Our day started at 4:15am as we awoke to get to Valetta before 6am to catch the Catamaran to Sicily. We had done a fair bit of planning to map out the day as we only had 9 hours to see the sights, so while it was a very early start, we were very much looking forward to it.
After getting used to driving in Malta, I was a tad leery of having to drive from the right side of the car on the right side of the road. But I got the hang of things, and off we went.
Siracusa
Our first stop was the town of Siracusa, but more specifically the island of Ortigia with its baroque piazzas. Like many old European towns built in the 15-17th centuries, side streets wind around curves, climb up steep grades, or fall towards the sea. Balconies overhang the streets, cafes are everywhere, and people sell their goods from their front entrances.
At the centre of Ortigia is Piazza del Duomo, and the dominant feature in the piazza, is the cathedral. We didn’t venture inside but the baroque facade was added to the existing church between 1728-53, after a massive earthquake in 1693 pretty much destroyed a good part of Sicily. Even Malta was impacted by that earthquake.
Chiaramonte Gulfi
As we drove to our next stop, the small town of Chiaramonte Gulf, Kim commented on the fragrance, so we opened the windows and sure enough the entire valley had the scent of orange blossoms, a sweet floral scent. The roads wound up one hill, down the other side into the valley, S-curves everywhere…it was a beautiful drive. Dubbed the Balcone della Sicilia (Sicily’s balcony), Chiaramonte Gulfi had wonderful views of the valleys below.
Vittoria
Our last stop was the Occhipinti winery near Vittoria. This was a very interesting place…they grow tangerines, oranges, and lemons on site, and they also have olive trees that are over 100 years old. Gnarly old trees, they were small in size but large in character.
Ermanno was our guide, and although his English contained a heavy Italian accent, he was a wonderful passionate ambassador for the winery who showed us around the fields. They are an organic operation using various vegetable plants in the fields to introduce nitrogen into the soil. They also maintain a large vegetable garden and sell the crops to local restaurants. Composting plays a big role as they compost everything and use it as necessary to help in their overall operation.
It was then time for the reason Kim and Connie booked this place…to taste wine! Wineries have the best setups for wine tasting and this place didn’t disappoint. Those old olive trees produced an olive oil that was a wonderful dip for the crusty bread, topped off with an olive tapenade.
One can’t leave a winery empty handed, so we stocked up on some wines, olive oil, and a cookbook, before heading back to the catamaran to head back to Malta. Our 18 hour tour had us arriving back in Mellieha at 10:15pm…a long day but we experienced a small part of Southeastern Sicily which we are grateful for.
Sounds great! I’ll put it on my list.
Beautiful. Not surprised you opted for such an early start. Getting as much out of every experience. 🙂
Looks like an amazing day!
Connie sure loves early mornings! Bahaha! Sounds and looks like a wonderful excursion.
Wow! I definitely want to get to Sicily now. Those views! And those freakin’ olive trees!
What a spectacular excursion! That winery looks lovely and those olive trees are unbelievable. Missing everyone and so glad you are sharing these wonderful memories with us!