Globus tour, June 20 - Gardini Naxos and the beach

From June 19th, I have no more notes, so what follows is based on memory - - prompted by photographs.  Rather than staying in Taormina, we were housed in a nearby town, Giardini Naxos.  The hotel is spacious, with large pool encircled partly by tables & chairs, and partly by chaises longues.  

large inviting pool, empty in early morning.

Today most of the Globus tourists signed up for a trip to Mount Etna. But Joe and I love the beach, and we wanted to be alone for a while. Our hotel was not on the beach, but had a shuttle to carry us there. And so off we went, winding through the town ever downward toward the sea.  The shuttle let us off right at the entrance to Lido di Naxos. 

What does it all cost?  Apparently for us, nothing as guests of the hotel.

If I am correct, certain parts of the beach are controlled or maybe owned by particular hotels, and each is distinguished from the others by the color of its umbrellas and chaises.  Ours seemed to be blue and red and white. 

Well-regimented beach.  Compare it with Eastern US free-for-all crowds.

I was impressed by how orderly the beaches are - - All the amenities are aligned and in good order.  None of this American-style picking one's way between beach blankets and sprawling bodies, umbrellas, picnic baskets, badminton or frisbee or football games, folding chairs (thankfully, boom-boxes are a thing of the past).  Each umbrella stem has a little table at just the right height for small items, and is accompanied by two chaises. 

This is the largest beach near Taormina.

Quite a few vendors approached us.  They were clearly not Italians, but immigrants from everywhere - - Africa, South or Central America, Asia.  They sold beach towels, sunglasses, sunblock, sunhats.  There were several young woman of SouthEast Asian appearance who were selling massages. 

Do we want to buy a large bright towel as a souvenir?

The man on the left was selling sunglasses.

As the day progressed, we saw many families with small children. I loved the way local women who were clearly not young and who were clearly mothers wore their swimsuits so unselfconsciously.

A lifeguard station.

kids and grown-ups, little fishes, little boats, water taxis, cruise ships, all shared the water of this little bay

Family fun time.

Globus tour, June 19 - on the road to Taormina

Another breakfast in another hotel of would-be American food:  scrambled eggs, toast, bacon/ham, juice, cereal.  Also Italian breakfast pastries and coffee and yogurt.  I tend to like cereal, yogurt and some fruit, if it is available.  And I always love croissant with butter and jam.  European butter seems richer to me - could it be?

Important Italians could see them close up; we were on a catwalk high above.

Flamingos pulling chariot!!

From  Agrigento we drove to the interior, toward a Roman villa called Villa Casale.  It is a UNESCO World Heritage site, although no one knows who built it.  But it probably dates from the 3rd century BC with beautiful mosaic floors from the 2nd century AD.  It is the floor mosaics that are so amazing.    All are beneath a greenhouse-like framework of glass/plexiglass, with people still working at restoring the mosaics.  Some were just amazing - like the great depiction of a hunt of wild animals with lots of people and creatures.  And another has ten or so girls exercising in a gym.  One shows Polyphemus being plyed with wine by Herakles.  There were fishing scenes where I think I recognized a sturgeon,.  There was a funny image of two flamingos pulling a chariot.  Really beautifully detailed mosaics.  It is a remote site near the town Piazza Armerina.  Well worth the visit.

fishermen - with sturgeon or catfish?

Central Sicily is a breadbasket with lots of wheat fields and very little water.  We had a brief rest stop at a "gas station".  Joe caused a ruckus over what he was charged for two gelato scoops in a cone (not in a cup).  This resulted in the cashier telling me that my husband owed an additional 1.6 euro for his gelato.  Which I paid just to make peace.  I guess Joe didn't understand why a cone cost more than a cup.  Another stop was at a goldsmith's place.  There was a nice spread of refreshments, a lovely terrace, and then the soft-sell in the showroom. 

Nice refreshments at the goldsmith's house.

We were headed for the eastern coast and the town of Taormina.  Nicolas said we would spend a little time there.  The drive was incredible, the road winding back and forth up the mountain into a massige garage where we took an elevator up to yet another level and a beautiful view of the sea and the harbor with a 5-masted sailing ship far far below.  And we could see the spaghetti-like winding of the roads.  Amazing engineering challenge.

Amazing engineering.

Taormina's harbor far below the town.

This is why there are no cars!

A central pedestrian road led for about a mile through Taormina, with little walkways going up on the left and down on the right.  The way was defined at either end by medieval-looking tall stone arches, too narrow for cars, which made it more pleasant. 

