Goodbye Anapo, Resting Blue and the Last Day of Exploring Sicily

First, I must say that this will be our last day of exploring Sicily THIS TRIP.  As our friends and neighbors, Seth and Julia predicted, this amazing island at the tip of the boot has won our hearts.  We already are talking about what parts of Sicily we want to investigate on our next trip.  Our only adjustment may be to arrive about a month later (in April), for slightly warmer days.  But the wonder of enjoying Siracusa, Noto, Ragusa and the Anapo Valley mostly in the company of only Sicilians was a little magical -- and worth a jacket.  Note that almost every picture has great sunshine, so had we not been cycling, we likely would barely have noticed the weather.

This is the final post for this trip.  We're in Rome now for our rendezvous with school pals, double-checking return travel and exploring a bit on foot.  In less than 24-hours, we'll commence return travel.

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Last Team Shot (Taken at Sacre Pietra)

Little Blue: At rest after ~200 miles

Our final day of day of riding dawned clear and sunny.  Vincenzo kindly snapped a team shot of Team ABCD before we pedaled our way out of the Anapo Valley and rejoined time and traffic on the outskirts of Siracusa.  We got back to town and the Hotel Gutowski -- where we happily were reassigned to the same terrace room overlooking the sea -- just before the markets closed.

This happy circumstance allowed us to get one more plate of sweet Pachino tomatoes and market-fresh calamari (grilled out of doors while we sipped wine), for lunch before browsing the streets, sites and shops of Siracusa and Ortigia.  

Fishing Boats along the Siracusa - Ortigia Harbor

Since we spent our first day only in Ortigia, we headed back over one of the harbor bridges to Siracusa to visit the Roman Amphitheater and Greek Theatre.  The two sites (located very close to one another and only about a 30-minute walk from Ortigia) require just one ticket for admission and, in our view, well worth the 10 euro price.  Syracusa is rich in ancient history -- the home of both Plato and Pythagoros -- tand he includes the ruins of structures created from the 5th-2d centuries, BC.  The Roman amphitheater once the site of huge public sacrifices (to Zeus and other Roman deities) was surprisingly well preserved in structure and design.  I found it almost impossible to overlook the seats and theater below and not to recall all of the Roman gladiator movies from my youth.  Apparently, around 330 AD, the bloody performances came to an end and a kinder gentler Siracusa was born (ok, that last part is completely my desired result).

The Greek Theater in Siracusa

The Greek Theater, slightly larger and much more intact than the amphitheater, is amazing not only in design and construction, but also by virtue of the fact that Sicily still hosts classical theater programs on the site each summer.  Beginning in 1914, Sicily revived the performances of the ancient classics that debuted on the site over 2,500 years ago! 

Grotto de Museion

Orecchio di Dionisio

And just above the Greek Theater, we found the Grotto de Museion, where the aqueduct has flowed for thousands of years.  This was particularly interesting to us as Vincenzo (from the Anapo Valley) explained to us that the water in his well, which he showed us, also was sourced from this site.  Nearby, we visited the Orecchio de Dionisio -- an enormous limestone cave (whether man made or natural is an unsettled matter) where the Greeks are said to have held prisoners.  And if Orecchio sounds (no pun intended) familiar, it may be because it is the Italian word for ear.  Legend has it that the acoustics of the cave enabled Dionysius to hear the whispers of his most dangerous prisoners.  The other commonly repeated idea about the cave is that sounds echo sixteen times in the chamber.  While I don't know if that is true, what is true is that it seemed impossible to remain quiet in the cave (lots of hoo's and ooh's -- and we had it all to ourselves).

So, the journey was ending and all left to do was to collect a few gifts and art memories before organizing our bags for the movement toward Rome in the morning.  Shopping in Ortigia?  We recommend you investigate the ceramic work. These are many unique-to-Sicily items (finding it in Sicily does not mean you will also find it elsewhere in Italy). 

Love the caption here: "This is Art"

Early on the morning of 18 March, we bade farewell to A&B, and headed back to Catania for our flight to Rome.  At one point, a slightly fuming Mount Aetna appeared through the windshield of our cab.  Then, with a wave and a promise to return, we were gone.

Mount Aetna ahead as we approach Catania

Chip and Dale's Rome Reunion (The event that got Sicily on the calendar)