Bla Bla Car – 西西里的「泥鯭的」 Carpool/Ridesharing in Sicily

在香港生活，大家一定會知道什麼是「泥鯭的」。在荃灣，聽說每個上班的早上，也會有「泥鯭的」接市民到火炭上班，大家湊夠4-5人就最好，每人20元，到火炭後便各自下車，不用朝朝排隊等小巴。

在西西里呢? 原來也有類似的服務，更是由一間BlaBlaCar 公司經營，在很多地方如德國、西班牙、巴西、其他歐洲城市、印度等也有服務，網站也說只要乘客是經網站找車，公司會幫乘客買保險呢，保險公司為AXA。

外國城市與城市間的路程遠，在交通發達的城市，火車、巴士、大巴當然不是問題，可是在西西里，巴士火車不算十分方便，有些城市班次更少，早上一班，下午一班，很難就時間，所以，有了Bla Bla Car確實不錯。

上一次在西西里，本想由Trapani到Marsala 看鹽田，由於不是旺季, 發現只有火車可以到達，而且不是中心地點，時間十分差，最早的是上午6:54分，第2班就已是中午12時了，車費3.8歐，真的不明白為什麼早上其他時候沒有火車?

在沒有選擇而又不想錯過機會，於是決定一試Bla Bla Car。

幸運地，由Trapani到Marsala，每日也會有同一位西西里人走這條路線，出發是大約早上9時，每位收3歐羅，和搭火車就差不多價錢呀。於是便嘗試在網上SEND MESSAGE給他。當然在決定聯絡他前，也可以看看有沒有其他人對他的評價，甚至乎他在facebook和Linkedin有多少朋友等，至少這樣不必擔心他是白撞，加上有好評價的就更加好。

Send message 大約10分鐘後，他竟然回覆了!十分興奮，來回了幾次MESSAGE，主要是告訴他我住近PORT，可以大家約定在哪裡上車，交換電話等等。因為未正式搭過他的車 (在網上也會顯示他是揸什麼車的)，也不敢說回程也希望一起，始終也是安全為上。

第二朝，按時到約好的地點等他，也不知道他是什麼樣子，但也不用擔心，我們兩個明顯亞洲人樣，相信對他來說一定易找，等了5分鐘，果然他出現了，而且他的私家車更是很新淨~!!!!!!!!!!!! 超級開心! 他人也十分NICE，外表望落十分友善，所以已經不用擔心。一路上也簡單談了一點，因為老公坐前面乘客位(也是安全為上)他不懂意大利文，就兩個沒甚交談吧。

到了Marsala，他說下午大約6時點Trapani，如果我們想，也可以載我們回去! 這當然好啦~!!!! 也先給他6歐羅，回程再另計，免得中途雙方有什麼行程改變也不用麻煩。

講回Bla Bla Car 這類運作的公司，當然我也有上公司網頁了解怎樣運作、賺錢，他們也詳細列明自己怎樣讓用家安心，甚至有「Ladies Only」選擇，女的一個人旅行不想找男司機，透過這個選擇，便可篩選女司機，所以整體上也可以放心。而且喇，Bla Bla Car也不只是在西西里的，在歐洲其他國家例如英國、德國等也有呀~所以也不錯。至少，也不用私人包車的這麼貴，遇著好的當地人和好的車，更不用擔心。

以上只是我個人的旅遊經驗，是否安全可靠，大家請自行到BlaBlaCar 的網站詳細研究，才決定是否一試!

網址︰https://www.blablacar.co.uk/

後記︰Giuseppe原來是做IT生意，住在Trapani，在Marsala上班，每天揸車來回，路程30分鐘，這樣的日子已過了30年。他不太懂英文，所以我們以意大利文溝通，他有一仔一女，大仔在意大利中部讀書，原來他們在學校要學法文和英文，常用的話他們也沒問題，但像Giuseppe沒太多機會說英文，所以就忘記了~

Living in Hong Kong, I believe that many of you know what is “泥鯭的” (Car Pool/ Ridesharing). In Tsuen Wan, every morning, some “泥鯭的” will take a ride for 4-5 people who may not know each other but, also work in Fo Tan, for around $20 each. Once arriving at Fo Tan, people get off the taxi nearby their offices, saving the cost and time from waiting for mini-bus with long queue and also sharing the taxi cost with some strangers.

So what about in Sicily? There is a similar service provided by BlaBlaCar, on its website, it has operated in many countries, such as Germany, Spain, Brazil, other European cities, India, etc., it also said that all passengers are covered by insurance for free, too (with partnership with AXA).

Transport is always an important element during your travel. In those developed countries and cities, trains, buses, coaches are convenient with frequented choices, however, in Sicily where public transport is already not a good option for tourists, usually with less frequency, e.g. only one in the morning and another one in the afternoon, Bla Bla Car is indeed quite a good choice.

