San Vito and Palermo

Wednesday 17th April 2024

We decided we'd sit out the approaching Mistral in the lovely coastal town of San Vito lo Campo. It didn't take long to explore most of it, it's not very big, so we decided to hire a car for a couple of days to venture further afield.

On Wednesday morning, 17th, we picked up the hire car from the centre of town just after 10am. By the time we did the paperwork and got ourselves together it was nearly 11am.

Our original plan had been to drive to Palermo but it's a two hour drive so we decided to go somewhere closer.

Our destination was Erice, an ancient town built 750 metres up on the top of a hill. It is pretty much traffic free so you can wander along the cobbled streets without fear of the usual moped riders and other vehicles.  

When we arrived we climbed the tower, Torre de Re Federico. The winding stone steps are steep and the views are spectacular, along the coast and over the countryside.

It was very windy up there even though the walls were thick and high.

We looked at four or five churches, each of them special in their own way. There are many more, it's known as 'The City of a Hundred Churches'. That's only a slight exaggeration.

By 2pm we'd done a lot of walking and were hungry. We'd seen a number of restaurants and snack bars so went into one of the nearest ones to the car park. They served a very nice traditional Sicilian version of a cheese toastie - a bread roll filled with cheese, fresh tomato and anchovy, and we decided to share a lemonade. The bill came to 19 euros. Yes, 19 euros for 2 cheese toasties and a small bottle of pop. When I queried it I was told that the toasties were 7 euros each and the drink 5 euros, 'artisan' lemonade. The toasties were only 3.50 at every other place we saw, we were robbed. Serves us right for going to a place with no prices on display.

Our next stop was Trapani, the major town of this part of Sicily. The old part of town is built on a narrow peninsula and as you walked down the main street you got glimpses of the sea on both sides, through the narrow roads leading off.

We went for a walk along the seafront but the wind was howling and huge waves breaking from a Mistral in full force. There were 'white horses', breaking waves, to the horizon, a sign that the seas are rough. The Mistral blows all the way from the Rhone Valley where we travelled last year.

We were glad to be on dry land.

One of the most prominent buildings was the cathedral of St Lawrence, the patron saint of comedians and people who work with fire. He died by being burned on a brazier, a horrible death. Legend has it that when his execution was half way through he said in a cheery voice, 'my back is cooked, you can turn me over now'. Hence his patronage of comedy.

On the walk back to the car we decided to take our time and buy an ice cream. To our surprise there wasn't a gelateria in sight. Everywhere else has hundreds!

When we were planning our passage from Sardinia to Sicily our original destination was Trapani, the regional centre, but we changed our plans en route as the sailing was going well so we could cover a bit more distance. Having seen Trapani, and not just because of the lack of gelaterias, we were glad that we ended up in the small provincial marina in San Vito instead. It was a much more relaxed and prettier place to spend a few days.

Thursday 18th April 2024

We set off for Palermo at around 9am. It was a lovely sunny day, if a bit chilly from the strong wind, and the views along the way were consistently spectacular.

As we approached the halfway point of our journey we saw coachloads of people at a lookout off the main road, gazing down at the town of Castellammare del Golfo. From the glimpse we got from the road it looked like it'd be worth a visit.

It took a couple of hours to reach Palermo. What a change of pace from the other places we've visited in Italy. Densely built, narrow streets, every building is several storeys high and the roads seem to have their own rules.

We drove further into the city and the streets became smaller and smaller, lots of unmarked crossroads. When we met another vehicle precedence was decided by a combination of playing 'Chicken' and good manners. Mopeds appeared from nowhere and only by a miracle avoided us. I concentrated on keeping my eyes open and looking for a parking space.

We found one quite quickly and parked the car, only for a man to come up and explain that if we left it there we were likely to get a 50 euro fine.

We checked the road signs. It seemed to be a towaway zone. The traffic wardens were going to have a field day, there were cars parked all the way along it. Not wanting to take the risk of falling foul of the law we drove on. And drove. And drove. And drove.

An hour later we were still looking for parking. Every single place was taken and many of them had double parking. I was getting slightly desperate, in need of a comfort break and a relief from the stress of driving. On the way into the city I'd noticed a Burger King. What do you always get at a Burger King (or a McDonalds for that matter?) Something way more important than a meat patty between cotton wool buns, they have parking and toilets.

A 20 minute drive took us there. It looked deserted. Faded red sunshades flapped in the breeze on the outside tables and the children's play area looked abandoned. There were only about three cars in the car park. Was it even open? I spotted an open door and a young man pointed me towards the entrance. Hallelujah, it wasn't closed!!

