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Published: July 25th 2018
We woke up Monday morning to quite the thunderstorm with accompanying downpour. About 10AM we saw on our computer that the part that we had been waiting since last Tuesday had been delivered. Just had to wait for it to let up some for us to get off the boat and pick it up. Bob got the part and I continued on to the weekly Monday market and hit up 2 of the stores in town for supplies as we were counting on the part to work so we could leave the next day. Bob had to make a few modifications to make it all work, but fortunately when we turned the engine on and checked the battery level, everything worked as it was suppose to – success! This now meant we were definitely going to be able to leave the next day as the weather looked good for it as well. With that news, I used the marina washer and drier one last time and we treated ourselves to dinner out at what has become our favorite Italian restaurant here in Vibo Marina, Pedro’s. We have become regular enough here that the wait staff recognize us and seem to enjoy
having us back as they seem to like to practice their English with us. One of them is actually a University student studying foreign languages so she spoke in Portuguese with Bob as well. It made for a fun last night in Vibo Marina.
We left the dock at Vibo Marina at 6:30AM on Tuesday morning with all systems functioning well. It was a beautiful clear day for our departure. There wasn’t much at all in the way of wind, but we decided to push on for a 12 hour crossing to Lipari, one of the Aeolian Islands. We still put up our main sail and our staysail and got some advantage from the wind. When we first started out we seemed to have a current against us and even with the engine at 2100 rpm’s we were only going about 4.8 knots SOG (speed over ground). Fortunately after a couple of hours that changed and we picked up speed and actually made the trip in less than 11 hours. Our plan was to anchor instead of going into a marina here as we had been told by an Italian that knows these islands of a good place to
The Jellyfish Are Quite Large Here
tried to give an idea by including the side of the boatanchor. Well, we headed to that spot and unfortunately another boat was anchored there. We figured that wasn’t a problem we would just anchor nearby as there were a few boats anchored. Well, when we drove around looking for a place to put the anchor down we found that the depths were more than we would like as they ranged from 70-90 feet and higher! We also noticed that the boats that were at anchored were rocking pretty badly from side to side which doesn’t make for a pleasant time. We were about ready to give up and move on to the next island, Vulcano as we had heard there were two very good anchorages there from friends of ours, but a couple of guys came out by dinghy and stated they had a mooring we could hook up to. We asked the price and when they told us it was 40 euros a night they sold us on it. We found that the mooring here is quite different from what we were used to in the Caribbean. There you hooked up to a mooring ball at the bow and you still swung on the mooring ball. Here you hook
up to a mooring ball both at the bow and stern with the boat facing out to sea making it much more comfortable with any swells. Well worth the 40 euros. We originally thought we’d head into town in the evening, but we decided that opening a bottle of wine and having a nice dinner in the cockpit sounded more inviting. It was a great way to celebrate the anniversary of when we were engaged 45 years ago. We would have tomorrow to explore.
After a great night’s sleep we loaded up in the dinghy and went ashore. It seemed like it would be a very hot day so headed in early. We had heard the archeology museum was excellent here, but decided to wander through the town first and then head inside during the hottest part of the day. High on a hill overlooking the sea sits a castle with additional fortifications added in 1535 as a result of fighting with the famous pirate, Barbarossa (red beard). Within the walls of the fort are the Church of St. Bartholomew and the museum. The original church was built on the location of a previous Greek temple. It then was
destroyed by Arabs in 838 when they invaded, but it then was re-constructed under Roger I. He invited Benedictine Monks to come to the island to build a monastery and in 1083 built the Church. Expansion of the church occurred between 1450-1515. The pirate Barbarossa (Red Beard) was attacked by Charles I and returned to Africa. After this event, it was decided that additional fortification was needed here in Lipari and the Cathedral was rebuilt within the walls of the fortification.
We viewed the Church in the morning, saw some of the archeological remains and checked out the numerous wonderful viewpoints overlooking the town and the sea. We figured it would take us a few hours to wander through the museum so went down into town for lunch and then climbed back up in the afternoon for the educational part of the day.
