June 8th, slow & Selinunte

June 7th ended with a splash, a splash of too much red wine.  Ahhh, the beauty of this trip is not trying to cram everything into a few short days.  I finally got rolling and we headed to nearby Selinunte to view the 2600 year old ruins.  Our drive was total backroads, Strada Provinciale (SP) as opposed to the Superstrada (SS) or Autostrade (A) roads, checking out the countryside and vineyards around SW Sicily.  We stopped for a minute and took in a great view overlooking a valley off SP79 and it just so happened there were about 2 dozen oranges on the ground, looked to have spilled from a truck or perhaps intentionally discarded as most were brown.  But not the one I picked up and ate, it was good; however it was so juicy I wouldn't recommend eating road refuse in the car.

We arrived in Selinunte, bought the full 6 Euro tix to see both the Temple and Acropolis, which required transport to a second location about 1k away.  We did not opt for the optional/additional cost golf cart transportation and walked to the Temple, a couple hundred meters.  It is huge, one of the largest Greek temples remaining, and its completely wide open to walk though.  While the Temple is now standing again, the surrounding area has a large number of unearthed ruins that are literally just piles of rocks.

 

If you look closely on the horizon left of the temple you can see the Acropolis. 

 

We hiked back to the car, enjoyed a granita di limone, think lemon slushee only much better, and took the car to the Acropolis.  The views from these spots make it very apparent why the Greeks, and later Arabs and Romans, coveted this area for not only beauty but security and the fertility of the land.

Acropolis drone video

 

 

The ruins were great but the Mediterranean was calling.  We hit up a beach on the way back to Sciacca, Lido Fiori, Via degli Oleandri, 19, 92013 Contrada Fiori Sud AG, Italy.  I really needed to get in the ocean.

 

The night ended with pizza and wine, trust me the wine is happening everyday whether mentioned here or not.  I had a Vulcano (spicy sausage and eggplant), Kathie a caprese pizza, from Pizzeria Arco Antica.  Tasty!

Ciao