Astoria Palace (Standard) Palermo

... to go to the South of Sicily and stay a couple of nights there. But, people from the hostel convinced me to stay and do day trips instead which was a good idea. I went to the towns of Cefalu, Mondello and Aggrigento. Going to the beach, checking out beautiful Italian women and laughing at the Italian male posers who were applying oil to their bodies, wearin budgy smugglers and taking photos of themselves to put as their profile pictures of facebook.

Cefalu and Mondello where ...

... and aubergine sandwiches, sweet custard filled croissants and our personal favorite Arancino (a deep fried rice ball stuffed with either meat, cheese or vegetables).

With our dreams slowly disappearing of being in India by January, and with weather on our side we decided to head out to Mondello to catch our last rays of summer sun on the beach.

Later that afternoon we went to see the Catacombs Dei Cappuccini, home to mummified ...

... seem like a Sunday afternoon cruise with grandpa driving. Sicilian drivers are nuts! They pay no attention to lane markings, for example, the only limit to the number of vehicles on a street is their physical size. And they drive very small cars. If you don't like the way the guy next to you is driving, you can reach over and slap him. Around all the cars and trucks are a constant swarm of scooters and ...

... fact that our door had been broken into and repaired with some sort of plaster was a little disconcerting, and the place was decorated with cheap plastic accessories, but it was very clean and it possessed a shower and a bed.

At that point we were just happy to have arrived. We showered, dressed, and headed out in search of food. We warmed somewhat to our host when on our way out he pointed at my purse, and warned, "Attenzione! Attenzione!" (Aw ...

We puttered around Palermo today - no tour or big destinations. Not
as hot as Tunisia yesterday, but still tiring. I think we are just a
little worn down. I think it must be an Italian law that every city
has spectacular cathedral built in the 1300's. It is too easy to get
Palermo, Sicily, Italy cpandjy

... we went out to another great restaurant in Scopello with cousin Nino and his family. I was a little worried about this visit because last time we came to that restaurant in 2007 I had a little stomach issue, they had only 1 coed bathroom and NO TOILET PAPER!! I still wake up in a cold sweat sometimes.

We had the best mussels in a red wine sauce. I think I had a little too much white house wine as I woke up for the airport a little ...

... and prayed for help. After the Castle was bombarded, the Virgin Mary and angels appeared and scared off the the British Army. See the video.

The night, as usual, ended with Uncle Tommy, Aunty Jo, Angela and I throwing back a few drinks and sharing some really funny stories.

Tomorrow will be a full day on a boat owned by my aunt Maria's friend. That is the same boat we were on tonight that gave us front row seats to the whole phenomenal show.

Ciao...

... uns die schönen Gebäude, wie zum Beispiel den Palazzo Reale nur von Außen ansehen. Die vielen schönen Fassaden überraschen mich und gefallen mir, genauso wie die Plätze mit Springbrunnen, die engen verwinkelten Gassen mit den obligatorischen Wäscheleinen quer über die Straße und natürlich die Kirchen.

Mit Palermo ist der italienische Teil der Kreuzfahrt erstmal erledigt. Morgen geht's nach Tunis und damit das erste Mal in meinem Leben auf einen anderen Kontinent

Well we finally arrived in Palermo and it turns out to be a pretty cool city with a lot to offer. We found a great market and even found some Belgian beers at some small bar. Not too much to say about our stay here, Justin meet up with a guy who is going to open up a brew pub come next June and wants Justin to be his ...

Call it flexibility ! Disgusted with the touting in morocco, we miserably retreated in Paris and drew a new itinerary, meant to be as diarrhea and tout free as possible and yet sunny. Hence, there we are in freezing Palermo, under a bright blue sky ans lush palm trees, all bundled up in our Taiga gear. And , believe it or not, Sicilians do not have central heating. Hotels have no heat, nor do ...