Medieval entry into Taormina

Lots of things to look at and to buy, and lots of people looking at them.  [Nicolas surmised that the town was crowded because a large cruise ship was in the harbor.]  I liked the place.  Joe did not.  He wanted to just head on back, despite the fact that Tennessee Williams liked Taormina well enough to return - - that is one of the many literary references that Joe has made.  It's too bad that he doesn't like being with so many other people nearly all the time, and doesn't like "being herded around like cattle," as he put it. 

One VERY good thing about this town:  there was a "British pharmacy" with and English-speaking clerk where we could purchase the ointments needed for a mysterious skin rash on the ankle.  Also, it was apparently badly damaged during the WW II Allies' invasion.  Here's a little plaque that told me so.

"In memory of the civilian victims of the aerial bombardment of the city on the 9th of July, 1943"

Dinner was at a lovely place on the slopes of the volcano, Mount Etna; the old farmhouse and winery was surrounded by a lemon orchard.  It was formerly a vineyard until disease in the late 1940s killed the vines.  We had a wonderful aperitif of red wine with orange and lemon juice, soda, and a "drop" of limoncello. 

Aperitifs on the veranda

The hostess was a youngish woman with a charming smile and great warmth.  She met us on the veranda facing the volcano, which she says she has known all her life so does not fear it). 

What, we worry?  With Mt. Etna smoking behind us?  Not on your life!

Eventually we were herded into a big upstairs room where the grapes used to be crushed.  Each table sat ten, and each had three carafes of red wine and three water bottles.  We each had a glass for water and a handle-less ceramic mug for wine - the point being not to see how much we have drunk - or not drunk.  First course was olives, peppery cheese, salami, and wonderful caponata.   Next course had potatoes, kind of like fries, a delicious little meat pattie cooked between lemon leaves which I loved but others left alone, and then a small "cigarette" of veal.  final course of oranges and limoncello and expresso.  It was an enchanting evening.

My main course.

We've all drunk and dined well - the best meal!

Back at the hotel, many stayed by the pool listening to music and dancing and singing.  Not me - I slept like the dead until well past dawn the next day.

Globus tour, June 18 - on to Agrigento

At 5:45 am the sun was rising outside our window and the overnight ferry from Naples was entering the harbor.

The ferry from Naples has entered Palermo's harbor.

Salt piles & tiles, evaporation ponds, windmills.

We had a long drive to the West, to Marsala or thereabouts, to see a salt works.  Windmills pump seawater into evaporation ponds of varying depths until finally all that  is left is pushed into a long pile and covered with tiles so it looks like an odd roof that sits on the ground.  I bought a small 3-euro jar of seasalt.  It's finely ground and supposed to have more minerals than table salt. 

Back on the bus after a very refreshing gelato (limone) for a long long ride to a little town called San Leone and a restaurant called La Dune, where I had the greatest seafood salad, with bread, wine, mixed salad [i.e., greens], and fruit, all for 14 euro.  I ordered it because I had no idea what would be in the salad, and I am so glad it did:  calamari, tiny baby octopi, chunks of white-flest fish and crabmeat.  Delicious, cold, very good. 

Joe and Julia and Paul finishing lunch in San Leone.

And then I walked across the burning hot sand to wake with some others in the sea, and the Miller girls collected sea shells.

Bev and Trish had bargained with an African man over necklaces, and he followed them as they rushed back to the bus.  From the bus it was a very funny scene.  Nicolas got off the bus and intercepted the fellow in a friendly way and insisted that we had to leave and that the ladies were not interested in his necklaces.

From there it was a short drive to Agrigento and our hotel, where I promptluy donned my swimsuit and got into the pool.  However, noise from nearby construction drove me back to the room for a nap.  I'm beginning to feel like a true Mediterranean person with midday naps.

First was temple of Juno - late afternoon but quite hot.

Nearby are Greek ruins; the area is called "Valle dei Tempei" - they are 24 centuries old.  Our tour guide was Claudio but I called him Stevie Wonder for the way he turned his head left and right as he talked to us about Greeks in Sicily from about 7th to 4th centuries BC.  On the east is the very large temple of Juno.  in the middle the temple of  Concord.  On the right is the ruined temple of Herakles. 

Temple of Herakles and other ruins.

Temple of  Concord with fig tree and visitors

Massively old olive tree at Valle dei Tempei

They are on a high plateau, of golden limestone; only the 'priestly' class could come into the temples, maybe even in the area (but what about their slaves?  perhaps they didn't count as 'people'?).  On the sea side of the plateau was a long series of natural walls; they had been carved out into burial niches.  The entire site is about a mile long and is a national archeological site.  I found the place rather interesting for its age, for the tiny bit of history that I learned, and for the fact that the temples all looked like the Parthenon in Athens.  I'd forgotten my water bottle and after two hours even in late afternoon, I was very thirsty and tired.  I have to share with you this photograph of a truly ancient olive tree.  

