Blogs from Siracusa, Sicily, Italy, Europe

It was finally time to leave Malta and head for Sicily – what we figured would be a 12 hour passage. As a result we wanted to get an early start so we could arrive in Sicily during daylight – always a good idea when going into a port that you have never been to before. A bonus of early starts is the beautiful sunrises that you are treated to. We got our anchor up at 5:50AM and were on our way with clear skies and a flat sea. Looked more like a motoring day for a while, but the forecast promised some more wind later in the day. Unfortunately we had to go through a period of time with 3’ foot swells which are not the best as with little wind they do not help ... read more

Yesterday, after a wonderful week in Greece, we arrived in Italy, where we will spend much of the next two weeks. The first stop was a very small city on the “ball of the boot”, called Cortone, Italy. This was a very small city, and for my money, was really not very interesting. We spent about 1 hour in the old town and went back to the boat for a little pool time. It seems there are some interesting ruins outside of town that you could only see on one of the excursions. For sure, we have seen enough interesting ruins. Today we went lower in Italy, arriving at Siracusa, Sicily. I was really looking forward to arriving here because it is ironic that two days before Father’s Day, I arrive in a place my father ... read more

We've had a hectic couple of days so we decide to relax at the nice beach that we drove to on the other side of the bay from Ortigia earlier in the week. We're tired so we sleep in. As we're about to walk out the door we happen to read a notice that was sent to us when we booked the apartment advising us that the car park's closed between 10am and 8pm on Sundays. It's Sunday today and it's now 10.30am. I walk there in the hope that the attendants overdid the limoncello last night and have now forgotten what day it is, but of course they haven't. We Google buses to the village near the beach, but there are none, and Google says it'll take two hours to walk there, so that seems ... read more

We wake up late and hungry after the stress of yesterday's travel. We assume that there’ll be a supermarket nearby, but the Google machine seems to suggest otherwise. It tells us that there are some "Italian grocers" on the island, but we suspect that these probably aren't going to sell Corn Flakes. The nearest supermarket seems to be a couple of kilometres away, and it‘s off the island. I set off. It’s been raining, and it soon starts again, so I take shelter under a balcony. I‘m quickly approached by an African street vendor who wants to sell me an umbrella, and a few minutes later by another, and then another, all trying to sell me rain protection. They seem to be very good at knowing what you need, and having a large supply of it ... read more

Up early and the washing is on the line by 10:30 am. We can now head off on our day’s outing to Syracuse. We have read about this city and it’s incredible history. Those of us from New Zealand whose history goes back either two hundred years and for others eight hundred years here in Syracuse their history goes back about 2500 years or more. So this visit was on our wish list. The trip will take about fifty-five minutes with the first part of the journey on winding narrow bumpy roads. The second half of the journey is on the autostrada that has toll gates in place but not operational and the road surface is far from ideal. In one part we are diverted onto the left lanes so the road can be repaired. Hopefully ... read more