Sicily Day 11. Tue. 20 Oct 2015 What a day that was. There are many things to see in Sicily of great archaeological importance and the motorists, including coach and HGV drivers are very polite and courteous. The old towns are quite classy and welcoming and prices are low compared to home, unless you go to the tourist places. However, it has many qualities that are less favourable. The roads are pretty appalling, even the major routes have subsidence problems and nil maintenance. Many country roads inland, apart from the decay, are covered in mud every few hundred metres, which are almost impossible to ride through on a bicycle, and it sticks to everything like glue. This is caused by overuse of the plough. Very steep hillsides are ploughed with crawler tractors right down to the ... read more

Cicily. Day 9. Sun 18 Oct Last night we had squid and octopus again for a starter, unfortunately the suckers kept attaching themselves to the roof of my mouth, which slowed the meal down somewhat. Otherwise it was a great meal with free wine,which went down rather better than the crawley bits and more so since Ben kept topping up my glass when I was not looking. This was preceded by a walk around the town of Sciacca and people watching. The harbour had maybe 30 or 40 fishing boats anchored which bring in tonnes of fish each day to the busy fish market. It is a bit of a climb up the steps to the main town centre where there are many churches with singing going on. When we reached the Basillica, The Church of ... read more

Sicily. Day 7. Friday. 16 Oct 2015. Marinella Today we are dashing, if that is what you could call 21 disparate cyclists on holiday, down to the Marsala archaeological museum to see what is reputedly the oldest warship in the world dating back to 240 BC. Getting this bus trundling in a morning, and even later in the day, is a major feat. Have you ever noticed how the slower, less confidant riders always set off last when the group rolls? "After you dear!", Meanwhile the peleton is disappearing out of site and they are then we'll and truly 'dropped'. When we got into town we found the remains of the warship to be impressive, it was originally 35m long and had 17 oars at each side and was built by the Carthaginians. The very few ... read more

Sicily Day 5. Erice We could have stayed a while in San Vito with its turquoise sea, lovely beach with soft sand and the warm breeze caressing our weary bodies. Alas it was not to be. We were whisked away up a nasty steep hill only to descend back into town and then climb up out of the valley on the road we scooted down with such gusto yesterday afternoon. I volunteered to be the back marker today and took charge of Bill, who was having a real struggle, not just with the wind but his energy levels and lack of fitness. Three of us surrounded him to act as a shield from the Scirocco, which was still making its presence felt, and reducing our forward motion to snail's pace. However, the time came when he ... read more

Sicily Day 3. On the road to Alcamo Away at 9am after putting our bike bags into storage for two weeks. Down the narrow streets we went weaving our way to the coast and the harbour before making our way westwards following the coast for much of the day. We went in convoy, but not in one large group of 19, giving the traffic a chance to pass us. There should have been 21 but two of them have still not got their bikes, although they are at the airport now. The plan is for them to get their bikes built up in the morning before cycling in a straight line to the Hotel in Alcamo. We seemed to be in the built up area for quite a while before the roads became less busy, although ... read more