|
||||
|
||||
| Another beautiful day......at breakfast, we see tell tale signs of another guest and we had noted an open window in one of the rooms--so maybe we were not alone. We take a last stroll around the gardens of our "private estate" and then pack up the car. We make a quick detour to the town of Porto Empedocle to do a Montalbano research expedition. The town is a port town with a big abandoned factory on the outskirts. The water is an incredible shade of blue. The town itself is sort of rundown....there is a some Sunday morning activity on the main street but no obvious signs of Camilleri or Montalbano. [Note: I later read in an Italian newspaper that the town iss having a Montalbano celebration the next week.] We make a quick circuit of town and then begin the drive to Ragusa which should take about two hours. The first part goes along the south coast of Sicily....a mostly undeveloped area. We see the omnipresent plastic "greenhouses" everywhere and catch some glimpses of the water. We make a stop in the town of Licata, which starts out drab but as we approach the busy centro, begins to show some character and life--some picturesque streets and grand palazzi. There is a large port here..ferries leave for the Pelagie Islands. The American forces had landed between Licata and the next city (Gela) in July 1943 to begin their assault on Sicily. Continuing along the coast, the beach is very sandy, the water is very blue and there is little sign of development, except for an occasional beach facility at intervals along the coast. We choose not to drive through Gela and turn inland here for the road to Ragusa. As we climb higher away from the sea, the scenery changes dramatically. The hills are greener and more attractive...the road is quite curvy and gives us lovely vistas as we get closer to Ragusa Province. At one point, we are on a flat plateau with the higher mountains looming in the distance. We follow the road in the direction of Ragusa and discover that we are being routed away from the mountains..a longer route without the steep curvy road shown on the map. We make a u-turn and head for the curvy, scenic road. It twists its way up the side of the hill....giving us great views back over the plain to the sea. Our entrance into Ragusa takes us through the very undistinguished commercial suburbs before hitting the "new town"....constructed after the earthquake of 1693. "Modern" Ragusa is laid out with very straight streets crisscrossing on the side of a hill.....the streets are quite steep. The town is split by several ravines....deep gorges with high bridges spanning them. Our first impression on entering Ragusa is not good....the streets don't seem to have much charm and the public spaces are not very inviting to hang out in. The hotel is right in the middle of town.....a very unattractive modern building called the Mediterraneo Palace. We check in....the garage is located under the hotel, but you have to drive down into the ravine to enter it. The room itself is modern but beginning to look rundown...the carpet is badly stained The airconditioning is not on yet and the windows open right on the main street....giving it the potential of being noisy. When I ask for a room at the back, we are told that they only have twin beds on that side. We have a quick lunch in the hotel bar....undistiguished stuffed turnovers and rice balls.....it is not a very appetizing setting. The outside area of the bar is even worse....cigarette butts on the floor everywhere. We go out for a short walk near the hotel but there are not many people around and the streets are not that attractive. We take the car out and head for the historic area--the lower town of Ragusa Ibla. This was rebuilt in the old style so there are narrow, curvy streets, attractive piazzas and much more inviting atmosphere. In order to get from the "new" town to Ibla, you have to descend into the ravine and climb up the other side.....a very dramatic descent and ascent. We park on a side street in Ibla (we are asked to move our car by the lady whose front door we are blocking) and walk up to the main piazza where we catch our first glimpse of the Duomo. The duomo of San Giorgio is a spectacular church....a masterpiece of Sicilian Baroque. It was designed by Gagliardi and has the beautiful soft curved front decorated with columns and a minimum of excess decoration. It is sited at the top of a short flight of broad steps which ascend from the piazza, set off at a slight angle, on an incline and lined with rows of palm trees. This is the location shown in the opening of the Montalbano television series as a helicopter shows a dramatic aerial view of Ragusa Ibla and the duomo. It is also has been used as a location for other films, especially Kaos, directed by the Taviani brothers, based on the short stories of Luigi Pirandello. It is a very pleasing church in a very striking setting. Today the piazza is filled with a competition having something to do with floral decorations......there appear to be teams from various Italian regions who have to make displays using exactly the same flowers and vegetables as well as plastic foliage--sort of an "iron chef" for flower designers. As best as I can make out, the competition is sponsored by a manufacturer of plastic materials to make flower arrangements. We walk around and examine the various displays as they are being put together. We stop in store that sells embroidered lace...one of Diana's favorites...and she sees a piece that she likes very much. The lady who runs the store tells her that she has a "bell'occhio"--a good eye for the best quality. Diana buys it. After a short gelato break, we walk through the town making a short stop in the public gardens, which are beautifully landscaped and well tended. I think that we should have stayed in this part of Ragusa....but it is very hilly, parking is at a premium and there aren't many hotels in the old town. We head back to the hotel.....there is a big event being held in the street in front of the hotel...the culmination of a race car rally. A crowd is watching the presentation of awards; each recipient drives their car up on the stage to accept their prize and receive a round of applause from the audience. This is right in front of the hotel and we hear all the proceedings very clearly and loudly. I head out for a walk--it is time for the passeggiata--but Diana stays in the room--she doesn't have a good feeling about the town and the rally seems to be dominating everything. The passeggiata is in fact nothing special...and I return to the room very quickly. We go down to the garage to take the car out to go to dinner...only to find it blocked in by a big van that is connected to the race. It turns out that the driver had not left the key with the hgotel desk clerk and there is no way to get a hold of him, so we can't use the car. We head out to one of the few restaurants that are open on Sunday and within walking distance of the hotel. It turns out that we have a great dinner.....this restaurant is not in any book but we have wonderful food and extremely friendly service. Diana has prosciutto and melon to start which is excellent. I have a pasta dish with prosciutto and cheese which is terrific. Diana's pasta--fagottini (little pasta pockets) with pear and cheese--is one of the best dishes she has had on the trip. The charming young waiter says it is his favorite also. We share a white pizza...just oil, salt and oregano--which is better than any pizza we have had in Italy--and a plate of carpaccio with arugula and parmesan cheese which is perfectly done. The waiter recommends a local white wine which is easy to drink and tasty. A very fine meal....and an unexpected surprise. We expect that we will come back at least once during our stay in Ragusa. |
||||
|
||||