Joe didn't go with me to the temples.  Instead he says he spent the afternoon with the pool all to himself.  The noisy construction had stopped, and all the others in our group went on the tour. 

The hotel's dining room is large and attractive, with saffron colored walls and round tables that encourage congeniality.  I had grouper with a tomato-caper-olive sauce - very good filet.  First course was risotto with vegetables and penne with tomato fish sauce, then the grouper, a salad and a not-so-good white chocolate mousse, and decent coffee.  I could hardly keep my eyes open.

Globus tour, June 17 - Sunday in Sicily

Just as the ferry entered Palermo harbor at sunrise, we were up to see the dawn.  We left our cabin, exited the ferry, and waited for the bus to drive off.  From the bus we went to our hotel but for breakfast only, not for checking in.  Then off to Mondello, a beach town near Mont Pellegrino, and then back to visit the 12th century Norman cathedral - well, we just looked at it from the large square in front. 

Archbishop's Palace (left of photo)
Norman cathedral (right of photo)

The Norman cathedral

We visited instead the Cappella Paletina, built by another Norman, King Robert II.  The chapel incorporated Arabic and Islamic designs on the floor and lower walls, and Byzantine Old and New Testament scenes on the upper walls.  this is all in brilliantly colored mosaic, with gold mosaic background.

Cappella Palatina (the Palatine Chapel)

We also saw -- and this by accident - - a special exhibit on Sicily's history as shown through art and artifacts.  It commemorated the 60th anniversary of the first meeting of Sicily's parliament in June 1947.  It seems that this antedated the Italian parliament, resulting in Sicily having some special rules - like being able to control its own industry and education.

North toward Palermo and the sea

The town of Monreale is on a mountain top not far South from Palermo. It is mostly famous for its 12th century cathedral and cloister, also built by Normans, this time William I and II. 

Like the Capella Palestrina, the interior is covered with mosaics, Islamic geometric and arabesque designs on lower walls and the entire Old and New testament stories on the upper, from Genesis through the life and death of Jesus.  It is rather spectacular, what I could see of it.  The church is not well illuminated and Mass was being said while we were there.  So I could not manage a decent photograph.  However, it has an enormous 1500-pipe organ whose triumphant sounds at the conclusion of the Mass made every molecule in my body tingle.

There is a sweet little square next to the cathedral, with fountain, benches, shrubs, and palm trees. 

Lovely square in Monreale

Up the street is a great pastry shop for canolli.  And around the cathedral from the fountain is the Benedictine cloister.  Elisabeta, the guide, told me about it, and I am so glad I visited it.  The interior of the cloister is a large open grassy square surrounded by a loggia whose slim double columns and capitals are each carved differently, with stripes or vines, animals or birds, faces or odd and imaginary creatures.

Beautiful cloister, with carved double columns

 I enjoyed it immensely, such that Joe had to come in and haul me out because the group was heading toward the parking area.

Liborio is such a good driver.  As we were about to leave the parking lot, the exit was blocked by a minor car crash.  He maneuvered the great bus around 180 degrees and we left the parking lot through its entrance.

Harbor-side park in Palermo

Palermo remains mostly a blur.  What I learned is that next to our hotel is a botanic garden of sorts, with large areas of shade trees.  In front of our hotel is a harbor-side park that runs for several city blocks.  In it we saw no "Inglese" or other tourists, but lots of local people enjoyed a quiet Sunday afternoon, fishing, kicking a soccer ball, bicycling, flying kites, napping beneath trees.

I swam a bit in the hotel's pool.  The others there were three or four  men, fully clothed, napping on chaises beneath shady trees.  And thanks to the hotel's internet, I could confirm that we could stay at our favorite hotel in Paris on our return.  I hate not knowing that I have a place to lay my head.

Globus tour, June 16 - South and West to Pompeii

As usual, I was up early and talked through the empty town. I saw a cat and an old woman well dressed, going somewhere down a lane. I like this town - much that is up and much that is down, elevation-wide. Saw four nuns descending a long long stair that connected one street with another. The only other place I know that is remotely like this is Edinburgh, where long stairs connect the High Street with places lower down.

A stone staircase in Assissi.

A long drive to Naples was broken by a lunch stop at the AutoGrill. That chain was on all the autostrada that we drove. It has "self service" section and a bar that serves drinks, pizza, sandwiches, all on order. The self service is more like a US cafeteria line, and much faster and easier than the other. I now know that the pasta is usually good, regardless of the kind of sauce: seafood with little octopi and calamari or bolognese sause or red sauce with tuna ("tonne", I think).

