Thursday April 17, 2014
After picking up the rental car, we all headed to the battery shop where Brian tended to the purchase. Meanwhile Irene and Jackie checked out the wine shop next door. Along with barrels of wine from which the water bottles are filled, the store contains dozens of Sicilian products like pesto, mustards, local honey, bruchettas and lots of condiments we haven’t seen before. By the time we left we had a goodly selection of items to sample. We returned the new battery to the boat and tried it for good measure before leaving Licatta for the west of Sicily. By noon we were in the port town of Sciacca which has a very large fishing fleet. Down by the harbour we found a lovely restaurant with a terrific view of the Med. Rene and Jackie sampled the lobster pasta, Jim had swordfish and Brian had the grilled calamari. Excellent!
After lunch we stopped at nearby Eraclea Minoa an archealogical site which was established about 600BC after the King of Crete, Minos chased Daedalus here from Crete. The site has only been one third uncovered, including an amphitheatre and some housing. The site is spectacular on a hilltop point of land with views in all directions. From here we went to one of the best beaches on the island which, although deserted, was reportedly very crowded all summer. We stopped at a beachside restaurant and Jim ordered a latte for he and Jackie.. They both looked puzzled when 2 glasses of hot milk appeared. After some discussion with the owner the milk was replaced with 2 Café Lattes which was more to their liking.
On the way home we drove by the Valley of the Temples, the Greek site we had visited with Ange and Stewart. The sandstone temples shone like gold in the late afternoon sun. There was a photo op and we were back on our way again to Necessity where we had fresh oranges and apples with cheese and crackers and played some more euchre to determine the champions, still inconclusively.
Brian on Board Necessity
Marina diCala delSole, Licata