Messina

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Started the day with a beautiful sunrise from the balcony at Hotel Palladio. Later there were cruise ships outside our hotel. Two ships were just arriving and then tendering passengers into Naxos. We had breakfast at the hotel and then checked out. The next planned stop was Messina. Pedro filled the Taigo with gas from the station across from our hotel and then we were off on the tollway to Messina. The toll was 2.4 euros. We arrived in Messina and found parking near Tempio di Cristo Re. We took a short walk to Tempio di Cristo Re which is a war memorial that is filled with soldiers from WW2. There were views of the harbor below. We walked down to the town center and had lunch at Bar San Giacomo. Lasagna and fettuccine with mushrooms and bacon. After lunch we wandered a bit and found some fountains and churches. The way back to the car was all uphill. On the way down we followed the road, but on the way up we used Google Maps and it took us on a more direct route up stairs through a narrow walkway with houses on both sides. Once back at the car we headed out of town towards Palermo. The tollway followed along the coast. Between the tollway and the sea there were many small towns below the level of the highway. The highway passed through numerous tunnels and over bridges. Most of the way it rained. It was a good day to be driving. We drove to our hotel just east of Palermo. We had picked it out because it had an indoor heated pool. We checked into the hotel and then headed to the pool. It was very nice, but it had no towels. Pedro went to the desk to get some towels. He was told that the indoor pool was not included in the price of the room and there was an extra fee. I guess we should not have assumed that when “heated pool” is listed as available, it doesn’t mean it is included. I was already in the pool when Pedro came with the towels. Interestingly we were not even told about any of the amenities that were available “for a cost” at check in. We had dinner at the hotel restaurant. It was a very tasty meal again. We haven’t had a meal we didn’t like yet.

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Comments

[Susan Michael]

Great Pics
I just love your blogs. It’s like I’m traveling along with you. Great job describing your events.