2-11 Taormina

Mt. Etna is still hiding from us on day 3 in Sicily.  The stubborn cloud cover just doesn't want to leave.  Hopefully the rain tonight will clear things up for tomorrow.

We got started a bit earlier this morning - 9am.  Juan picked us up and we drove over to the base to get guest passes for Tony & myself.  We did a quick tour of the base, hit the money wall and then headed out to Taormina, a small costal town north of Catania. 

We found our way to the town with no problem, parked the car, then hiked up to the town's main street.  Our first stop was a cafe for some cappacino and a few pasteries.  Then we moved on to Teatro Greco, an ancient theater on the edge (literally) of town. We took in the beautiful costal views and walked through the ruins marveling and asking "How did they build this back then". 

The benefits of traveling off season is that there were no tourists.  During the summer the main pedestrian street, Corso Umberto, is shoulder to shoulder people.  Today, with the exception of a few locals and sprinkle of additional tourists, we were the only people in town.  It was wonderful!  We walked through the town, stopping at the piazzas to enjoy the views.  On the way back to the car we stopped at a small sandwich shop for a quick bite to eat and then headed back to the base.  Good timing, it was starting to rain.  Guess we won't be seeing Mt. Etna on the way back either.

Back on base we decided to see a movie - Tom Cruise's latest Mission Impossible movie.  We were a pleasantly surprised and enjoyed the show.  Before calling it a day we stop at the Days Inn restaurant across from the base for a calzone, pizza and caprese salad.  We're heading to bed early tonight.  Tomorrow morning we're taking a tour to Agrigento to see the Valley of the Temples.