Sicily

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We made it to Sicily …

To get to the hotel we had to get past Palermo, or rather through it.  We were on their equivalent of the Edgware Road and the Hendon Way all in one.  Lane discipline went out of the window, if the traffic slows everybody changes lane like a game of musical chairs at 90kmph.  Great fun, Bunty either had her eyes closed or was mouthing obscenities at fellow travellers.

It turned out to be a long day, Sicily?  Like the Isle of Mann isn’t it?  Took us 2 hours to get from the ferry port, Messina, to the hotel.  No sign of active volcanoes, but that’s a trip for another day.

The day before was weirder.  We were driving from Norma, which is South of Rome to Acquappesa, which is South of Naples.  We avoided the toll roads for the first bit and went down the coast.  Turns out we’re on the Via Apia, which I guess is what we’d call the Apian way.  Miles and miles, dead straight and lined with Cyprus trees the whole way. 

As we got near to Naples we decided to get onto the toll road, the normal roads sounded like they were shredding my tires.  Every expansion joint is in a bad shape, every bridge we crossed was accompanied by wedumph wedumph - - wedumph wedumph etc.  The junction to the toll road approach was an elevated cart track.  A complete cloverleaf interchange made of crumbling concrete and unmade gravel surfaces.  Got to the hotel in time to see the sunset though.

On a more prosaic note, we’ve noted fag butt burns in very strange places, on top of bog roll holders could be excused, but we’ve seen plastic tooth brush mugs that have obviously been used as ashtrays (virtually melted) and around a plastic shower tray.

This is the view from the bedroom of our current residence.  Warm in the sun, freezin’ at night.