With stunning vistas of the lands below and out to sea, it is said the view can take you all the way to Tunisia--but, we were not able to make it out. We arrived early
before anyone else except for a gaggle of photographers taking pictures of a lovely model posing in various picturesque nooks, crannies and corners of the village. It
seemed that where ever we went, there they were. I would not be surprised if Casey is now smiling out of some fashion magazine somewhere. We had a good time
wandering the streets, buying some pottery gifts, trying some of the famous Erice pastry, having lunch and then proceeding on to Palermo. Somehow we did all of this
without taking a single picture--not sure how that could have happened.
non-autostrata as it takes you through Palermo to the roadway leading to Cefalu. This stretch is a nightmare--although, not as bad as driving in Napoli. If you
have done that you will be able to do this. We came in from the west side of Palermo right about rush hour, so we had a wonderful introduction to the route we
would drive several more times as we traveled back and forth to the apartment we had rented a few kms east of Palermo in Casteldaccia. As in some other areas we
have driven, the rule of the road seems to be he/she who has the strongest nerves of steel and the greatest freedom from fear wins the lane. Ken was quite proud of
his California driving skills when he won the contest on several occasions. I would have been just as happy to lose! Later, when we drove more than once inside the
old section of Palermo, it was not too much different from driving in any Italian city (note the "not too much").
value. Rather than rent through an agency, this time we used VRBO (vacation rental by owner). I know friends who have had great success in doing this, but--we
didn't. Not only was the furniture unsuitable (large holes in the couches and chairs that took you to the floor when you sat), we were devoured by mosquitoes. This
was the end of our trip and so we didn't end on a high note in terms of accommodations--dreams of THE VILLA were vivid.. This isn't overly tragic as we spent our
days seeing and doing, only coming back at night for sleep and to offer ourselves as mosquito bait. We did enjoy walking to the town piazza for morning coffee and
pastries. This is not a tourist town at all and so it was a chance to see life as it is on a daily basis.
that at CEFALU, a charming, medieval village 80 km east of
Palermo. This is one of those places that is so picturesque and its
setting so lovely that it could not and has not escaped becoming a
favorite of tourists; however, Cefalu really can be seen in a few
hours and so, unless you really want a beach or really have an
urge to vicariously enter the middle ages, you might want to
spend your nights somewhere else--like, maybe, Palermo. This
was another one of the places, we wandered, ate and perused the
seaside market where I bought my "can't leave Italy without
it"--parmesan cheese (adding to the slab I was carrying from
Tuscany.) The market also allowed me to get some good market
scenes to add to my pictures of life in Italy--having been to
dozens of such markets over the years, my picture repository was
surprisingly bereft of much of this.
city of Castelduccia, traversed the delightful thoroughfare through Palermo, and searched our way to
Mondello which is 12 km west of Palermo. I say searched as we did what we often do in Italy and took the
first turn-off that gave our destination's name. We know from experience that this is most often not the
wisest thing to do as too frequently the first sign will take you on a very circuitous routing to where ever you
are headed. This was the case this day. We had about given up when, suddenly, we found ourselves right
where we wanted to be--another amazing trick that driving in Italy often plays.
Mondello is a playground--for kids and adults--a beach for fun and play. I am certain that it is greatly
overcrowded in the summer but, since we were traveling in November, not too many people were there with
us. To Casey's absolute delight there was an area with carnival type rides which, with his unerring eye, he
spotted immediately. Thank goodness for Marc who seemed not to mind taking the rides gramma and papa
prefer to avoid. For us, there were picturesque reminders and scenes of what this area had been before its
rebirth as a holiday resort area. Fishermen and their boats still ply the water, bringing home their catch for
local restaurants and fish markets.
know now and if I were just starting to plan, the two biggest changes I would make to our itinerary--in fact,
maybe the only changes, would be 1.) To stay in Palermo, ignoring all the advice about that being difficult and
the perils of driving in Palermo; 2.) Plan on at least 4 days for Palermo alone. I regret that we did not
experience that city as it should be experienced--there is much there to see and absorb and we just didn't get to
do that--but that must mean another trip--too bad!
Our two partial day trips there from Castelduccia were in the rain, which made it difficult. Palermo requires
walking and exploring and that is not much fun when sheltering under an umbrella, plus, as you dash from
rain drop to rain drop, you really don't use your eyes very much.
I think though that we did get to take in what would fascinate us under any circumstances--the Palermo
Markets--La Vucciria and Ballaro. These markets are not like the Italian markets we are used to. They make
even the market of Syracuse seem tame and pedestrian. Palermo markets are loud, uninhibited, spirited and
very ethnic. They reflect the Arabic heritage that created this controversial, multi-national/cultural city. Now,
this part of the population, which continues to have new comers from Tunisia and other Muslim nations, is
mostly poor and needy--unlike the time when Palermo, like Granada and Cordoba in Spain, was one of the
great centers of Islamic learning and culture in the western world. The Normans of the 11th century followed
by Swabians, Spaniards, Bourbons and others left their mark; the upshot being that there is an incredible
montage of architecture and buildings crowding space and each other. All of this synthesizes to become part of
the ambiance and uniqueness that defines Palermo, creating a place that pulses with vibrancy. It is different, it
is intriguing, it is mysterious and I wish we had had time for it.
many photographs of the few places we did
visit. One piece of advice I can share is to
check, double check open/close hours of
whatever place you are going--and then,
contain your surprise when, once there, it is
closed anyway. Time is an inexact science in
Palermo--or so it seems. We were very
disappointed when this happened to us with
Catacombe dei Cappuccini which sounds quite
bizarre. Marc, Casey's tutor really wanted to
see this.
meat stalls were fascinating.
Safeway and Albertson's and
Conad's are so mundane!
Sheep's head anyone?
Palermo both days--just studied the street map
prior to the adventure and it worked pretty well.
The key is parking and what we found is that when
you see what might be a gerrymandered parking
area, there is usually a man or men there who will
find you a space and then for a euro or two, watch
things for you. This worked well for us with no
mishaps.
Why would a photograph of records hanging
from a wall on a side street in Palermo rate
that accolade? Casey looked at them, turned,
and said: "Gramma, those REALLY are CDs!"
Yes, traveling with children has its own special
rewards!
eat--there are many restaurants we want to sample next time. This
time, due to the rain and our not staying in Palermo, we just went to
two; however, I can recommend both. One was Casa del Brodo which
Frommer's rates as inexpensive but this is not so. And the other
is--Antica Focacceria San Francesco--one of the oldest eateries in
Palermo. We enjoyed are meals at both places. The first gave us one
last chance for a picture of Casey with a smitten waiter.
Pizzeria and Restaurante in Castelducchia.
We, actually, ate here twice as we enjoyed
John, the owner's son so much and the food
was good. John had lived in NY several years
which accounted for the name. This was a
local's place and so we were pleased to spend
our last night experiencing life as Sicilians
know it rather than as tourists.
plane that would take us away from Italy.
Already we planned for the next trip and, just
maybe, following through on the thoughts of 6
months to a year in Rome. Casey will go to
school in an international school there and we
will be without the restraints of time. I believe
that is the universal dream for anyone who has
fallen in love with Italia. I hope it is more than
a dream.
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Travelogues/Photos
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Portraits of Casey
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