans will remember the most famous line from the Godfather – “Leave the Gun. Take the Cannoli”.
Cannoli can, apparently, be traced back to the Arab occupation of Sicily in the 9th or 10th century. For those who have not tasted these treats, they are essentially a tube of deep fried thin pastry dough filled with sweetened ricotta. Unbelievable delicious for something apparently so simple.
In the afternoon we headed for the North coast of Sicily, to complete our coast to coast trip to experience some of inland Sicily. The journey took longer than it should have, in this case not for any fault of SatNav but by, the now familiar, Italian penchant for closing roads with little or no warning.
We arrived at the very pleasant Camping Costa Ponente (38.0281,13.9835 €21 ACSI) intended as a base to visit Cefalu.
Friday 5th May
The weather has really improved over the last few days and we woke to clear blue skies. Dogs are not allowed on the beach next to the campsite, but the owner suggested, like everywhere else in Italy it seems, it’s OK at this time of year. Sarah took Skye but returned saying the beach was very small. We have, instead, found a large, unoccupied, area on the site where Skye can play frisbee. Although in the full sun her stamina is not what it is in cooler climes of England.
The campsite owner also told us that dogs are often not allowed on the bus to Cefalu. It is at the driver’s discretion. She showed a possible route by foot. I went to explore the first section of the path but found it was too dangerous, especially with Skye, because it involved walking on a busy main road with no footpath. With Sicilian drivers even worse than the rest of Italy it seemed an unnecessary risk.
We are now in two minds as to whether I go on the bus on my own or we take Basil to Cefalu. Sarah is not showing great enthusiasm after several days of exploring Sicilian towns, so it will probably be the former.
I don’t know how many posts I have written in this blog in total, but in one way this post is totally unique. As I sat tapping away on my laptop, in the shade of a lovely Olive tree, a kindly Wood Pigeon dumped his breakfast and lunch all over me! I hope it brings good luck.
* For younger or non-british readers, Stop the Pigeon was a catch phrase from a popular cartoon from my youth called Dastardly and Muttley in their Flying Machines. Highbrow stuff!