The archeology museum covered lots of information, some that we had already picked up from the museum in Reggio, but there were plenty of new details as well. It is interesting to learn the long history of people that have inhabited this island. There have been people here since 4000 BC. During the Neolithic
Everywhere You Go They Are Feeding The Cats
that roam the town - haven't seen any mice anywhere! period the trade in obsidian is what drew people here, then in the late Bronze Age pottery started to be produced here. The Greeks arrived in 580 BC and the Romans took over in 250 BC. In the 3
rd C. AD the first Bishops arrived but in the 9
th C. the Saracen pirates came and killed off much of the population. Between 1060-1090 the Normans arrived and conquered the Arabs. After that there were numerous peoples here – the Hohenstaufen king, the Angevins, and then the Aragonese. Carlos I was the Aragonese King but also received the title of King of Spain while here. In 1544 the pirate Barbarossa attacked but by 1556 the Spanish ruled the area. It needless to say was confusing to try to sort out with the information in the museum and we are still not sure we have it all right. The one thing we know and is shown by the archeological dig nearby is that people have been living here for a very long time!
One of the areas of the museum was dedicated to the various finds they have made from the numerous shipwrecks in the Aeolian Islands. The wrecks are quite
deep, and unfortunately some of the finds were with the costs of the lives of a couple of the professionals that had dove on the shipwrecks. These finds from these helped fill in more information about the trading that had been occurring and the impact of various cultures on this locality. As Bob said when going through many of the other parts of the museum “there sure are a lot of pottery shards” which was true, but again there is much to learn from these. It does seem amazing at times to think of all that can be gleaned from the type of construction, the decorations on them, the type of handles and shapes of the pot and even the composition of the material used help provide useful information. Details about the trade that had been occurring, the location of the construction of the piece, the age of the piece and even more about the economic viability of the times can be learned.
After our visit to the historic area of the town, we spent the rest of the time wandering around as well as finding a grocery store for a few basic supplies that we needed. All in
all a very nice stop in Lipari.
The next morning we left Lipari heading for the island of Sicily. We had thought that we might stay out in the Aeolian Islands a few more days, but looking at the calendar and what else we would like to see before we become “illegal” due to the length of our visa we thought we would push on. Our route took us through the passage between the island of Lipari and Vulcano which gave us a chance to get a closer look at the “smoking” crater of Vulcano. There are two well used anchorages at this end of the island that we had thought of going to, but when we motored past we did notice that there was quite the lingering “sulfur” smell from the volcano. We figured we really wouldn’t miss smelling that all night long. The winds were non-existent today so we knew it was going to be motoring all day, but at least it was clear and sunny giving us a chance to view the other islands as well as the coastline of Sicily.
Sicily is much more mountainous than we had expected – we had read that
there were mountains, but guess we didn’t realize how extensively they are over the island. Bob had gone down for a nap and Janice was on duty when all of a sudden dolphins were spotted. The yell from Janice definitely woke Bob up quickly and we could now both see them but they were quite a distance from us. No sooner than we said that and they made a turn and came directly toward us and were very quickly next to Tsamaya. In a flash we couldn’t see them and then Bob went to the bow and found that is where they were frolicking around the bow waves. The water is so clear that we could see them twisting, turning, diving and then coming up for their jumps – Janice got the camera on them and Bob counted about 8 of them enjoying themselves for about 10-15 minutes and then as quickly as they came, then turned and took off again. No matter how many times we see dolphin, we still get excited and always consider it good luck! This is the first time this season to see them so it definitely made our day!