We decided to eat our lunch there even though it was only midday. We had 'Italian' burgers, basically they had Parmesan and lambs lettuce rather than cheddar and iceberg lettuce but they were so good.

A quick trip to the nearby Lidl afterwards to stock up on chocolate and bottled water and we were revitalised.

The online guidebook had recommended a shrine to Santa Rosalia, which involved walking up a hill. On the basis that this wouldn't involve us trying to find a parking space in Palermo we decided to have a look. I assumed Igor had read the same guide book as me so we drove somewhere. It didn't look like a popular tourist attraction, even in the off season. Turns out it was the wrong Santa Rosalia. We decided that we'd have a look at Castelammare del Golfo instead.

When we arrived we parked with no trouble at all.

We wandered into the pedestrianised area and down the steep route towards the sea.

The town is built high above the water and the view to the marina was spectacular, blue sea, waves, rocky cliffs.

The town itself is old and honey coloured. Down at the waters edge the wind was blowing strongly. None of the cafes had tables outside. It looked like it would be very busy in season, lots of places offering boat hire, guided tours etc. There was a tiny 16th century chapel on the water front with three large and friendly cats eating from a bowl outside. They even consented to being stroked.

We climbed up flights of ancient steps back to the main street. It was just a lovely place. Apparently a lot of the Italian crime families in New York have their family roots here. Why would you want to leave a place like this?

On the drive back to St Vito we stopped at the lookout point and realised it was directly above the harbour where we'd been walking. It was so high up the view was similar to that from an aeroplane. The area had a knee high stone wall with a waist high fence. Despite the fence and the howling wind a young woman stood on the wall for a picture. It looked dangerous. That's what the fence was probably supposed to prevent.

The drive home was really interesting. Most of the houses are built from creamy coloured stone and we could see the hills being quarried to make the building blocks. The hills are massive, how big were they before all the towns were built? The cathedrals had exquisite carvings from these rocks, they looked like lace, what craftsmanship!

There was a village along the way called Purgatorio, so here is proof I have left Purgatory 😁

After the disappointing start to the day Castellammare truly made up for everything. Yet again I could be writing a post that just says 'Wow. Oh wow.' over and over again. I've seen so many beautiful places these last couple of weeks that maybe I need to go back home to reality so I don't become used to them. It really is that good here.

Friday 19th April 2024

This morning we returned the hire car. No damage done despite the attempts of the drivers in Palermo. I did actually clip the wing mirror on a van while swerving to avoid an oncoming vehicle but the sturdy little Panda didn't crack. It's built for these conditions, much to my wallet's relief.

It was very windy with intermittent bursts of heavy rain during the earlier part of the day. Will this Mistral never end? I decided I may as well do some work but the movement of the boat made me feel seasick. Unbelievable!

After lunch things calmed down. We decided to have a walk, stopping off at the amenities along the way. In the couple of minutes we took the heavens opened. We had to shelter in the toilet block, Igor in the mens and me in the womens, poking our heads out in turn like the old man and woman in a weather vane.

Luckily it was just a shower so after a short while we were on our way.

Firstly we walked down to the sea.  We followed a rough path down to the water's edge. Along the way we spotted a shoe. Not what I'd call a walking shoe for these conditions, it was a 6 inch heeled platform mule. I wonder where the other one was? Why was anyone walking in shoes like these in a place like this? We'll never know.

We stared at the sea for a while. The beach was a lee shore with the full effect of the Mistral causing huge waves to crash on the rocky shore. The dark blue waters turned vivid turquoise along their upper edge as the water folded into a breaker, and foam made marble like patterns along the surface until the whole thing became a boiling white foam.

From here we followed the road up the hillside. It spans the length of the town. Wild flowers bloomed by the road's edges, the sun came out and the wind dropped. We walked for about 7km in all. From this vantage point we could appreciate the size of the town and how the church in the centre dominates the landscape. From above you can see what a huge building it is.

By about halfway through the walk it was warm enough for us to take our jackets off, though not our jumpers. When we got to town we treated ourselves to a gelato. We deserved it.

Igor reckoned that the Mistral had blown itself out by now so tomorrow will be the day to set sail!

Saturday 20th April 2024

Today was the day to set out for Palermo, the next big town along the coast. It's about 35 nautical miles, so in our boat we reckon on 5-6 hours.

