Southern Italy and Sicily

Hello everyone

 

We spent a lazy day on the beach at Igoumenista looking out towards Corfu as we waited for our ferry to Brindisi. The overnight crossing was calm, but sleep eluded us, and as dawn broke the skies were grey and it was raining!   

We headed south and stopped off at Gagliano del Capo on the southern tip of the ‘heel’ of Italy, where we caught up on sleep and washing and waited for the rain to stop. It was strange to see the campsite looking flooded and rivers of water flowing past the van, especially as we’ve had so little rain over the summer.

Two days later, the skies began to clear and we took the coastal road west, stopping at Cirò Marina before reaching Reggio di Calabria. The land is much flatter here in southern Italy compared with Greece, but there’s still the familiar sight of olive groves, orange and lime trees, and a huge cactus plant which produces red/orange fruit on the tip of each spike.

 

We then sailed from Villa san Giovanni to Messina on Sicily – a short but expensive ferry trip – where we met the chaos of Sicilian driving. The weather has improved, and we’re back to clear blue skies and temperatures of 25-28°C - blissful.

We’re currently on a camp at Olivetti on the northern coast enjoying the local area whilst deciding what to see and do whilst here on Sicily.

Will post again next week - love to all