Food culture is also culture

Sunday 12.03.

Today we say goodbye to our parking space here at CasaCaughta and to Marina di Ragusa. Ani writes a few nice words, to which we add a small contribution for electricity and water. Layla is so excited to say goodbye that she barks with joy and we forget to take a photo together. We receive a huge bag of fruit as a gift.

Today we have a longer drive planned, we want to drive to Agrigento, which means a three-hour drive. Just before Agrigento, we want to stop in Favara, a small town northeast of Agrigento, where a group of artists, through the Farm Cultural Park, is trying to breathe new life into some dilapidated streets by making them part of the art. We are curious to see if this will be our cultural highlight. We arrive around 1:30pm, park the camper van (accidentally breaking Ani's favorite water bottle into a thousand pieces) and march into the city. It is very quiet here for a Sunday and when we find the Farm Cultural Park, we realize that it's not just the city that is deserted. So maybe in the summer it has a completely different charm when there are many people, artists and guests, populating the streets and sitting outside. At the moment, everything is closed and seems deserted, so it's just a few colorful houses. We are quite disappointed and return to the motorhome. So off to Agrigento, not suspecting what awaits us there. We want to park at the parking lot in front of the Valley of the Temples and visit it tomorrow morning. We drive into the city and suddenly the traffic chaos begins, cars and crowds of people everywhere. Since Italians probably don't really attend driving schools to get an idea of traffic signs and their meaning, you can probably imagine how organized everything is. Eventually, the stop-and-go story comes to an end, the police explain something to us in fluent Italian and we understand ZERO 0.00000. Later we find out that it is a spring festival. One week of partying and today is the grand finale. Never mind, we have to turn around and come up with a plan B quickly. 60 minutes later and a visibly sweaty driver, we are in front of a museum outside the city, sharing the tranquility with two other German campers. It will be a quiet night and we sleep with the window open (what we mean by that: it's summer here :-))

Monday 13.03.

Planning Monday with coffee and cookies. The meeting is cancelled today, shopping and then continuing to the fascinating white cliffs in Porto Empedocle, a few kilometers away, as recommended by Lonely Planet. We are culture philistines from another planet, because on planning Monday we decide not to visit the actually planned temple complexes. The only culture we dedicate ourselves to extensively is probably the food culture.

Arriving at the cliffs, we quickly find a nice parking space by the sea under palm trees and take a leisurely walk along the beach with Hundi. The two campsites we wanted to visit here are not suitable, so we will wild camp for the next few days. That's okay too. It doesn't affect our mood, but we won't be able to go swimming in the sea for now. The water is so salty that you definitely need a shower afterwards and there is no shower here on the beach.

It's very hot and we can already check off the first sunburn of the trip today.

In the evening, we get two Magic Bags and for that we have to walk a few kilometers to the next town. Layla is very excited about this extremely extended evening walk. We have pizza in the piazza and delicious sweet Sicilian pastries for dessert.

When we get back to the motorhome, we play an exciting game of Rummikub, which Mathennsi wins.

Tuesday 14.03.

We are staying in Porto Empedocle today, our parking space by the beach is really nice and we feel comfortable here. We take two extended walks along the beautiful white sandy beach, enjoy the sun and the many colorful signs of spring. Mathennsi defeats Ani in Rummikub and continues his winning streak. Learning to lose is the big challenge for Ani today. The day passes surprisingly quickly and we go to bed early.

Wednesday 15.03.

We wake up super early and that's a good thing. Today we have an excursion to the WWF Reserve Naturale Orientata Torre Salsa on the agenda. Mathennsi found it after extensive research and we are really looking forward to it. But first, we have to pack everything together and get ready to leave for the next stage. That always takes a few minutes. The drive to the reserve is pure adventure. Several times we wonder if maybe there was a sign somewhere saying that you can only drive here with a 4x4 or that it's not allowed at all. Now it's too late, we're in the middle of the route, there's only one direction left and it's downhill. Everything gets shaken properly. As promised, there is no parking lot. So we park Italian style. Right at the beginning, we get lost because we insist on walking uphill. After 30 minutes, we have to go back. Hello motorhome and now turn right for real. In the middle of the reserve, we stop after a few meters and we are still not sure if this is really the official path. There are spikes from porcupines lying on the path and Mathennsi is really excited about this natural spectacle. The description of the reserve said it was well signposted. This is definitely not the case here on site. We are often very uncertain whether we are really on the right track or whether a new surprise awaits us behind the next curve. And indeed, there it is. Suddenly we find ourselves on a meadow that is supposed to be the official parking lot. And according to the signs, it is even wheelchair accessible. We look around and have no idea how a car could have come here, let alone how a wheelchair could get away from here. We suspect that there were some subsidies here that were, let's say, inadequately implemented. A short time later we arrive at the beach. Endangered sea turtles come here every year to lay their eggs. The last employees of WWF were here a long time ago. Even here we find some garbage on the beach and the paths and signs are showing signs of aging. All in all, a nice excursion.