Last time when I was in Sicily, I wanted to visit Marsala for its Salt Pan from Trapani, however, June is not the peak season and the only choice getting there is Train. But the timetable was really suck, the first bus in the morning is 6:54am and the 2^nd one is 12pm!!!! Cost: Euro3.8. I really don’t understand why there’s no other train service in the whole morning?

Anyway, without choice, I decided to try Bla Bla Car.

Luckily, I searched that there is a local called, Giuseppe who drives from Trapani to Marsala, and vice versa every day from Monday to Friday, and the set off time is around 9am. He just charges 3euro per person, which is indeed a similar price as taking train. Therefore, I sent a message via Bla Bla Car and hopefully could get response from him. (as in the website, it showed that he didn’t get online for quite a few months) Of course before sending message to him, I did check others’ comments and at least, he did offered rides to the others in the past. Good comments from the others of course would be of great help!

And I received his reply after around 10 minutes! BRAVO! After a few message exchanges, I told him we stayed near the port and agreed on the waiting location, exchanged phone number, etc. As after all I haven’t met him and didn’t know who he is, I didn’t want to promise for the return ride first, although it would be great if I can do so.

On the next day morning, we waited for him at the agreed location. I didn’t know how he looks like but it’s luckily that we were the only Asians there so it would be easier for him to locate us. After 5 mins, he arrived with his car (it’s quite a new one how lucky we were!) and he’s very nice and friendly. We talked for a while during our trip, since my husband doesn’t speak Italian and he sat beside him (that’s better as it was our first time taking his trip), so they barely chatted at all.

After arriving at Marsala, he said that he would drive back Trapani at around 6, if we wanted to, he could give us another ride, too. Of course, after this pleasant trip, I said yes! But I gave him 6euro first for this morning ride although at the beginning, he said we can give it to him after our return trip.

Talking about Bla Bla Car, I did research about this company and its policy on its website before sending message to Giuseppe. And indeed, they not only operate in Sicily, but also other European countries like England, Germany, etc. So I think it’s trustable. And at least, it saved me a lot of money from renting a private car to Marsala!

This was all my own experience on BlaBlaCar, afterall, please go to its website and study the details, check the FAQ and decide yourself whether it’s safe or not.

Website: https://www.blablacar.co.uk/

Epilogue: Giuseppe owns a IT company (but only himself as staff), he lives in Trapani and his office is in Marsala, therefore, he drives to work every day for 30 mins and back home afterwards. This has been last for 30 years! He doesn’t speak good English so we communicate in Italian. He has a son and a daughter, the son is studying University in Central Italy. He said that in the school, they have to learn French and English but if they don’t use it often, they just forget it!

Slide into the Mediterranean Sea 瀡入地中海 (Citta del Mare, Terrasini)

游泳池的瀡滑梯大家一定玩過，小兒科。
大型水上樂園坐住水泡轉好幾個彎沖落泳池? 濕濕碎。
海洋公司舊時的五彩天梯?  最多咪個心離一離，冇問題。
直接瀡入地中海，又點呢?

自去兩年前係互聯網上見到呢一張相，我一直都好想去玩。滑梯睇落唔係高、又唔係太斜，但最後一條滑梯直接瀡入咁大、無窮無盡既「超級大泳池」，我只會諗，我係咪真係會浮得返上黎? 大海唔似泳池咁有特定高度，瀡得勁，你都會掂到池底，然後手手腳腳撐下撥下，又會游返上黎，但係瀡入地中海，究竟入面有D咩?

重點係，究竟我夠唔夠膽瀡?

呢條滑梯係西西里西北面既Terrasini，名為Citta del Mare 既hotel village內，其實係度假村特別設計的游水設施，基本上只有住客才可以享用設施。所以，一直都冇諗過有機會去玩。(去西西里冇理由唔去又藍又清既沙灘而去度假村嘛)

今年6月，又去西西里旅行，撞正開始游泳季節，一定要去游水啦。本來SEARCH 住一晚要幾錢，嘩，3000蚊? 冇睇錯嘛~ 諗住1000蚊都會考慮下，但點解平日、又唔係星期六日、又唔係咩特別日子 (後來發現6月1日係意大利國慶)，點解咁貴，所以都放棄左呢個念頭。

輾輾轉轉在安排一切行程後，因為決定去睇歐國盃，又要改行程，咁橋手痕再睇下係咪真係咁貴，嘩! 600蚊唔洗? 唔理3721，即刻BOOK! 一於要試下瀡落地中海。

其實酒店位置既唔方便，Terrasini近Palermo，離Palermo機場只係15-20分鐘車程，但係機場冇車直達，從西西里主要城市Palermo 或Trapani出發，都要轉幾次車。

