On Thursday, we decide to sail from Catania to Reggio Calabria, on the Italian mainland side of the Strait of Messina. The journey starts uneventfully, with no wind, flat seas and the motor humming. Let's admit it; my favourite conditions for short passages. As we make our way down the coast we have a glorious view of Etna, eat sandwiches made with delicious tomatoes from the Catania market, and estimate our ETA to be 3 pm at the latest.



We even have some dolphins drop in to visit.



But we haven't reckoned on the current -or rather, we have reckoned, but must have gotten something wrong. For the last 12 miles we have a current of 2 to 3 knots against us, and wind on the nose at 20+ knots. Even with the engine cranked to 2100 RPM, our speed over the ground is down to 3.5 knots at times, although the water is almost eerily flat. The diesel level in the tanks plummets, but at least we are not going backwards. By 5 pm, we are tied up at the yacht harbor at Reggio Calabria, on the mainland side of the Strait of Messina.



Shortly after our lines are secured, we have a visit from Saverio, the taxi driver much lauded by Rod Heikell for his skill at procuring liquid refreshments, croissants and good parmesan cheese for yachties. Do we need anything? Want to go out for pizza? He passes his card over the bow and sings to me flirtatiously in Italian "Love, love, let's drink some red wine tonight!" Naturally, I am charmed, but we decide to eat onboard. Tomorrow we will walk into the town and see the Riace Bronzes, a pair of sculptures that our Sicilian friend Katia has told me are a must-see.

But the next morning turns out not at all as we'd expected. It all starts when I flush the toilet and realized that things don't sound quite right. We'd just pumped out our holding tank, and normally I can hear the sound of the water pouring into the empty tank. This time, niente. Rick lifts the floorboards to inspect the tank, and discovers that it is actually full. The pump has obviously malfunctioned. The skipper definitely gets the dirty end of the stick in the job that follows, and my role as assistant is not much fun either. As I alternately hold my breath and rush up on deck for gasps of fresh air, I silently thank God that the mishap has occurred before Lyn and Kevin's arrival and not during their visit. Eventually, Rick diagnoses the problem as a seized joker valve in the pump. He manages to put a temporarily fix in place, but we'll need to find a replacement pump soon.

It is 3 pm before we have everything back in place and the head scrubbed down. But after hot showers, we both feel more cheerful and decide to walk into the town. Our guidebooks have not exactly been complimentary to Reggio Calabria, but the 3 km along the water is surprisingly pleasant, once you get outside the dock area. This town has been leveled by earthquakes on more than one occasion (the worst, in 1908, killed 25,000 people in Reggio Calabria and more than double that number in Messina) so there are few historic buildings remaining. But the waterfront promenade is wide and attractive, with sweeping views across the Strait to Sicily.





It is May Day, a national holiday in Italy, so we are not sure whether the Museo Nazionale will be open. It is, and better still, admission is free.



After a brief wait, we are admitted through a series of air-locked doors to a climate- controlled room where the Riace Bronzes stand on special pedestals, designed to withstand earthquakes. These remarkable bronze statues, dating back to the 5th century BC, were discovered off the coast of Riace (on the ball of Italy's foot) in 1972. Stefano Mariottini, a chemist from Rome, had the vacation of a lifetime when he discovered the statues during a recreational dive. Spotting what appeared to be a human arm on the floor of the sea, he dove down to investigate. His first thought was that he might have found a dead body, but after brushing away some sand, he realized that he'd made a much happier discovery. This website has a photo of one of the statues being brought out of the water Click here.

One statue depicts a beautiful young man, while the second statue is older. Although slightly larger than life, the statues are astonishingly realistic and invoke a sense of awe akin to the way we felt when we saw Michelangelo's David. There are various theories as to the origin of the statues and how they ended up on the floor of the sea, but the true history will likely remain a mystery. We're fortunate to have the opportunity to see the them, since they have only recently been returned to the museum. I'm sorry to say that no photos were allowed. The one below, taken from a postcard, will give you a sense of what they looked like, but I'm sure you can find much better images through an internet search.



There is little else of interest in the museum at the moment, since the full collection has yet to be returned to the museum following an extensive renovation of the building. The delay is considered a bit of a scandal, according to Italian newspapers.

After mingling for a while with the crowd on the pedestrianized main street, we take a cappuccino and gelato break at a waterfront café. (If our waiter finds this combination rather strange, he doesn't show it.) The return journey to the boat feels a bit longer, so once again we decide to eat onboard. This is a disappointment to Saverio, who appears on the dock just as the pasta has begun to boil, asking if we'd like to go out to dinner. However, he cheers up substantially when we ask if he can get us some camping gas. Our old tank is no good, he informs us. Too rusty. Rick assures him that yes, it's fine, but he scoffs. "Maybe in Sicily" he says, and does a pretty good imitation of an exploding tank. As he disappears with our old tank, I warn Rick to prepare himself for price tag shock when he returns. True to expectations, he returns an hour later with a filled replacement tank that he says should cost 90 euros...but for us, a special price of only 65 euros. A bigger shock than I had anticipated! "Troppo caro" I say, and he brings it down to 50 euros. It's still probably double the going rate, but we do have to factor in the cost of his time, and he throws in a bottle of red wine for good measure. The next morning, as we are leaving for our morning run, we find a bag with two croissants on the deck.

We have a lovely run down the waterfront promenade, then spend a pleasant hour shopping in the town. The "ferramenta" (hardware store) is a tiny room crammed floor-to-ceiling with a weird assortment of goods, but the owner quickly finds the hose fitting that we need. He does not have the replacement piece that Rick needs for his drill, but he gives us directions to another ferramenta...just go 10 palazzos down the street. Only in Italy! We visit the fish monger, the butcher and a series of small grocery stores. Now our bags are full and the walk home seems even longer than the previous day. At the harbor office, we stop to check the current tables, and decide that we will leave before 6 a.m. the next morning, when the current in the Strait of Messina is "stanka" (literally "tired" but meaning slack current). Oh joy, I will be getting up at 4.30 a.m. on my birthday.

In the evening, we have one last visit from Saverio, who brings us a large bag of oranges and lemons, picked from his own trees. We tell him we'll see him in September, and he sings another song for me before he leaves.



Hopefully we will see Saverio again, and we appreciate all his kindness. But I think we'll refill our camping gas before our next visit!

Rick's Cruising Notes:

Marina 40 euros per night in May, water and electric included. Well protected. Long walk through the port; 15+ minute walk in total to town. Restaurants, bars, groceries, and hardware in town. The local museum's Riace Bronzes are a must-see. Saverio, a local taxi driver, provides various services. Very friendly and helpful but we suggest you confirm prices and understanding first. Current and tide tables available at the Coast Guard next door. We took photos of the ones for May to Oct 2014 and can share. Just send us an email.