Posted by SEGESTA, Archological Site.
The Train from Cefalu to palermo Airport took a while due to lots of stops but still a great way to travel. We got our car at the Airport after a 40 min wait due to incompetence …but that is another story! Off we headed to Erice, but first a stop at The Archaeological Park at Segesta. this site was first settled around the time of Troy and it is in legend that it was those fleeing Toy that settled here. the Greek Temple was built at least around 3rd century BC if not earlier and the town of Segesta with a population at its peak of around 10,000 people was a major centre in Sicily was situated on the hill above the temple where the Theatre was also built.
The Hills around segesta are fertile and the view from the Theatre is stunning looking towards the coast to the North and the mountains in between.
ERICE
Positioned on top of Monte San Guiliano at 750m above sea level the Messa that is Erice is an amazing place that is well worth more than a day trip to explore and understand. Erice is virtually on the coast and very close to the major centre of Trapani and dominates the region surronding with views to San Vito lo Capo to the North, The Egadi Islands to the west, Segesta and its hills to the south and all the way through to the other end of the Island and Mount etna to the East. the View below is from our Apartment in Erice on the morning after we arrived…and wow what a sight to wake up to. We had arrived to misty rain drizzle after scaling the 750 m along a 20 turn switchback road to the top so there was no vista to see at all.
Wandering the medieval streets when we arrived felt like we had stepped into a ghost town but the reality was that the rain had kept the tourists at bay from travellking up the funicular from Trapani so we were blessed with this amazing atmosphere virtually to ourselves as everyone was mostly indoors.
We asked our BNbB host about where to dine and she gave us a fabulous tip after i mentioned we liked things out of the ordinary and she directed us to the fabulous Wine bar “Domus Blanca Boutique & Lounge Bar” Not only was it beautifully decorated, it was eclectic, had an amazing wine list, the food was extraordinary and the service and Blues playlist was fabulous. Yes it was that good.
As the day cleared up and the sun decided to stay around the view just got better and better with the 10th cetury AD San Giovani church providing a fabulous foreground to the view.
The tourist groups started arriving and before we knew it they were everywhere (yes i know we are tourists to) so it got fairly full quickly as it is a very small town so we headed to the fringes to take in a different perspective, but not before exploring the beautiful Chiesa Maurice in Erice.
Built in 1314 with its exterior fully original it tells a very different story inside where a full overhaul was done in 1865 creating a very fine and highly intricate artisan vaulted cieling that is exquisite albeit maybe a bit out of character.
Wandering the back streets we found some lovely little gems and even a Norfolk island fine in someones back yard. There were old empty original churches, empty streets, a madonna and child painting in the middle of a street, and rustic chapels in small laneways.
These rare cycades love the altitude of Erice and are thriving on this terrace
Small little mueums and churches with only back doors opened up into delighful cortyards and the strange suspended nativity scene above was one of the more obscure things we found.
A big discovery was inside the Church of san Francisco where the sculpture art of wood, horse hair, plaster and paint casting was at its peak. these examples below of the stations of the cross are from the 15th to 16th centuries and are so life like.
We circumnavigated the Town on its triangualar shape which opened up the view even more in every direction.
The Erice Castello dominated the South East corner and looks south towards the centrec of the island and to the coast at Palermo the other way,
looking west to the Favignana Islands and Trapani in the foreground.
The Mountain slopes below Erice above and and the view east to the coast to Scopello below
The limestone cliffs show how strong this place was for defence from invaders which began with Phonecian settlers 5 thousand years ago to Carthaginians, Greeks, Romans, saracens, Normans and then the Spanish in later years.
The bird sculptures on lamp posts and other insallations are positioned all around the Castello Di Venere and the Giardino Del Palio.
Interesting courtyard gardens and the proliferation of Cats in Erice was facinating.
The sunset from the Bar Vinoteca Winimar terraza to the islands was stunning .
And the eveing view from our terrace was not bad either,
it was time to say goodbye to this lovely little town and our final breakfast on the Terrace was a nice way to say goodbye.
Looking back to the town from the road to Scopello.
On our way to Mondello we stopped off at Scopello on the way and ahad a swim and some lunch at a nearby beach.