我前一晚係Trapani，最初諗住先搭去Castellamare del Golfo (一個很靚既地方)，再轉車去酒店，但去Castellamare del Golfo一係早上8點，一係就下午，冇理由咁晏先去到，但8點又太早，我住既地方又唔近火車站，加上，去到Castellamare del Golfo又要等多幾個鐘先有車接駁去酒店，而火車站又唔近市中心，又要一段路先去到巴士站，揹住大背囊好唔方便。

另一個方法係先去Palermo，再轉大巴，因為由Trapani去Palermo較多班次，一來唔洗咁早起身，二來接駁既大巴時間又不錯，可以去到Palermo食完LUNCH就再搭車，所以最後決定用呢個方法。(係地理上好奇怪，明明Terrasini係Trapani 同Palermo之間，又，間酒店唔係Terrasini中心)

去到酒店，因為係平日，加上未係暑假旺季，所以好快就可以上房，二話不說去睇下個滑梯，其實有個名叫Toboggan。

先講酒店，係網上好多評價都好一般，因為間酒店其實都有點舊，設施好一般，D人話服務又慢，等CHECK-IN 都要等一個鐘，又話職員唔識講英文，仲要係你要買張卡入錢，先可以去餐廳食野，唔可以係餐廳直接俾錢，所以D人都話只係為左個SLIDE而黎。

去到呢，可能EXPECTED THE WORSE，比想像OKAY，D人識講英文既，不過同佢講意大利文確實方便很多 (by the way 搭大巴司機未必識講英文，搭大巴要小心落車地點)。房間呢，係一般舊式少少既裝修喇，但OKAY啦~唔係殘，大部份都有個露台，對住個海可以望日落日出添!

至於餐廳呢，由於酒店位處偏遠，周圍都唔會有野食，冇車唔洗旨意出去，所以都一定只可留係酒店。酒店地圖寫有3間餐廳，但6月唔係旺季，只有一間開，早午晚都係食自助餐，野食係接受到既，唔難食既，款式都唔會太多唔會太少，每人午餐又好晚餐又去，都係15歐羅，仲要包水同紅白酒，OKAY啦

泳池有3大個，其中一個係標準奧運池，聽講會有世界各地泳隊去訓練，有時會BLOCK左幾條線。另一個就好似冇咁深，適合小朋友，第三個就係滑梯果個喇。

由於係類似度假酒店，佢地會有唔同活動舉辦，例如YOGA, 小朋友跳舞等等，不過唔知邊度會有時間表，所以睇黎都係要去問先知。

另外，酒店都有安排車去附近一個沙灘，每人5歐羅，都唔錯。

好喇~重點講返滑梯，其實全長係分左4部份，頭3部份係瀡入泳池，最後一條先係瀡入地中海，頭3條應該唔會驚，但事實上係，我竟然有恐懼感，會諗，我會唔會中途瀡唔到? 瀡左落去識唔識浮返上黎? 浮完又游唔游到幾步去另一條?

點解咁問? 其實我…. 唔係好識游水，上年先叫做學識，但未試過係一個水深過頭既地方游過水，香港既滑梯瀡到落去，我一定企得返起身唔洗驚，去到一睇? 頭3個池至少150-160CM深，噢…其實….真係深過我。

好啦~先試下游水先，爭扎左好耐，先肯放開水試游幾步，OKAY! 唔會浸親 (但未試過停住唔郁，因為成日都唔明，點解D人係水度可以唔係游緊水，而係打直咁企係度郁) 再爭扎左好耐，終於試左第一級滑梯………….明明我老公試過，話唔係好快好順，要郁下先瀡到，點解我瀡得咁快? 落左水，見到水底，浮得返上黎喎~! 鬆一 口氣，試埋同級另一個打直落的，又再爭扎，OKAY! 冇問題! 不過雖然短，但都好快，同埋一瀡落去，隻手係掂到池底的，心諗，咁地中海冇底，我會唔會一直沉到好底，要有排先浮得返上黎? 夠唔夠氣架?

瀡左3條，仲係有D驚，老公已經瀡左幾次落地中海，雖然海水凍，不過都好玩，同埋發現好多意大利人識游水既都唔敢玩。

心癢癢。。。。最後決定把心一橫，試一次，但差唔多5點幾，越黎越涼，又諗住聽日先，所以就冇玩。

第二早，食完早餐再去玩，又要攪左好耐先去瀡頭幾條滑梯，每次都繼續驚，仲有個7、8歲同9,10歲既兄妹係咁叫我試，話唔驚，試啦~冇事架，見佢地兩個玩得咁開心 (普通滑梯，小朋友唔准玩最後果條)，都好想玩。

唔知點解，我去到第3條，唔敢瀡，冇得解，明明尋日先瀡完。但個心，真係好想試瀡落地中海，擾攘大半個鍾，我想說︰

堅。淆底。

就係咁，我竟然冇瀡到，心有戚戚然。究竟，我幾時會再黎呢度呢?

不過大家唔洗擔心，打左咁長篇，冇瀡，但我有拍片，老公點樣瀡入地中海，同埋，大家估下瀡入地中海果刻，係海底會見到D咩?

(最後，可能係淡季，CHECK-OUT果日要10點CHECKOUT, 可以寄存行李繼續去玩，因為我地5:45先搭車去機場，但可能你會問，玩完游水點算? STAFF俾左是但一間房我地去沖涼，所以唔洗怕冇得換衫，不過旺季當多日唔知有冇呢個服務)

Taking slides in a swimming park is nothing special.

What about a giant slide with several turns at a Huge Swimming Park? Well…. It’s easy.

So what about taking a slide which directly put you directly into the sea?

2 years ago I have seen a photo of a slide on the internet, I have been hoping to go there for long time. The slide is not a big nor tall one, not steep, but the last part of the slide goes directly into a “big swimming pool”! I thought, can I float back to the surface? A sea is not like a swimming pool which has a certain height, if I slide into a pool, I can touch the base of the pool and then come back to the surface by moving my hands and legs, but what about in the Mediterranean Sea? What is there in the sea?

And the KEY POINT is…  do I have enough courage to do so?

This slide is located in a hotel called Citta del Mare in Terrasini, north-western Sicily. It is indeed one of the facilities of the hotel village, and therefore, basically only hotel guests can use it. I always think that I won’t have chance to try the slide because, who will go to stay in a hotel village and swim in a swimming pool in Sicily, but not swim in the blue blue, crystal-clear sea in Sicily?

This June, I went to Sicily again and it’s time for SWIMMING!!!! At first, I searched the price of the hotel, and guess what? It’s HKD3,000!!!  I thought I would try it if it’s below HKD1,000 and I really don’t understand why it was so expensive even the date I searched was just a weekday! (and later I found out that 1 June was the Italian National Holiday and maybe that was why…). So I just put it aside…

After some planning and changing itinerary at last minute because I decided to see Euro 2016 in Marseilles, I searched it again and what? It’s less than HKD600!!! I booked it immediately of course!

Indeed, the location of the hotel is not that convenient. Terrasini is near Palermo, just 15-20 mins drive from Palermo Airport. But there is not direct transport from the airport, and you can just get there by bus from Palermo city or Trapani and it involves changes, too.

I was in Trapani before I went to Terrasini. At first,  I planned to get there by first taking train to Castellamare del Golfo (another beautiful city), and then change bus to the hotel. But there’s only one bus/train to Castellamare del Golfo in the morning at 8am! And the 2^nd one is in the afternoon. It’s either too early or too late for me! I don’t want to get to the train station before 8am as it’s a bit far from where I stayed in Trapani. Also, I need to spend sometimes at Castellamare del Golfo with my backpacks since the bus to the hotel is a few hours later. The train station is not in the city centre and it takes a while to get to the bus station, too!

The second choice is I first take coach to Palermo which is quite frequent. And so I don’t have to get up early and the bus from Palermo to the hotel can match with my coach, too. I can even get my lunch at Palermo before going to the hotel. So finally I decided to use this method. (It was a bit strange geographically as Terrasini is between Palermo and Trapani)

Anyway, after arriving to the hotel, as it is weekday and not summer peak season, we were lucky that we can get our room quickly and after settling down, we immediately went to have a look of the slides, which called TOBOGGAN!

First let’s talk about the hotel. The reviews online were indeed just so so. Some said that it’s old, normal facilities, and slow service. People have to wait for an hour to check-in, staff doesn’t speak English, and the hotel is using an out-dated system, that you have to buy a money card and put in money for paying at their restaurants. You can’t use CASH! So most of the people said that they just came here for the SLIDES! And so do us!

Okay, maybe we expected the worse, so we felt okay with everything at the hotel. Staff do speak English, but of course, I think it’s easier if you can speak Italian. (by the way, the coach driver from Palermo high likely doesn’t speak English so be careful when you tell him you want to get off at the hotel, or you may miss the bus stop!)

What about the room? It’s a bit old fashion and with minimal design, but it’s acceptable. Not really that old, and most of the rooms got a big balcony facing the sea! You can have a great view of sunset.

Restaurants? As the hotel is a bit remote, there’re no other choices except you have a car. So people stay in the hotel for the meals. From the hotel map, there are 3 restaurants, as June is not peak season, they only open 1 restaurant for serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. It’s all BUFFET style. The food are acceptable with limited choices, but okay. Price is 15 euro for lunch or dinner, including unlimited, water, red or white wine.

