Club Motorhome Bloggers

While we stayed at Camping Luminoso we did a couple of bike rides.  The first was all uphill away from the coast and took us 1/3 of the time to return compared to the outgoing trip.  While we were there we spotted a proper sized poinsettia which looked good, albeit past is best

The next day we went to Marina Di Ragusa along the coast, fairly even on ups and downs in both directions.  We followed a marked cycle touring route which kept us close to the coast

The motorhome had GB registration - only the second we have come across on our travels, but we didn’t meet up with its owner this time.

While up in the centre of Sicily we went to the town of Enna, the highest provincial capital in Sicily, situated over 3000 feet above sea level.  It was a very long climb up to the town (for Sally, not for us!), but the views when we arrived were truly spectacular.

As we travelled around we noticed that while they have Christmas trees here, they are not as we know them – the fir trees here are not the classic Christmas tree shape, and I guess it’s a long way to bring them from Northern Europe where they are more prolific.  So they improvise in a way we don’t see at home.

And fishermen

We visited Selinunte, another Greek city, wonderfully sited by the coast. It must have been a drag having to build a temple to each separate god – perhaps that was one driver towards the idea of believing in only one god. (It’s a shame then that we don’t all hear the same messages from the one god).

Sicily blog No 2

It’s been a while since sending our last blog, what with Christmas and New Year and some frustration with photo software which seems not to want to co-operate with Windows 10. We have also had difficulties with wifi - our usual McDonalds fall-back needs a mobile to enrol, to which a password is sent, except that apparently GB phone numbers are not recognised, and our long-range wifi aerial is not performing either. So from now on it will be cafes and restaurants as and when we visit them on which we will have to rely.

We spent a couple of days in Palermo, which was something of a disappointment. The guide book reads well, but the city is not inspiring, lacking the spacious piazzas and public spaces usually found in major cities here in Italy. Yes, it is full of history and building by its numerous occupiers, often with many styles included in the same building as it has evolved over the centuries. Keen students of architecture will no doubt be able to recognise the various inputs to Palermo cathedral

As can be seen from the next photo, sadly the cathedral doesn’t enjoy a great setting, and the buildings around it can perhaps best described as ‘shabby’, a description which would quite suitable for the whole city.

Trip to Sicily – Blog No 1

Well, here we are in the sunshine in Palermo!!

It was a (mainly!) straightforward trip, and it’s not till we’ve downloaded the photos we took en-route that we appreciate how much we’ve seen, even on what was more the ‘getting there’ part of the trip.

We left home about 18.00 last Tuesday and headed for the Chunnel. We were pleased, even though we were about 10 hours early, that we were allowed into the security area, where we spent a quiet night. (Thanks Anne & Will for the tip). We were also able to take an earlier train than we had booked, so by 9.00 am our time/10.00 in France, we were on our way, taking a new route for us on non-toll motorways to just south of Lille, then on excellent N roads (now often renumbered as D roads), but the sat-nav knows the best route, so we don’t have to worry about the fact the road numbers keep changing in an attempt to confuse us!

We managed to find Aires either within just 100s of yards (metres!!) of our route, or right on it. At Dole, where we were one of 6 motorhomes spending the night there, we had a walk round the historic town, dressed up in its Christmas lights - a lovely town in an interesting area - one to keep in mind to revisit. This was our view while we stayed there.

A week has gone by since our last update and it seems a while since we were in the Swallows Nest.

 We visited the Turda salt mine, wondering if we would see anything much different to what we had seen in the salt mine we visited in Poland last year.  It was well worth visiting, as it was very different, having been excavated centuries later as one huge cavern rather than a series of interconnecting smaller excavations

Most surprising was that the bottom was given over to an entertainments area!

A couple of other photos from our train trip

First,  a reminder of how the borders have changed – just to the north of the area where the train runs in Marmures is now firmly in Ukraine, but only since WWII.  We remember the guide at Malborg Castle in Poland telling us how his grandparents had been given 24hrs by ‘Uncle Joe’ to leave – leaving all their land, possessions livestock and forebears in the cemetery – and there was still loss, and anger about it.