This was in many ways the most memorable day of the trip. Sarah, Scott, and i braved the rain (which had gone strong overnight but was tapering off by the time we left in the morning) to ride up the Belice Valley towards the center of the country. The first memorable thing about the day was the mud, which was, in turns, hilarious, disgusting, and demoralizing. Then our route took us past the old and new sites of several towns that were destroyed in a 1968 earthquake, and whose populations relocated entirely. Finally, between the mud and the various stops, we did not make good time on our 65km route, and were caught out substantially after dark, sharing a single set of lights which Scott was smart enough to have packed along. I want to put a warning on this page - i included a lot of photos of buildings (mostly houses) ruined by the 1968 earthquake and in various states of partial destruction. So as you scroll down, that's what you're going to see, and some of you might like to know that in advance.
view out the window of our room - it might be a wet day |
view out the door of our room - flooding on the walkway |
Casa di Latomie in the rain |
our bikes in a stack - looks like we have reflective tape on the rims |
cloudy sky behind bushes |
sunrise at Casa di Latomie |
sunrise panorama from Casa di Latomie |
sunrise at Casa di Latomie |
one more sunrise photo |
rows of olive trees |
olive trees by the roadside |
tall grass by the side of the road |
So... you know how it rained a bunch overnight a few photos ago? That's a thing that happened |
Scott tries to stay out of deep water |
splash! |
the view from my handlebars |
Sarah does not bother staying out of deep water |
Sarah and Scott, underway |
fountain outside of Partanna |
hexagons |
A 14-fold symmetric design, or 'we just put some rocks in and didn't bother to count them.' Who can say? |
sign appealing to the civic virtue of Partanna residents |
slow down, purple flowers! |
we stop at a bar in Partanna to make sure we're going the right way, and order espresso |
mountain view from Partanna |
panorama from the high point of Partanna |
view from Partanna |
Why is there a giant rolling pin here? Why did i take a picture of it? Life is mysterious |
many many windmills, seen from Partanna |
castle in Partanna's main square |
church next to Partanna's main square |
plant with bonus burrs of some sort |
Partanna main square |
plaque in Partanna main square |
time to stop futzing around taking photos in Partanna and hit the road again |
So, there's a scenic ruin here, and some mountains, but i'd like to draw your attention to the wild dog. I haven't said much about this yet in these photos, but wild dogs were kind of a problem for us, on this trip. This particular one was okay; it followed us, but never tried to attack. |
after our leisurely stint in a hilltop town, we encounter... more mud |
countryside |
Sarah biking in the countryside |
at this point, the mud started to get serious |
also that dog was still following us |
my front tire, caked in mud |
these boots are made for getting covered in mud |
my rear brake (waitasec, i might need that at some point) |
we are no longer stealthy |
Sarah was in the lead, and rode through a muddy patch... which she then promptly recommended that the rest of us walk through |
a very welcome fountain, at which we stopped for awhile |
the road behind |
more directional signs |
So, the concrete thing in the middle of the hillside is actually what it looks like - a town-sized patch of concrete. It's the ruins of the town Gibellina, which was destroyed (and relocated) after a devastating 1968 earthquake in West Sicily. The ruins of the old town were encased in concrete as a monument. |
fields, next to a spot where we stopped to rest in the shade (notwithstanding the mud, it was very hot) |
closer view of the Ruderi di Gibellina |
more earthquake ruins |
countryside |
the Ruderi di Gibellina on their hillside |
ruins of a building by the roadside |
a cemetary |
the Ruderi di Poggioreale - this was another town destroyed by the same earthquake, but the decision was made to keep the buildings in place as they were and let them decay |
the Ruderi di Poggioreale on their hillside |
A reassuring view of (Nuova) Poggioreale - the new home of the destroyed city |
there are suddenly very many sheep on the road where we had just been biking |
the sheep situation is under control |
buildings in ruined Poggioreale |
buildings in ruined Poggioreale |
a building in ruined Poggioreale |
a ramp |
the main street |
inside a building |
through a door |
a building |
wiring at the corner of a building |
side of a building |
through a door |
tree growing from a ruined building |
interior of ruined building |
stairwell |
cactus growing from a wall |
interior of ruined building |
interior of ruined building |
graffiti in ruined Poggioreale |
scaffolding |
ruined building |
town square |
town square |
stairwell |
ruined building |
ruined building on the edge of town |
looking down at Nuova Poggioreale from the ruined town |
side street |
part of an informational sign outside the town gate |
back among the mud and hills as we leave the Ruderi di Poggioreale |
careful inspection of my bike's chain revealed the surprising cause of the shifting trouble i'd started having |
In Poggioreale, we stopped for some food, and also took our bikes to the carwash. Here's the 'before' shot |
during... |
After! Of course, the car wash took off all the chain lube, but, still, having clean bikes was a big morale boost |
the countryside, seen from our clean bikes |
Sarah, enjoying the view from her clean bike |
Again!? (the clean bike phase did not last very long) |
another muddy hill (also note that it's starting to get dark) |
we've arrived and showered, and get to enjoy the triumph of antipasti! |
wagon wheel chandelier at dinner |
plates and pans on the walls |
Some sort of pasta. Everything our charismatic host Paolo served was very tasty |
We chat with the other two people staying at the B&B, a pair of Dutch women who are touring with the same company we are |