There are 3 big swimming pools, of which one of them with Olympic standard , I heard that some swimming teams will do training there, thus, sometimes they will block a few lanes for training. The other one seems suitable for children, and the 3^rd one is TOBOGGAN!

This hotel is like a resort village, they offer different activities, like Yoga, kids dancing class, etc. But I can’t see any timetable showing there, so you may have to ask if you want to know what’s going on.

Also, the hotel offers ride to a nearby beach at 5euro. It’s not bad! (with shower facilities, chairs, sun umbrellas included)

Okay, the SLIDES! It divided into 4 parts, first 3 slides go into the pool, and the last one goes into the SEA. Not scary for the first three of course, but, for me, it’s not. I would think: will I stuck in the middle of the slide? Can I float back on the surface? After one slide, can I swim and get to the 2^nd slide?

Why? Because I don’t really know how to swim at all. I learnt swimming last year and never did I really swim at a pool with deeper height than me…. The first 3 slides go ino the pool with around 150-160cm depth…and they are already deeper than my height…

Okay, I first swam in the pool, it’s safe! Haha… and then after quite a long while… I tried the 1^st slide. I don’t know why, it’s quite fast for me but not for my husband! He has to push and push in order to finish the slide!  The first time I went into the pool, I saw the floor, and can float ! so I tried the other one! it’s good, too! And sometimes, I can feel the floor of the pool, too. But there’s no BASE in the sea……if I got in too deep, do I have enough time to come back to the surface?

So I tried the 3 slides…still a bit worried, but my husband had already gone to the sea….. the sea is cool, but it’s funny. But even not many Italians dare to get to the last slide!

Tempting to try the last slide……… but it’s already 5sth and getting a bit cold, so we decided to wait for the next morning.

The next day, we went to the slides after breakfast, it took me another 30 mins to get used to the slides…. Even a few kids around 7-10 yrs old kept encouraging me to slide!! !!! They were having fun (but for kids they are not allowed to use the last slide)

I don’t know why.. I was so scared when I got to the 3^rd slide which I tried the day before. I really wanna try it, but after another 30 mins. I finally

G.A.V.E. U.P.

So with a bit disappointment and regret, I missed it. Will I have another chance in future?

But for you, don’t worry, I have uploaded a video of my husband taking the slides, going into the sea and you can see what’s in there with our camera….

(lastly, maybe it’s not peak season, although our check-out time is 10am, we can store our luggage, and went to the beach, came back to have lunch, and then took taxi to the airport at 5:45pm. So you will ask if we can take shower after swimming? It’s YES! They gave me one of the room to get shower and changes.! It’s so good!!!!)

呢個係第一條SLIDE, 係第一層LEVEL, 其實隔離仲有個係細D, 轉彎既.

This is the 1st one, go straight to the pool. And there's a small one with a few turns suitable for kids!

最後一條滑梯，指示牌寫水深有5米
The last one goes into the sea! Notice showing that the sea is around 5m depth there

另一邊可以直接落海游，不過好大浪，感覺都幾恐怖

The other part of the area here is just some resting area, you can swim in the sea.

大部份房都係向海有露台，可以睇日落日出

Most of the rooms got a big balcony 

餐廳好簡單，就係BUFFET形式，每人15歐

Restaurant provides simple meals in buffet style, 15euro per person

每人5歐，酒店會指定時間安排去附近沙灘，包沙灘傘
There are shuttle bus to the nearly beaches, price 5euro per person, including sun umbrellas, etc.

大家估下水底有D咩?  Guess what are down there in the sea?

天堂裡的電影院 Cefalu ( Cinema Paradiso -- Cefalu, Sicily)

第一次去西西里旅行，沒有選擇到Cefalu，雖然一直也聽說Cefalu是個美麗的海邊小鎮。
第二次到西西里學意大利文，決定在星期六日抽空走一躺，從此便愛上了這個浪漫的海邊度假小城。

Cefalu距離Palermo只需一個多小時的火車，十分方便，Cefalu地方十分小，但有著一個十分美麗的沙灘，由於經歷過希臘、羅馬帝國等的統治，所以我最喜歡的便是那些沿海邊而建的古舊小屋，坐在碼頭看過去，那些古舊美令人不想離開。

我從Milazzo坐火車亦可直達Cefalu，火車站離市中心約10分鐘路程，找了住宿地方及放下行李後，便急不及待到城裡走走。雖然Cefalu也算是度假勝地，9月初到這裡時還好遊人也不算多，可以在城裡慢慢的走，穿過小巷，來來回回，也能樂在其中。

