SICILY 2023
Trapani
Trapani is an interesting historic town where we ambled down its wide pedestrianised streets bordered with terraced restaurants, boutiques and churches. Wandering along its crescent-shaped coastline, we discovered the fish market where a fisherman was hosing down the stalls after a busy morning selling his catch. This had obviously been caught in the early hours of dawn and in one of the many wooden fishing boats moored in the harbour. Trapani’s pebble beach looked rather sad, strewn with dried seaweed and dotted with parasols whose palm fronds were dry and wilted. Perhaps it looked cheerier in the height of summer versus mid-September, but who were we to worry when our main focus was the historic places of interest, notably Segesta.
Segesta
In the midst of a barren hillside we found the temple of Segesta, a magnificent example of a well-preserved archaeological site. Built in the 5th century BC, it was never actually completed. The roof and interior may be missing, but its solid stone structure and over 30 doric columns make it one of Sicily’s most important historic sites. We visited Segesta in the late afternoon when there were very few people around, which allowed us to spend time exploring the temple letting our imaginations conjure up images of life over 2,500 years ago. We then hiked up to the nearby 3rd century BC ancient Greek amphitheatre, which looked perfectly intact. In fact a modern stage with sound and lighting systems indicated that it is still in use all these centuries later.
Erice