Our goal on Thursday
was to get to Sant ‘Agata di Militello as it was about 6 hours away and we had heard that we could anchor or head to the marina where the charge wasn’t too bad. We didn’t know what we were going to do, but once we got into the harbor we saw the marina was empty and we knew it would be quicker and easier to get into town so went for the marina. It still isn’t completed as they plan to put in another break wall for more protection, but the winds were down and we weren’t concerned about the waves that night. It was really hot when we got there so got our power plugged in and spent the afternoon in front of our fans. The office was opening at 4PM so we could register then. They had already given us the code for their wi-fi so we could check in on the weather and email, but a nap was in order so that filled in most of the time in the heat. Later when we went to register we found out that they also will provide transportation free of charge into town for shopping or they would
take you to a restaurant later for dinner. They also told us they would deliver a free loaf of bread in the morning but when they told us it would be at 8:30AM we told them that we appreciate it but not to worry as we would leave before then. As the marina is a little out of town it seems that they are going above and beyond with offering services to those that visit. They even give a 10% discount to their rate if you stay 1 night and 20% if you say 2 or more nights.
We asked them to transport us to town and told them we would walk back. Guess our communication skills were a little lacking as it turned out a little different, but it actually worked out better that way. Our thought was to have them take us to the center of town where we could walk around, then head to the store ourselves for bread and fruit before we walked back to the marina. What actually happened was that we were driven to the grocery store and the driver came in to wait for us. We kept trying to indicate that we
The Med Is Very Deep Here
as you can see by the depths indicated on the chart would walk back and he didn’t have to wait but that didn’t seem to be happening so we decided it may be best to shop for our heavy items here and have the driver take the bags back to the marina for us. With this in mind we stocked up on liquid beverages, a watermelon and a few other things we needed. The owner of the store helped us with some suggestions as well regarding local wine and the type of tomatoes that would be best to eat with our mozzarella. Her English was quite good so when we checked out we asked if she could explain to the driver about taking the bags back and that we would walk. She said that they would deliver the bags to the marina and we told her that we didn’t want her to bother. The answer we finally found out was that the driver was the owner’s father and that they typically deliver to the marina for people that shop at the store!
With our very heavy bags left at the store for delivery we went on our way and walked around town. There wasn’t anything specific that we were planning
While on Watch - Looking Out for Fishing Boats
and more importantly their markers for nets/lines on seeing, just getting off the boat and walking was great. We walked into a couple of churches, saw some of the older palaces and the various squares filled with park benches lined with “older men” and decided it was now time to find a place for dinner. Fortunately for us we picked the right place –Carletta. It is a family owned business and Carletta came out to check on every table and it was obvious there were many local regulars that she visited with. We both had wonderful meals and the price was right – what a great combination. The walk back to the marina was only about 20 minutes - it felt good to walk after our great meal.
Friday the 13
th we have always considered our lucky day. Well, today was even more so as it was July 13
th and a Friday. 45 years ago today Bob and I officially were engaged to be married. Hard to believe that much time has gone by and to reflect on what we have done and where we have gone over these years. Today we planned a 6 hour trip to the next logical stop along the northern coast
Stromboli - A Still Active Volcano
we passed by during the day so didn't see the "fire" of Sicily, Cefalu. There was no wind but plenty of sun so another hot move, but at least with our movement it was creating a little breeze for us. Here we could go to a marina for 70 euros or we could anchor out. It was dead calm when we arrived so anchored out in beautiful clear water with a great sandy bottom so the anchor dug in well. We had thought we might go to shore this afternoon. We called our next port of call, Palermo today to make a reservation starting the next day, but found they were full so when I asked if we could come in Sunday he said that would be wonderful. This means we will stay put for another day here in Cefalu and as a result did not need to rush into shore today. It was hot and calm so a good day for getting into the water instead.
As evening approached the wind and waves picked up some so we started to do some rocking and rolling and thought we might even pull up anchor and go around to the other side of the point to see if there was more
protection there, but after listing out the positives and negatives and going over the weather forecast again for overnight and tomorrow we decided to stay where we were. We are hoping that will end up being a good decision.