Cefalu其實沒太多景點，最美的當然是那個海灘 (對我而言)。但Cefalu其實是座落在一個巨大的岩石，稱為La Rocca，到Cefalu旅遊時也應該上山去看看，據說這裡是西西里居民第一個落腳點。La Rocca的上山路不難找，到處也會見到指示牌，由於每天也有時間限制，到達La Rocca會有個小屋，那裡會有個管理員登記你的名字，我想可能是怕有人沒有下山而有什麼危險吧! (剛巧當日去到小屋，發現管理員竟然是意大利文學校同學的男朋友!!! 我還在他們的資料牌上寫上 「你好」的中文呢~ 那個資料牌有其他的語言歡迎不同國籍的遊客及一些小提示)

La Rocca只有278米高，所以上山十分容易，以前的阿拉伯人在這裡建造堡壘，後來被打敗，留下兩座古廟和山頂的廢堡，在山上走來走去，慢慢便會走到城牆，這裡可以俯瞰Cefalu小城，大大小小紅磚屋頂加上長長的沙灘，十分漂亮。

在山上逗留了一會便回程，到城裡繼續走走。我最最最喜歡的便是Cefalu碼頭望回海邊的景色，早晚景色令人陶醉。我真的不介意坐在碼頭上的長椅上呆上半天，這就是我喜歡西西里的原因。


I haven't been to Cefalu when I first visiting Cefalu though i have heard of this beauty and charming seaside town for long time;
The second time I went to Sicily for learning Italian, I decided to visit Cefalu during the weekend, and, it has became my favorite Sicilian cities since then. (Even more than Taormina)

Cefalu is a small town with an hour train ride from Palermo. It had been ruled by Greece, Roman Empire and maybe that is why, I'm so into its charming, old houses along the seaside and its beautiful beach. The view is even magnificent from the pier.

I took a train from Milazzo and when I got off from the train station, it took me around 10 mins to get to the city centre. After settling down at my B&B, I just couldn't wait to explore this lovely town. Although Cefalu is very popular for vacation, it's lucky that there were not too many people when I visited there in September, that allowing me to walk around the city, enjoying my time looking around every corner of Cefalu.

Indeed there is not much "tourist spots" in Cefalu, the most beautiful thing for me is its long beach. There is a mountain called La Rocca, it was said that this was where the first settlement of Sicilian. It's not difficult to find the way to La Rocca with the sign everywhere in the centre. You will find a small wood house at the entrance of La Rocca and stated the opening hours of it. The guide there will register your name at the entrance, i think they may want to make sure everyone leave the hill before they close at night. (It's so coincidence that the guide was the boyfriend of my Italian schoolmate and I even helped wrote down "Hello" in Chinese on its notice board! as there are German, Spanish, English, Italian, and Japanese but no CHINESE!)

La Rocca is a mountain over 278m and it's easy to go up to the hill indeed. In the past, the Arabs constructed on it a citadel and when they were defeated, leaving the 2 old temples and the ruins on the hill. You will also find the city walls where you can overlook the breathtaking view of Cefalu with the beautiful beach and the red roof-top houses.

Staying on the hill for a while, then I headed back to the centre. I enjoyed so much the charming view from the pier no matter day and night, and I just didn't mind sitting there and doing nothing. This is why I love Sicily so much.

 總喜歡走進西西里的大街小巷

 La Rocca山上，只有不到300米的巨山，不用1個小時便可走到山上，只是上山到正門口前要走上一段樓梯

It just took me an hour to climb up to the La Rocca, and the most difficult one should be the stairs going up to the entrance of the hill

 山上有清晰的指示牌，每個「景點」也不難找

They got clear sign on the hill for different "spots"

 就是喜歡這遍清水藍天加上紅屋頂

Blue sky, clear water and the red roof-top house, this is why I love Cefalu

 

Cefalu的夜景同樣迷人，就是喜歡這種古舊美

The charming night scene of Cefalu. I just fall for it

我住的B&B 早餐會在屋頂露台享用，可一覽Cefalu景色

Enjoyed the breakfast and the view at the balcony of my B&B

自拍真是高難度 

It's difficult to do a selfie without any support!

 

喜歡這個組合。Love this combination very much!

愛在古希臘與西西里小巷 Agrigento (Agrigento, Sicilia)

Agrigento 是西西里南部的小鎮，是個古希臘小鎮，所以當地的古希臘神殿 - Valle dei Templi (Valley of the Temples)亦十分有名，也是世界文化遺產之一，因此不少人也慕名前來。(像我一樣，沒去過希臘的人，對這個神殿也十分有興趣，不過，對於一些已到過希臘的人來說，這個神殿可能是沒太特別吧~)

Agrigento也是一個山城，城鎮建於山上，可由Palermo乘巴士前往，也只是需要1-2小時左右。我們則由Trapani那邊乘Lumia 巴士前往，路途確是有點遠，需要在Trapani機場上車，大概需要4個多小時，但整體上交通也十分方便，因為中途也不用轉車，車費約為11.9歐羅，而且，也可以作為從西邊的Trapani，到東方的Catania 大城的其中一個中途站。

