• Italy: Ciao Bella
    Medieval wash house ... laundresses used these basins to do laundry — Cefalù, Sicily.
    Medieval wash house ... laundresses used these basins to do laundry — Cefalù, Sicily.Old Town — Cefalù, Sicily.Laundry day in Old Town — Cefalù, Sicily.Votive chapel on the street in Old Town — Cefalù, Sicily.1Porta Pescara, the sole survivor of the four gates along the city walls — Cefalù, Sicily.Winners of annual contest involving reaching the flag at the end of a tallow-greased long pole.Path on the Rocks — Cefalù, Sicily.Access from the beach to the Path on the Rocks — Cefalù, Sicily.Path on the Rocks — Cefalù, Sicily.Parts are manmade ... Path on the Rocks — Cefalù, Sicily.Path on the Rocks — Cefalù, Sicily.Path on the Rocks — Cefalù, Sicily.Path on the Rocks — Cefalù, Sicily.Fossils along the way ... Path on the Rocks — Cefalù, Sicily.Path on the Rocks — Cefalù, Sicily.Path on the Rocks — Cefalù, Sicily.Path on the Rocks — Cefalù, Sicily.Old Town view from the Path on the Rocks — Cefalù, Sicily.Path on the Rocks — Cefalù, Sicily.1Postierla; crossover on the ancient defensive walls so that citizens could get fresh spring water.Ceramic urn near the Postierla — Cefalù, Sicily.Old Town — Cefalù, Sicily.Old Town — Cefalù, Sicily.Old Town — Cefalù, Sicily.Section of the Megalithic walls made with limestone from Rocca of Cefalù.In Old Town's Giudecca — the medieval Jewish Quarter — Cefalù, Sicily.One of the two towers of the Cathedral of Cefalù ... from Giudecca.Cobblestone street; the stone used in the pattern has embedded fossils — Cefalù, Sicily.Votive chapel dedicated to Santissimo Salvatore in Old Town — Cefalù, Sicily.Lunch at Pasta & Pasti — Cefalù, Sicily.Time for an end-of-the-day swim — Cefalù, Sicily.Swimming = happy camper Mui — Cefalù, Sicily.Sunset from the lungomare — Cefalù, Sicily.1Sunset from the lungomare — Cefalù, Sicily.The Rocca overlooks the lungomare — Cefalù, Sicily.Colorful sunset ... looking toward Old Town Sunset from the lungomare — Cefalù, Sicily.Sunset from the lungomare — Cefalù, Sicily.2Mui's getting himself a cannolo from the Cannoli shop — Cefalù, Sicily.Is Mui going to share his cannolo with Medusa? I doubt it — Cefalù, Sicily.Mui's end-of-the-day treat ... cannolo filled with ricotta cream — Cefalù, Sicily.

    Cefalù: A-Wander & A-Scramble

    October 8 in Italy

    We were lazy today. And by that I mean that it was late morning before we left the apartment.

    A good night’s sleep; a light breakfast. I threw in a load of laundry and read for a bit on the patio; Mui went for a swim. Eventually, we set out for a stroll around Old Town. Soon, we were off the crowded streets, following the “Percorso Sugli Scogli” (Path on the Rocks).

    Scrambled over the path might be a more apt description than followed. The path wound along the coast, going through, over, and around the natural rock formations … with the sea on one side and buildings or megalithic seawalls on the other side. Parts of the trail were man made … concrete steps to aid in getting around the more difficult parts of the rock scramble … or the sections where Mother Nature had eroded the rocks. It was fun and there were lots of photo ops along the way.

    By 2:00p, we were ready for some food. Taking one of the portals that provide access to the street inside the seawall, we found ourselves in the Giudecca area … the city’s medieval Jewish quarter. From here, we followed Google’s directions to Pasta & Pasti, a well-recommended and very popular eatery that is only open from noon to 4:00p.

    That the place is very popular goes without saying. If you’re not there right at opening, you’re bound to wait for a table. We were lucky … there was just one couple ahead of us … about a 15 minute wait is all we had to endure. Those who were lined up behind us were just being seated when we left an hour later.

    Mui ordered the carbonara … I ordered the lasagna, which I was warned would take 15-20 minutes. No problem … we had nowhere to be. Was the food worth it? Not sure how to answer that. The noodles were thicker than the ones we’ve gotten used to in northern Italy. And the use of nutmeg, which apparently is a historical culinary tradition in Sicily, threw us off a bit. I didn’t mind it so much after a bite or two of my lasagna, but the use of nutmeg in the carbonara really changed the flavor, so Mui was a bit disappointed.

    Pasta & Pasti does not serve dessert, so after our meal, we walked over to Mon Chou Chou, a pasticceria a few blocks away. Yummy, yummy gelato.

    We eventually meandered back to the apartment to rest up a bit. Mui was all set to go for another swim around 4:00p. No can do. Suddenly, it started thundering and lightning streaked across the sky. And then it started to rain … pouring at times. It had been mostly cloudy today, but there had been no indication of rain. The storm clouds must have gathered after we returned to the apartment.

    Can’t swim? Might as well take a nap. At least that was Mui’s revised plan. I was sitting on the patio, processing photos and was able to continue to do so since the overhang provided protection from the rain.

    By 6:00p, the rain was no more. Late though it was, I convinced Mui to go for a dip and accompanied him to the lungomare (waterfront promenade) … hoping for some sunset colors. There was a bit of gold and orange, but we got even better colors — fuschias and pinks — when we went back out for a stroll later in the evening.

    We wrapped up our day with a stop at a cannoli shop. We are in the home of this sweet treat after all. To be honest, I don’t much care for cannoli, but Mui loves it. He deemed this one — fresh-filled with ricotta cream — excellent.    Read more