The wind had calmed. We woke just before 7am, and I went for a shower. I could hear the distant surf in the still morning air, and worried that maybe conditions would still be nasty once we hit the open sea. On the other hand, it felt like time we were moving on, a week is long enough to be in one place, even one as lovely as San Vito. We set off around 8am.

There was a stiff breeze and Igor had put two reefs in the mainsail. To remind you non sailors, a reef is a way to reduce the area of the sail which makes it easier to handle in strong winds and, counterintuitively, may be faster than having the whole sail working.

We left the marina, saying goodbye to the boat next door who was also making ready to leave. This time there was no drama on our exit. We had raised our keel on the way in to the marina as there are shallow patches, so as soon as we had cleared these Igor asked me to press the button that drops the keel down. I did this. It whirred then stopped. I took over steering the boat while Igor investigated. A couple of minutes later it whirred into life, the keel dropped, and we were on our way. Igor reckoned it was just a bit cold this morning and the hydraulics just needed a slight adjustment to work.

Once we left the protection of the marina it got very unpleasant. I've sailed enough to know that it wasn't dangerous or life threatening, just not comfortable. The winds over the past few days had stirred up the seas. Imagine stirring a cup of tea very vigorously. It will take a while to settle down. The same with the sea, but on a bigger scale. Huge swells, waves about two metres in height, one after the other, from different angles. We rolled. We pitched. We yawed. We did all three at once. My seasickness acupressure bands tried valiantly but weren't up to the struggle. I wasn't actually ill but felt horrible, so went below and slept for a few hours until my stomach settled, leaving poor Igor on his own to do all the hard work.

When I came back up it was still bumpy but not quite as bad. The funny thing about these bouncy seas is that there is often an angle where you can sort of surf the waves so you don't get so many ups and downs and it's less vomit inducing. We were zipping along at around 8-9 knots, fantastic. I had a drink of water and half a banana which helped.

The coastline was all headlands wreathed in mist. As we neared land we could pick out more details, including a fleet of Laser dinghies on the water. What a lovely place for kids to learn to sail.

By this point the geography of the land meant that a huge cliff was giving us some shelter. We were a only couple of hours from Palermo and the conditions would stay like this or improve for the rest of the passage.

The harbour at Palermo has a number of different marinas within it. We contacted the cheapest, which had excellent reviews, only to be told that they didn't have any room. A couple of minutes later, as I was about to call our second choice, the marina got in touch asking our draft (height under the water). I told him and he got back to me to say there was a space. We followed his directions to see that the berth was between a huge, gleaming 48 foot catamaran and a huge, high sided motorboat. Igor tried approaching rear end first but the turn was too tight, so he tried again front first.

We got in without damaging ourselves or anyone else, though the skipper of the catamaran looked decidedly worried and was giving Igor advice, constructive and very useful.

We secured the lines and told the marinero we'd come and pay in a minute. 'No rush, do it in the morning.'

We had a snack and a cuppa then set off to explore Palermo. What a place, our first impressions after visiting by car were SO SO WRONG!!

It was early evening and the centre of the town is pedestrianised. Hordes of people wandered along the streets. It reminded me of a zombie movie except they were very well dressed and all chatting at the tops of their voices.

The sound echoed off the high buildings, the beautiful sound of human beings having a sociable time. Do you remember how quiet everywhere was during Lockdown? This was the opposite.

We found a table at a restaurant and watched the world, or at least seemingly the entire population of Palermo, walk by. Night fell. Food appeared - sardine meatballs and the freshest and best calamari I've ever tasted, followed by delicious pasta. We went for a wander. Every street corner was more ornate and beautiful than the last.

It was almost overwhelming, every sense being activated at once.

This is one of the most fascinating and beautiful places I have ever visited.

Sunday 21st April 2024 onwards

Since we arrived here we have walked and walked and walked (and even had a little run).  

There is just so much to see.

A building that would be utterly extraordinary in any other setting is just another historic building here.

There is just so much going on.

The food is fabulous.

There is just so much to see

The markets are bustling and wonderful.

The weather is pretty good too, but there's yet another Mistral brewing.

In light of this we decided we may as well come home for a week or two. This way we can return and get 4-6 weeks good sailing before the height of the tourist season while still complying with the stupid Brexit related 90 in 180 days of travel rules.  It is so complicated, you need a special calculator to work out how long you can stay and when. So unnecessary.

I'll let you know when we set off again.

You can comment (or ask questions) at Libra Sail | Facebook.