另外也有火車到達，西西里的火車主要由trenitalia 營運,差不多每小時一班，車程約兩小時 (從Palermo)，在Agrigento 的 Stazione Centrale 下車，車費也不便宜，約9至15歐羅，部份車程更需要3個多小時呢。不過trenitalia通常會有早鳥優惠，早買可以平一半以上，大家可留意一下。

也也有巴士從東面的Catania 前往，但需要3小時，中途亦需要轉車，所以在計劃行程時可考慮下怎樣走最好。

位於山上的小城，坐擁一望無際的海景，不少人也會從市中心搭乘巴士到海邊，從Agrigento更可以到另一著名的海灘 - Scala dei Turchi，那裡地勢獨特，一級一級的XX 而上，海水青藍，是我夢寐以求的海灘勝地，下次到西西里，我也決定一定要去游水呢! (不過當然交通就相對沒有太大方便)

Agrigento算是一個小鎮，沒有什麼可走走看看的地方，市中心主要由一條大街組成，大街大旁有不少小商店，大街一邊連接著廣場、郵局等等。從大街向海邊方向走，便可找到火車站，和教堂 (見到教堂就找到了火車站呀!) 教堂外便是乘巴士到Valle dei Templi和海邊的巴士，十分方便。

巴士會從山上一路往下車，記得當經過中途, 有餐廳的地方便要下車，那裡正正就是神殿的售票處、博物館和入口，錯過了，要等好一段路才能下車，那時候，便麻煩了 (我們那一次就是這樣子發生了點小意外，卻發現西西里人的友善之處)

Valle dei Templi面積很大，每到一個temple 都要走上一段路，在烈日當空下走，確是不是味兒。Valle dei Templi共有7個神殿，分別係Temple of Juno, Temple of Concordia, Temple of Heracles, Temple of Olympian Zeus, Temple of Castor and Pollux, Temple of Vulcan 和 Temple of Asclepius。7個神殿各有特色，遺跡所見十分不同。其中最常見到的一幅相，便是有個毀壞了的銅像橫訓在其中一個神殿前，那個就是Temple of Concordia。

而另一個就是只遺留下幾條巨柱的Temple of Heracles, 應該會是第一個到訪的神殿。

還有一個較常見的是在Temple of the Olympian Zeus，有個雕刻成男性模樣的巨柱橫訓在地上，部分文物則放在入口位置附近的博物館，大家也可以去參觀一下。

要慢慢行完成個遺址，最好預備一個上午，有遊客亦會參觀晚間團，因為晚上開了燈光，整個遺址景色也大分吸引！但記得晚間團需要預先報名呀，網上可以報名。

小記:之前提過我們錯過了車站，到下一個話時已走到很遠很遠。是公路的中心似的，因為巴士一路下山到海邊。我們本打算在下車後走過廿山對面看看有沒有回頭巴士，可惜發現不像香港那樣對面一定有巴士站，在慳妹想法出現後，便決定截順風車。每當有車經過，我便嘗試望著他們，口裡說昔著什麼，希望有司機番留意到，初時沒有什麼人看得見我們，後來有架貨車走過，我知道司機他們是看得見我們想日尋求幫助的，但我見車子卻一洗而過有點失望。後來我們發現他們在前面停下來坐在乘客位的那個男人走了下來，在溝通不到的情況下，只好指著地圖說temples, temples , 哈 而他們也估到我們想去，他和司機朋友說了幾句後，便著我們上車。初時也有點擔心的，因為他要我們坐在中間，而貨車頭前面其實只得一個空位，但既然朋友也不怕，我們便上了他們的車了。約十分鐘車程，他們有問我們是不是日本，又遞煙給我們問要不要，大家在雞同鴨講的情況下，便開開心心的到達神殿，我們還請他們一起拍照呢！他們更問我們要不要接我們，一來我們也不知道要行多久，二來接了我們後也不知道會去邊，所以也婉拒了他們。所以，我都是覺得在這些小城市，才能找到友善的，可信的朋友呢！要是在大城市，我一定不敢上他們的車呢！



Agrigento is a small town lociated on Southern Sicily. It is famous for its greek Valle dei Templi (Valley of the Temples) which was named UNESCO World Heritage. Many tourists come to Agrigento to visit the Valle。(For those who haven't been to Greece, like me, the Templi were really something special to me. But maybe for those who have been to Greece, they may think it's just more or less the same.