We actually wanted to spend the night here, but we're not really happy here. So we continue to the next village. We drive for about 30 minutes and then arrive in Eraclea Minoa. We park in front of the archaeological site above the village. In the evening, there is supposed to be a romantic sunset to watch from the cliff here. So let's go to the romantic sunset. Of course, as superheroes, we start walking far too early and arrive at the designated location much too early. It's so windy up here that it's really hard to bear. After 10 minutes, we give up, it's too windy. Back at the motorhome, we see the sun setting. Still beautiful though.

Thursday 16.03.

We are woken up early at 6:00am by the first arriving staff. With sleepy eyes, we have our first coffee and make a small plan for the day. The first short detour takes us down to the village. But no one is there. A typical summer resort village. All holiday properties that are empty and waiting for summer to come and bring some life back here. The storm that raged through Sicily in February has also swept through here. There are two restaurants/bars on the beach that have been badly damaged and urgently need a fresh coat of paint.

We continue to Sciacca. The search for a parking space goes like this for the driver Mathennsi: please drive 200m backwards in an extremely narrow street. The navigation system has led us to a corner where vehicles that are too high no longer fit through the bridges. Mathennsi, the old bus driver, does it with his eyes closed and we are back on track for exactly 5 minutes. Then another street that we cannot pass. Well, it seems that it is not meant to be for us to stay here and spend time. Well then, let's move on. We take a short stop at the supermarket. Mathennsi is in the mood for grilling and needs supplies for his project.

The new destination is now a campsite called Boomerang in the middle of nowhere. Besides the parking space, the owner also has a small restaurant directly on the beach and thus supplies himself with guests. Apart from that, there is really nothing here except beach and sea and nothing. Oh yes, Mathennsi and the grill :-) In the evening, we devour grilled specialties. Afterwards, in this order: shower, game round, wine, movie.

Friday 17.03.

It's cleaning day... cleaning, mopping, sweeping, washing... Hundi comes in, everything gets dirty again... motorhome everyday life at its best.

Beach walk, Mathennsi tries to take a dip but gives up at the waist. However, Hundi doesn't mind and jumps into the cool water tirelessly. It can't be stormy and cold enough, as long as there's water and action.

We don't really get to read books and do all the other things we wanted to do when we're on the road and have time. We somehow need to restructure and organize ourselves differently.

In the afternoon, we meet a couple who are currently looking for a house in Sicily. The two are very nice and give us some interesting insights into the search for property in Italy. For now, they have rented a house on Sicily for one year and hope to find a suitable property during this time.

In the evening, we enjoy the idyllic atmosphere at the campsite and make a rough plan for the next few days.

Saturday 18.03.

We start the day without stress and do all the necessary preparations at a leisurely pace before we leave. Off to Marsala. Mathennsi is in the mood for the city. We head for a parking space and dive into the hustle and bustle. Uh, no hustle and bustle here. Rather dead silence. Did we miss something? Why is there no one here? Hello? Ah, there, a few tourists from England. So we have the old town all to ourselves. We can take pictures undisturbed without someone constantly getting in front of our lens ;-) At least the cafes are open, we storm into one and have the sweetest treats the place has to offer and of course coffee. In the meantime, we look for a place to sleep for the night on our phone. We drive to the nearby lagoon to the salt pans. Thanks to the navigation system, we have another small spectacular maneuver here, as we suddenly find ourselves in front of an insurmountable obstacle. Unfortunately, the motorhome is wider than 2m. After a short reverse driving exercise with some sweating, we successfully turn around and continue without the navigation system to the desired destination. On the way, we meet a handsome Italian who whispers to Ani in German, "irchhhh liiiiebbbbe dircchhhh". We meet him again a short time later and this time we get to show off our Italian language skills. The outcome should be clear to all readers...