This was the day our Globus driver left the autostrada because of construction and we rode on a beautiful old road with many hairpin turns, across the mountains.  We bypassed Naples in heavy traffic to Pompeii and met Alfonso, our guide for the next hour and a half.

Pompeii, grey and grim.

Pompeii is a very gray place, barely restored after 2 millenia. The most beautiful frescoes, statues,and mosaics had all been removed in the 18th and 19th centuries to the palace of the king in Naples - - where apparently they are still. However, a few remnants remain, and I have a few photos.

tiny dining room fresco

a sweet mosaic

Two things struck me here.  There was a large number of sleeping dogs. And a quite large open storage area full of large ceramic pieces: wine jugs, and bowls, and pieces of sculpture.

dozing dog protects his water bottle

2000-year-old storage

Beyond the exit were many souvenir sellers. I looked and looked but could not find a reproduction of the little dancing faun I'd seen in a garden pool. All I bought was one granita, a sort of semi-frozen fruit juice (blackberrty). It was very good, very cold, very refreshing.

Why isn't the dancing faun reproduced for sale?

In late afternoon we boarded a huge ferry, along with many many cars and trucks and our Globus bus.

Not a building - a ferry boat.

Once again Nicolas warned us with lowered expectations, Contrary to his description our cabin was an outside one with a small porthole. It was small, clean, modern, tidy, on the 8th deck - - counting up and not down. Down one deck to the self service dining room - some caprese, some eggplant parmesan, and some white wine.

We left the port of Naples in the glow of twilight, heading for Palermo.

The afterglow of sunset over Naples

Globus tour, June 15 - On to Assisi.

So:  Our shirts did dry out, our luggage was put out at 7 am, breakfast was gobbled quickly.  We were on the Globus bus by 7:45.  Of course the "Raouls" were late because the elevator was stuck.  Why them?  A long drive along the Adriatic coast side of Italy to just outside Ravenna where we had a very brief break.  The locale was another basilica, Sant' Apollinare in Classe.  Inside were beautiful arabic-patterned mosaics on the lower walls and religious scenes and figures above.   Behind the altar in the apse, the mosaic depicts a green meadow with rows of sheep, birds, flowers, ducks, trees, and Christ in the center beneath a large golden cross in a deep blue circle. 

Childlike lovely composition

The simple linear composition reminds me of a Grandma Moses painting.  I hoped that my photos would turn out well.  I liked this place very much, so I bought a tee-shirt showing a little bird.  It was intended for someone else, but it is small so I may have to keep it.

Over the mountains we went, into Umbria to find Assissi, a tiny hilltop jewel of a town.  

Assissi on its hilltop

creating a venue for a papal Mass

This was the home of St. Francis and has a basilica in his honor - - actually a Lower and an Upper Basilica, with very lively frescoes in both places.  Those in the Upper tell the story of the saint's life, including an endearing painting of the smiling saint preaching to birds - all different kinds of birds.  A papal visit is expected in a few days, so the town is cleaned up, the streets newly paved, red and blue flags wave from many buildings, and some fly the white and yellow flag of the Vatican. The piazza at the basilica was full of TV trucks, an altar being completed, and rows and rows of chairs for the chosen few who will attend the papal Mass.

Baroque interior

Classic Greek exterior

I walked round and round (and up and down - this being a hilly place) and found the Piazza Communale, on which is the Chiesa di Santa Maria sopra Minerva.  What was originally (and still looks like) a Greek temple was totally Baroque inside - exuberantly so.  A huge surprise when I opened the doors and entered the church.

Public transportation here

Few cars, only little buses and taxis and motorscooters on the narrow, sometimes steep lanes.  Lots of flowers in window boxes, and stores and shops interspersed with private residences.  I found a cafe with internet and read KS email that our software had been reinstalled, that part of our settlement system worked but another part did not.  Also read family emails regarding the end of TV's "Sopranos" and the small part that Henry O'Neill had at the finale.  Hmm.

modern pastries

Hotel Giotto [the St. Francis frescoes are attributed to Giotto] is our home for tonight.  A beautiful view to the South or Southwest over a valley, but at night it was just lights. 

from the hotel at night

This is a lovely medieval town that copes well with the modern world.  The buildings are mainly limestone, which is lovely.  But the stone walls greatly amplify the sound of the little buses and motorscooters labor up the lane beyond our window.  So the night was a little noisy.  Dinner was good:  penne pasta, some flavorful chicken, salad, a kind of apple pie.  We are getting to know the other travellers by name now - not all, but most.  Joe seems reluctant (again, an understatement) to get to know them.