Agrigento is also a hill town, the main activity, and the centre is built on the hill. From Palermo, it takes around 1-2 hour to get to Agrigento by bus. But we went there from Trapani by Lumia bus, it was a bit far away and need to get on the bus from the Trapani Birgi airport and it took you 4 hours to get there. Nevertheless, it's still convenient as you don't have to get change on your way and the cost is just 11.9 euro. It can be one of the cities to visit if you want to go to Cantania from Trapani.

There are also train to and from Agrigento and it is mainly operated by trenitalia. From Palermo, it will be around 2 hours and get off at the Stazione Centrale of Agrigento. It costs around 9-15 euro but some trains take you 3 hours. So you better check which one fits your schedule in advance. Trenitalia has some early bird discount from time to time and you may get more than half price discount if you buy in advance.

From Catania, you can take bus to Agrigento but it takes around 3 hrs and you have to get chance on your way. So it's important to plan your trip itinerary.

From the centre of Agrigento, it oversees a piece of beautiful and tranquil sea view and many people will take the bus to the seaside down the hill. There is a famous sea side place called Scala dei Turchi with the most beautiful sea. Scala dei Turchi in English means Stairways of the Turks with a very beautiful and rocky cliff overlooking the sea. The color of the cliff is pure white and it is made of stone called Marga. This is one of my dream seaside and I have to visit it when I go to Sicily next time! (However, the transport is not that convenient)

Agrigento is quite a small town and there may not have much to see. There is one main street in the centre with lots of shops, and on one side of the main street, there is post office, etc. From the centre walks towards the sea side, you can find the train station (Stazione Centrale) which is outside the church. And right there, you can get on the bus to Valle dei Templi and to the sea side.

The bus will go down hill and remember, when you pass by a restaurant, you should get off there as it is indeed the entrance of Valle dei Templi. You can also find the ticket office and the museum. If you miss the bus stop, the bus will just keep going down and it's difficult to just walk back to the entrance. (And that was what happened to us last time.. but this turned out to let me feel and know that how nice the Sicilian are)

Valle dei Templi is very big and you have to walk for a while from one temple to another temple. It's not a good choice if it's under the sun. There are 7 temples, Temple of Juno, Temple of Concordia, Temple of Heracles, Temple of Olympian Zeus, Temple of Castor and Pollux, Temple of Vulcan and Temple of Asclepius, each with own characteristic. The one people may always see on the internet may be the bronze sculpture of Icarus laid down in front of the Temple of Concordia.

The first one you will see should be the Temple of Heracles, it is the oldest one with long and thin pilar standing.

And the other one you may know if the Temple of the Olympian Zeus, where you can find the remains of an atlar, a support scuplted in the form of a man, which may be used as column or pilaster.

You can also pay extra money to visit the museum and get to know more about the history of the valle.

To walk around the whole site, it's better to spend a whole morning or afternoon. Some visitors will join the night tour where the scene is attractive with some lights are on. You have to enroll the tour in advance in its website.
side story:
I mentioned earlier that we missed the bus stop and when we got off at the next stop, it's already quite far away from the site. It is just like the middle of nowhere with a few shops there. The bus keeps going down to the sea. We first tried to go to opposite side and found a return bus, but just found that there's no bus stop there! (it's not just like Hong Kong, most of the bus stop is on the opposite street) We won't want to pay again for the bus ticket, thus, we tried to get a free ride there. We kept looking to the driver when they passed by and said something so that they may get off and helped us. At the beginning, all the cars just went by but then, a small truck passed by and i know the passenger saw us and noticed us. First they passed by and i was a bit disappointed, but then they indeed stopped the car and the guy came down and talked to us. They didn't really speak English and we didn't speak Italian, we just tried to show him the map and said: temples, temples. and luckily, seems they understood what we were talking about. He talked with his friend, the driver and asked us to get on the truck! We were just happy but was a bit doubt at the beginning also, as there was only 1 seat, but nevermind! it just took around 10 mins and I didn't think there's any problem of overload! We sat in the middle and we tried to chat , ha yes tried! They asked if we were Japanese and passed a cigarette (which of course we didn't take), then we were here! After we got off the truck, we took a photo together, and they even asked when we would finish and they can come to pick us up! But we rejected them as we have no idea how long it take and we didn't know where he would bring us to later.. Anyway, we were still happy and just couldn't believe that how nice they are. I'm sure that it may just happen in these kinds of small cities and towns, if we were in those big cities, we dare not to do this!

Agrigento 大街小巷，縱使小城沒什麼景點，但是街角處處令人喜愛

Every city tells a story. Every corner of the streets at Agrigento just made me fallen in love with it

從我們全的B&B 望出去就是海 The sea view from our B&B

友善的西西里人 The lovely Sicilian

  

Remains of the Temple of Heracles 

Temple of Concordia

Temple of Concordia and Icarus

Temple of Juno

  

Remains of the atlas

The re-assembled remains of the Temples of "Castor and Pollux".