Palermo

Hello from Palermo, Sicily’s capital. For the past week we’ve seen a variety of Sicilian sights. First up was a overnight in the historic seaside town of Trapani on the western tip of Sicily. Trapani has many churches - like all Italian towns - and as we were sipping a happy hour beverage across from the basilica church when a long procession of clerics - including the bishop ( of Trapani we guessed) sauntered down the street. Not often you see a bishop with his mitre (pointy hat) and crozier (stick). Seems it was a festival of sorts and there was a special service in the cathedral. I noticed the bartenders turned off their music as the bishop went by, and solemnly crossed themselves. Once the bishop was safely in the church they cranked the Bee Gees back up… “staying alive, staying alive….” In Trapani we ate great seafood including grilled octopus and enjoyed a visit to Erice - a hilltop village billed by National Geographic as one of the 12 most beautiful villages in the world. What was most impressive were the views from Erice looking out over the Sicilian coastline and towards Africa. There was a faint outline of Tunisia on the horizon - we were that close.
Next up we spent 2 nights in San VIto lo Capo - a very touristy beach area. From there we did some walking along the Zingaro Reserve trail and all enjoyed some swimming in the ocean. The weather here is still hot and the ocean is warm. A real treat. On Friday we headed to the Palermo airport and Al gladly returned the rental car. The car was unscathed but poor Al probably aged 10 years from the experience of driving us around Sicily. We’re all very grateful that he took on the driving for this trip. There are many places we saw that would have been impossible or much harder to reach without a car. We said arrivederci to Al and Natalie and they flew home.
Mike, Tara and I are just finishing up 3 nights in Palermo. We are staying in an apartment on a very lively piazza anchored by ( what else) a large church (San Domenico). There are shops, bars and restaurants on the square and tucked into the alleys all around us. As I write this note, there are some live musicians leading a rousing sing along at the bar just below our balcony. I don’t recognize most of the songs but the crowd is loving it and we’re looking out over the crowd from our balcony sipping G&Ts. This lively concert is joined every 1/2 hour by peeling church bells and the occasional ambulance that roars by. Palermo is a very noisy place.

The first order of business when we hit Palermo on Friday was laundry and we used the local street-facing laundry machines. Never seen anything like it before. No bricks and mortar - just washers, dryers and an operating machine for money etc. (Picture enclosed) Very convenient for us and tonight - on a repeat laundry visit - I met some folks from Winnipeg who told me there is already a foot of snow in their town. Yikes.
Yesterday we did a 3 hour walking tour with a fellow who belongs to a group committed to reducing the influence of the mafia. He was a very passionate guide who has been involved in a grassroots, apolitical movement to stop the “pizzo” or Mafia extortion money that is still demanded from local businesses. It was a fascinating few hours and also sad to realize how many people have lost their lives fighting the mafia in Sicily and also how many people still simply accept the Mafia as a fact of life here. Part of the tour money went to support this organization.
Today we took a train ride out of the city to the beautiful town of Cefalu. I had another swim in the ocean and we wandered the old streets and picked up some souvenirs. We also visited a different kind of laundromat - a public wash-house from medieval times in a place where the river once flowed. Of all the towns we have visited here, I think Cefalu is most worth a return visit. Note to anyone thinking of visiting Sicily.
Tonight we capped our visit to Palermo with a night street food walking tour. This tour was not recommended for “picky eaters or people on low carb diets”. No kidding. The most unusual thing we tasted was a spleen sandwich. Hmm, not something I would add to my regular repertoire. The whole diet here is heavy on carbs ( they even eat gelato on a brioche) and lots of fried food. Mike decided to pass on the street food tour and opted for tea and toast.
For our last few days we are going to double down on the eating and drinking at a cooking school inland set in a vineyard. If we can actually find clothes that still fit, we will travel home next Sunday.
That’s all for now from Palermo. Hope everyone is well at home and in other places. Ciao,
Heather/ Mom xxxRead more