3. Sicily - Mosaics to Marsala

May 27, 2019

Covering 15 May to 20 May 2019

a particularly good flowery roundabout in central Sicily

To me, one of the most surprising things about Sicily is the number of world class archaeological sites even though I now know a bit more about their varied and warlike past. I always have trouble though visualising much of what is in front of me when what’s there is a litter of masonry. However, there is enough at the sites of whole cities here where only a few structures stand to be mightily

bird hunters checking out a tree for thrushes

impressed. After views of a few hill towns which tend to become indistinguishable after a remarkably short time we did head into the centre of the island to visit the Villa Romana del Casale, noted, and rightly so for the remarkably preserved mosaic flooring. The superstructure on the buildings is modern and meant to be seen as such. The result is impressive and it looks like one of those small reconstructions often seen at such sites but this is full scale and on top of the real thing. Very well done. Inside there are a whole series of rooms with almost unbelievably intricate mosaic pictures. There are some geometric designs but the eye-catching ones depict people and animals on a breathtaking scale and detail. The most impressive just has to be the Corridor of the Great Hunt which depicts capturing animals in Africa for transport to Rome for the arena. It’s sixty metres (186 feet) long ! The whole set of mosaics had been buried by mud following a flood and weren’t rediscovered until the 1950s. The one room that is mentioned everywhere is the sporty Room of the Ten Girls in Bikinis. For anyone considering visiting Sicily this villa is an absolute must see.

two pictures of details in the Corridor of the Big Hunt

just to show the size of the Corridor of the Big Hunt

the room of the ten girls in bikinis

beach volleyball ?

For the visit to the Villa Romana we stayed on what in our camping books was the only inland campsite in Sicily. We gave up on the sat nav getting us there when we were faced with a deeply rutted and muddy track apparently on the way to nowhere and eventually found the site by following the instructions in our book. It was actually a holiday complex with lots of other other accommodation and even though it was officially open we were the only people staying there. We laid in bed in the morning listening to Golden Orioles calling in the woods. It is the most beautiful clear bell-like fluting melodic sound and quite unmistakeable.

We have found that map reading here is less a science than an artform, perhaps more like divination. Roads usually have several different numbers, up to three usually. These are frequently different on the road signs compared to our maps and sat nav but nevertheless so far we have managed to get to where we want to go. We have seen some interesting places.

Now here’s a one question quiz for those of you who like such things. This photo is of a delicate two inch wide flower on a plant which grows all over the place in Sicily, particularly in rocky places. Any of you who enjoy Italian food will almost certainly have eaten the food product from it. So what is it ? Suggestions to me please and the answer will be in the next blog. The only prize on offer is a warm glow if you get it right.

I’ve remembered something I saw earlier in the trip while waiting for a train and forgot to mention before. An unremarkable young woman wandered past wearing an unremarkable pair of blue jeans and an unremarkable t-shirt. On the t-shirt was the slogan ‘Young Aspiring Artist’ but ‘Artist’ was crossed out and replaced by ‘Influencer’ ?! Really. Was this ironic, just plain ridiculous or just part of the whole cult of non-ebrity.

part of the Acropolis at Selinunte

and a heap of fallen rockblocks nearby

Temple E at Selinunte

and from a different angle

at the theatre, Segesta

While here we have taken the opportunity of visiting a fair number of those world class archaeological sites I mentioned above but I don’t intend to write in any detail about all of them because I think it would have limited appeal. I will just mention these. There were two cities which in BC times were very powerful and rich, Selinunte and Segesta, built around 500 - 600 BC) and which lay only forty or so miles apart in the west of Sicily. Both now lay in almost total ruin with only two buildings standing at each site. Selinunte has a temple and a number of pillars standing on the hilltop acropolis with various other temples reduced to what look like piles of giant unmarked dice scattered around. Segesta has a temple and a wonderfully situated Greek Theatre on a hilltop. At both sites the two buildings are over a mile from each other which illustrates how big the cities must have been at their peak, bearing in mind that the theatre and temples would probably not have been at the extreme edges of the towns.

the theatre at Segesta

the temple at Segesta

and from the other side

This seems to be a slight bike problem trip. Staying near Marsala, home of the famous Sicilian wine we decided to cycle in. It took an hour and partway we realised that the rear wheel on Heather’s bike was badly buckled. So much so that it rubbed on the brakes and it was like riding uphill all the way there and all the way back. We’d gone to see the remains of a Carthaginian warship from the 3^rd century BC. That’s what, roughly 2,300 years. Henry VIII’s Mary Rose sank fewer than 500 years ago. Oh, it was a Monday and the museum was closed. As for the bike, we called into a Bici repair shop and the wheel was replaced in ten minutes, the existing tube and tyre were transferred to the new wheel, total cost 25 Euros (£21) !