We take a leisurely walk along the lagoon and admire the beauty of the place. Many others appreciate it too and when the sun sets, there are people everywhere. But they all disappear as soon as the sun is gone.

Sunday 19.03.

The night was unfortunately very restless, Layla's admirer found it semi-amusing that she wasn't allowed to go out to play again. He expresses his frustration with barking all night long. Despite the short night, we have a very ambitious plan for today. We actually want to start early and go to Trapani. According to Lonely Planet, it is touristically uninteresting except for a few sweet delicacies and as a starting point for many tours. So we just want to "quickly" take a look and then take the cable car up to Erice. But in the morning, we have a game of Rummikub and a short visit to the windmill where we spent the night at the salt pans. Some slight delays occur and we only arrive in Trapani around noon. Today's parking space is in front of a school. Past many bakeries and ice cream parlors, we walk into the city. At some point, we can't resist any longer and buy small cakes with strawberries on top. Very tasty. Strengthened, we continue towards the old town. Once there, we quickly agree that the maker of the Sicilian Lonely Planet cannot have been here. It is really beautiful and there is a lot to see and admire. So for us, this excursion is very worthwhile and we stroll through the many alleys and streets. Of course, there is still time for a coffee. Since almost everyone is taking a siesta, we get one from the vending machine, which is almost as good as in a café here in Italy and cannot be compared to German vending machine coffee. As the grand finale of the tour, we treat ourselves to the full sweetness program today and enjoy a brioche filled with ice cream. It's the absolute bomb, a so-called taste explosion, and we indulge without saying a word to each other. Back to the motorhome, we still have a lot to do. However, it's already late afternoon and we won't be able to fulfill the day's plan completely. The cable car is currently under construction, so a ride will have to wait for another time. The motorhome then has to conquer the 15km uphill climb. Hours later, we finally arrive at the top, quickly find the pre-selected sleeping spot, and meet old acquaintances from Naples. We exchange a few words and arrange to meet for a walk through the village the next day. The night is calm and we snore deeply.

Monday 20.03.

With the great view from up here, we won't get off to a good start this morning. FOG ALERT and light rain. Well then, let's go to the village for breakfast. But before that, we take a longer walk past various castles. Erice was a famous center of the love cult of Venus many years ago, so to speak, prostitution in the temple. But today there is nothing of that sort to be seen and the place lives from its breathtaking views. A really nice little village that is still asleep. In a few weeks, however, it will be packed up here and the streets will be stormed by tourists. The best bakeries far and wide turn out to be tourist traps, so we move on without breakfast. Bad weather, no breakfast, not the best conditions for a good day. But well, we make the best of it now. Turn on the engine and first get off this mountain. We head straight for the nearest supermarket and buy some brunch supplies. Suddenly, we discover another great bakery and treat ourselves to two huge Cannoli. These things are gigantic, so gigantic that we feel sick after eating them. We head for an affordable parking space (€10 per night, all inclusive) in San Vito Lo Capo. We are now at the northwesternmost point of Sicily. This place is famous for its climbing rocks and white flat beaches. In the afternoon, we head out and enjoy the afternoon sun at the beach.

Tuesday 21.03.

Today is planned for the ascent to Mount Monaco. Just before the first meters of the ascent, Ani decides against hiking up the mountain. Today, she feels like doing anything but hiking up and sweating and then freezing in the wind at the top. No, that's not happening today. So the plan changes and we hike on a straight path towards an old bunker and another historical sight that only consists of small old stones and can no longer be identified, plus a visit to the lighthouse afterwards. All in all, it's an extensive tour. Back in the motorhome, we have an internet session. The wifi here has to be used and all the trash news of the past weeks have to be checked. For Mathennsi, it's football trash, for Ani, celebrity trash.

Not much else happens today, the alarm is set for 4:00am tomorrow morning. We want to be on top of the mountain for the sunrise.

Wednesday 22.03.

In the night, Hundi has extreme coughing fits and gets a fever. So to speak, the night is over at 1:30am and dog care is on the agenda.

We watch the sunrise from the back seat and today we have an appointment at the veterinary clinic. Hopefully it's nothing serious and a shot and a magic blue pill will fix the little furry sausage.