Today was a travel day, where we bid farewell to Trecastagni and headed southward to Noto. We waited to say goodbye to our genial and most helpful and accommodating host, Giuseppe. He was of great assistance in giving us advice about what to see and do while in the Etna area.
Mer did a great job of getting us to Noto, but finding our AirBnB was a bit of a nightmare. It is in an older part of the town with very narrow streets and of course like most of Sicily, nothing is flat. With Richard’s help we managed to get to the flat and find a place to park. Once we had dropped off our bags and got oriented, we headed down to the old part and grabbed a quick lunch. We decided we would explore Noto more tomorrow, but today wanted to head out to Vendicari, a nature preserve not too far from Noto along the coast. It is an area where there are lagoons, cut off from the sea, where many migratory birds, such as storks, pink flamingoes and herons, find sanctuary. Also there are the remains of a tuna processing plant which dates back to the 1600s. It is a lovely walk through the reserve and along the coast with several beaches where you can relax and enjoy the sea and sun.
Headed back to Noto with a stop at a grocery store to pick up some supplies for our stay here. Back to the flat to rendezvous with Irv, who chose not to come with us to Vendicari. His leg is really giving him grief and we noticed this morning a large bruise on the back of his leg from where he fell off his bike on the first day of the bike tour. He’s been a real trooper, but is in a fair bit of pain, especially walking downhill, which here is a real issue!
We decided that takeout would be the thing to do for dinner so Mer, Richard and I set out to find a pizzeria and a homemade pasta place. The pizzeria we found no problem and left Richard there to order his pizza. But it seemed to take forever and a lot of winding our way to get to the pasta place. But it was worth the walk. The ravioli and sauce were delicious. We found our way back much more quickly and enjoyed our dinner, washed down with the bottle of wine Irv had bought at Murgo yesterday. A game of dice ended our evening.