We had a long though uneventful passage to Sicily. The sea was calm, winds were just a little too light so we motor-sailed most of the way to keep our speed above 4.5 knots. We didn't see land for two days and the stars are wonderful that far out to sea. A Sirocco (the humid dusty south wind that blows from the Sahara) set in as we got close to Sicily so we couldn't see the island until we were a couple of miles off. Even Etna was invisible in the haze.
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| Siracusa Duomo |
We stayed in Siracusa for a few days until Marion and Hugh joined us. The harbour is safe enough but the Sirocco blew up strongly each afternoon and set up a vicious chop across the bay. Rosa was fine but dinghy rides would have been seriously hairy. We had to do everything before midday and then hunker down for the afternoon.
We had a particularly strong blow the day they arrived and I thought we might have a real problem getting ashore to pick them up. Fortunately by 2200 when their bus arrived from Catania, it had calmed down quite a bit and we all got aboard without incident.
We took a week to potter down to Licata - our booked wintering place visiting several harbors on the way.
Marzamemi was our first stop. The harbor is a fair size and it has no less than three "marinas" each of which is just a pontoon. We had called ahead to the most sheltered one - sharp to port as you go through the entrance and were glad we had. It's a nice friendly place with good shelter and only €25 for a night. The other 'marinas' are less well sheltered. There is considerable competition for visitors and we were first met by a rib from one of the others who tried to get us onto his pontoon. Then the rib from our booked 'marina' turned up and after some serious shouting in Italian, the first one backed off and we were helped in. There is non-potable water and electricity - both free. The town has no real facilities other than a good fish restaurant. Even the small mini-market is 3Km away but it's a pleasant little village and worth a stop.
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| Malta ferry in Pozzallo |
We stopped for a night in Pozzallo - the small harbour mentioned in the pilot is no longer viable - it seems that they have finally given up on the silting and have started to fill it in. Pontoons in the main harbour have been expanded a bit and we found a space but there are not many. There was no help, no apparent office and we even thought it might be free - but this is Italy so no such luck! The man with his hand out turned up in the morning and took €35 off us. The very smart ferry to Malta uses this port which we hope will be useful information later.
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| House in Marina di Ragusa |
Next day we pulled into Ragusa - to see our friends on Arwen and to check out the marina. It is very well appointed but huge with long distances to the toilets, office and shops. The town (actually called "Marina di Ragusa") is pretty though and has plenty of supplies. As always seems to be the case when a marina is expensive, water and electricity are extra. W tried to get a bus to the old town of Ragusa about 10 miles inland but failed miserably.
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| Cathedral in the old town of Ragusa |
We stayed a couple of days then went straight to Licata - a lovely calm trip with the wind behind us. The harbour is absolutely huge - it takes over an hour to walk from the end of the East quay to the end of the west one! It contains a commercial port, fishing port, boatyards, fish farms and the marina - which occupies a large space. The space is not yet full of pontoons so there is loads of manoevering room. The staff are very friendly, the facilities are reasonable and the town seems to have everything you could want. The only bugbears are the very quick fouling (possibly driven by the fish farms) and cars are horribly expensive.
Sicily has some wonderful sights - although a lot less open country and good walking than Crete. Nevertheless, it looks like being a good winter here.
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| Icarus and one of the 5 temples at Agricento |
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| The castle at Aci Castello near Catania |
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| Mosaics at Villa Romana del Casale - Ulysses & The cyclops |
We've settled nicely into Licata. Lots of things going on, good chandlers and supermarkets. We had some excitement a few days ago when Rainbow Warrior came to visit for a few days.