We both noticed a little rocking and rolling, but it was minimal during the night so figured we will stay put again the 2
nd night. We put the dinghy in the water and headed to shore about 8AM to try to get some of our walking around during the cooler parts of the day. We are anchored on the opposite side of the point from the town, but we were near the marina so we were able to fill up the gas tank for the dinghy and for 5 euros had a secure place at the dock to leave the dinghy for the day. A 20 minute walk into town from the marina wasn’t a problem at all; security definitely was on the plus side of where we were anchored.
You can tell that Cefalu is a tourist town with the number of souvenir shops, but it wasn’t overcrowded in the morning. We wandered around for about an hour
Our View from Our Mooring in Lipari
with the fort/castle and church on the hill just getting oriented to the town and then found a nice place to stop for coffee and a coronet for our breakfast. A very civilized way to start the day. We did see a few people having a bowl of gelato for their breakfast, guess when on holiday, why not???
Our wanderings took us the Duomo (Cathedral) which was built between 1131 - 1267 with a combination of Arab and Norman architectural details. It was deceptively spectacular due to the fact that from the outside it was quite plain. Upon entering initially it looks grand in scale due to the openness and height of the ceiling, but as you walk toward the altar the beauty of the 12
th C. Byzantine mosaics attracts your attention. The King of Sicily, Roger I, promised to build a Cathedral here after he survived a storm here in a shipwreck. It was started in 1131 but after his death there was a break in the work on it delaying completion until 1267. It is dedicated to St. Peter and St. Paul. Along the sides they also had numerous mosaics on display in which you could easily see the detail and the minute size of
the tiles. Craftsmen from Constantinople were brought in to work on the mosaics and are said to be some of the best examples still in existence. The capitals and bases of most of the columns in the church were from the 2
nd C. AD as they were reused columns from a previous Roman temple here. Recycling at its best.
The cloister dating from about 1140 next to the Duomo was also open for viewing in which you could see the variety of columns and capitals used. It was interesting to note that at the four corners they had planted a different garden, one with the fig tree (garden of Genesis); another with the pomegranate (Garden of the Song of Songs); the next with the olive tree (garden of the gospel of John); and the last with the date palm (garden of Revelation). They had provided a write up when we entered which also gave descriptions of the figures depicted on the column capitals which helped with clarifying some of the carvings.
While wandering around we stumbled upon the medieval “wash room” from which used water from a flowing stream and funneled it through the rinse and wash area
The Market Is Set Up for Tourists That Fly Here
these are olives & capers in vacuum packed bags and then dumped back into the stream at the lower end. A very ingenious system. It had been rebuilt in 1514 and was used up until quite recent times. It was not only interesting but due to its location it was a very cool location to be on a very hot day. We noticed later in the day that many had found this to be true as the steps into it were covered with people sitting and cooling off.
We decided to have a lunch out and had the best we have had in a long time. It was in a perfect location with our table looking out over the beach and anchored sailboats and both of our meals were wonderful. Both were said to be “typical Sicilian dishes” – at least that is what the menu told us. Bob had what were called swordfish rolls which in fact were thin pieces of fish rolled around a very light and flavorful bread and herb filling. I had a pasta dish served with fresh tuna, fennel, pine nuts and cherry tomatoes – a great flavor blend. We didn’t have time before hand to check out restaurant recommendations, but this one
was a winner.
After lunch we wandered a little more and then decided it was getting way too hot to ramble anymore so headed back to the boat where we knew we would get a breeze as the wind had picked up some since our morning ride out. The boat was still safely anchored, but with the wind having changed direction some we were the only one on this side of the point. We checked the weather forecast again and it seemed that it was going to settle down overnight so didn’t bother moving over to the other side of the point.
The next morning we knew why we were the only ones anchored here as we got quite a bit of swell in the night. We never mind when we rock from bow to stern, but when you start to rock side to side, that becomes very unpleasant. Not unsafe, just not enjoyable. Thankfully neither of us is prone to seasickness but we didn’t get as much sleep as we would have liked. Oh well, at 6:30 AM we pulled up anchor and headed to Palermo where we will stay for quite a few days as it
sounds like there is plenty to see there.
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