• Home
  • Resume
  • Writing

Erin Miller

Life, Travel and Public Health

Feeds:
Posts
Comments
« I pufi sono communisti
Mia amica ha visitado »

Non nevica in Sicilia

March 8, 2005 by Erin

It doesn’t snow in Sicily.
This Thursday it was snowing in Perugia (AGAIN) so we left and went to Sicily.
We got on the bus to the train station knowing only the time our train left for
Filigno, to go on to Rome, and then to Milazzo, a port town in the north of
Italy. Unfortunately Florence was getting 2 feet of snow (virtually unheard
of) so all the trains were late, and we got on our train in Perugia an hour
behind schedule. Luckily, they knew that everyone was going to Rome, and held
the train in Filigno. We got on the train in Filigno as it was pulling away. In
Rome, our train was delayed two hours due to the snow in the North so we went
to get dinner. We came back an hour later to learn that they had found a new
train and it was leaving, so we ran down to the tracks and just barely got on.
We arrived in Milazzo 14 hours after leaving Perugia.
Our destination was actually a small archipelago of off North Sicily. The
archipelago has several famous islands. Lipari, is the largest and most
developed. Vulcano is small, with a large ACTIVE volcano, a small village, and
hot springs in the ocean, and Stromboli is also the home of an active volcano,
which actually still has lava flowing from it that lights up the night. We had
to decide which island to go to, so we bought tickets to Vulcano. We boarded
the aliscarfi (boat with wings) with our hands full of corona, lemons (lemons
grow everywhere in Sicily so drinks are always paired with them, as opposed to
limes) and salt. One of the crew members, Guiseppe, was so impressed with our
provisions that he let us sit outside, on the back of the ship in “primo posto”
(first class). We were the only people allowed to sit outside, but we had to
duck so that the captain didn’t see us. Guiseppe asked where we were going and
when he heard Vulcano, he said, “why go there, there is nothing there, go to
lipari for the night life” He would let us ride the extra distance for free, so
we agreed. As it turned out, his mom conveniently rented an apartment on the
island. We took a look at the place and got to stay in the apartment with 8
beds (there were 5 of us) 2 full kitchens and two bathrooms for 15 Euro a
night.
We were told to take a 30 minute walk to check out the famous Spiegga Bianca
(white beach). All of the volcanic islands have black sand beaches, and you
forget that most beaches actually have tan colored sand. We walked for an hour
(Italians always underestimate walking times) and finally came across a
completely deserted beach full of black sand with a few white rocks, with a
large sign that read Spiegga Bianca. A few of us headed back to the nearest
town to get snacks, drinks and a lighter, and the others gathered firewood. The
next two evenings were spent facciamo un bagno (swimming) off a deserted beach in the Mediterranean and enjoying beverages around a fire. True freedom.
The second day we took a day trip to Vulcano intending to hike to the top of
the vulcano and swim in the aquacalda (hot water from the sulfer deposits in
the ocean). It rained all morning, and during the off-season they drain the
touristy pool that is filled with aquacalda during the summer, leaving only the
“aquacalda” ocean. We could see the steam rising from certain spots so we threw
our clothes on the beach and jumped in. Hot springs in an ocean don’t work as
well as one might think. There were spots where we burnt our feet on the hot
rocks, but generally the ocean was only mildly warmer than usual. We quickly
put our layers of clothing back on. Mine still smell like sulfer.
After warming up in the only open bar on the island we hiked to the top of the
volcano. Looking into the crator of an active volcano is quite an experience,
but requires holding one’s breath to avoid passing out from the gases that rise
from the center. They use to lead tours into the crater, but in the 70s it blew
again, and now there are some half-hearted Italian signs at the trail-head that
warn tourists to stay away from it.
The third day we rented scooters and a go-kart and toured Lipari looking for
the most amazing panoramas we could find, and there were plenty. The go-kart
was not much smaller than most of the European cars which passed us on the
mountain roads.
We returned to Perugia early Monday morning. And it has been sunny, if not
warm, the last couple of days. We anxiously await spring and the opening of the
home-made gelato store on corso venucci.
me and go-cart for web.jpg

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook

Like this:

Like Loading...

Related

Posted in Italy, Travel |

  • Hi, I’m Erin

    spot and i after the blizzard You can get to my blog, my resume or my writing by clicking the tabs at the top.
  • search this site

  • Pages

    • Resume
    • Writing
      • Regulation of Associated Health Plans
      • Tackling Obesity through Agricultural Policy
      • Facilitating Access to Reproductive Health Care for Urban Teens
      • Letter to the Editor re: DIA Redesign Plans
      • Infant Health in Wigan, England during the First World War
      • An op-ed — with the swipe of a pen, 25 percent of American children eat more vegetables
  • Erin Miller
  • Yes, I tweet, sort of

    • Good reminder that COVID/Omicron "Vaccination coverage among pregnant women remains a priority" -- especially as co… twitter.com/i/web/status/1… 4 days ago
    • RT @kierahattonsena: @femmegaylord Many places like Colorado, ultrasound techs don’t have to be licensed. Anti- abortion centers (CPCs) sen… 6 days ago
    • RT @JoanAlker1: A weedy issue which could affect coverage for LOTS of children and adults. New poverty guidelines came out today; bcuz of… 1 week ago
  • View Erin Miller's profile on LinkedIn
  • Top Posts

    • Tackling Obesity through Agricultural Policy
    • "Ricardo, venga!"
  • Tags

    ASPE Dan engagement family friends Grad School health policy Honduras Italy life new years New York City preparedness Public Health Recipes South America study abroad techy stuff Thoughts tourist sites Travel Washington DC
  • Categories

    • Health Policy (5)
    • Honduras (33)
    • Italy (15)
    • New York City (25)
    • Public Health (32)
    • Recipes (2)
    • Reviews (1)
    • Seattle (4)
    • Thoughts (72)
    • Travel (62)
    • Washington DC (15)
  • My projects

    • Health education and nutrition program in Honduras
  • Volunteering Links

    • Global Volunteer Network
    • Project Talitha Cumi
    • Comunidad Connect
    • The Peace Corps
    • i-to-i
  • Other Links

    • The Wedding Website of Erin Miller and Dan Mayer
    • WIC
    • NACCHO
    • Kelly Miller's blog
    • Dan Mayer's blog
    • Dan Mayer's developer blog
    • Volunteerme, ramblings about volunteering
    • Parenting stories by Dr. Wanda Venters
    • Inscrutable Drama Queen's Blog
    • Lumpyhead
    • Voici Le Soleil
    • C^2 Honduras 2010
    • C^2 India 2008
    • Summer in Sitka
    • Mark's Blog
    • The Kate Escape
    • SuperTommy
    • Ben Brinckerhoff's Blog
    • The Flobots
    • Dan's Energy Drink Reviews
  • Creative Commons License
    Erin Miller's Blog by http://www.erinashleymiller.com/ Site Meter

Blog at WordPress.com.

WPThemes.


Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • Erin Miller
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Erin Miller
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Copy shortlink
    • Report this content
    • View post in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
%d bloggers like this: