Weeks 16
Day 106
Today we finally headed to Noto, Italy. We watched the Chef’s Table on Netflix one night in London and bought tickets to Italy the next day. We are exited to try cannoli, granita, gelato and everything else Sicily has to offer.
But first we had to get there. We walked back to the airport from the Bed and Breakfast to what we hoped was the bus stop to Noto. They don’t do a great job publicizing the bus routes but we got our tickets and we were headed to Noto without any hiccups. The drive through Sicily was beautiful. We drove along the coast and through mountains. There are a few pictures from the bus but they don’t do the landscape justice.
Once we arrived in Noto we were supposed to have a 5 minute walk to meet our AirBnb hosts. Unfortunately the phone had other plans and we were routed to the middle of Noto. After a solid 15 minute walk (with backpacks) we rerouted, walked another 10-15 minutes and found our hosts. Basically we walked in a big square around the main part of Noto (which is not flat) before finding them.
This AirBnb is amazing. We are paying under 30 euros a night for a full kitchen, 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, and a balcony with a spectacular view of Noto. We are excited to spend three weeks relaxing here in Noto.
After we settled into the AirBnb and got over the shock of how nice the place is we headed out to do some meandering. Noto is famous for its baroque churches as well as it’s food. We enjoyed a little of both before heading to the grocery store and back to the AirBnb to make dinner and enjoy the sunset from the balcony.
Day 107
Before going to the store yesterday we googled, “food to buy at the grocery store in Sicily” and lots of yummy options came up, including Pan di Stelle. Delicious little chocolate biscotti cookies that supposedly the locals all eat for breakfast.
Katie watched the sunrise and then later we enjoyed the balcony for a while before we headed inside to avoid the rain. Luckily our hosts have Scrabble and a whole bookcase full of books that are mostly in English and Sicily themed. While we waited for the rain to pass we read and tried some of the candy we bought at the store yesterday. Frizzy Pazzy is basically poprocks that turn into gum. Even though the taste was gone in 2 minutes flat, it was a fun throwback, and we are loving trying candy all over the word.
It stopped raining in time for an evening walk. It seemed like all of the local men were also out for their evening stroll. We saw 20-30 groups of men walking together and later learned the afternoon walk is a tradition. During our walk we enjoyed more baroque style architecture.
Day 108
Today was another rainy day. We enjoyed the expansive book selection that our hosts provided. Cameron braved the rain to get us sandwiches from a nearby shop. The rain, in a less than cooperative manner, turned into a deluge the second he set foot out the door and didn’t let up till he returned with slightly soggy sandwiches.
Day 109
Another rainy day. It stopped raining just long enough to get some pictures of the clouds from the balcony.
Day 110
Finally blue skies!
Day 111
Katie has been waking up most days to try to see the sunrise and today did not disappoint. The clouds made the sunrise extra spectacular. After watching the sunrise and reading for a bit it was time to be productive. We definitely needed to do some laundry. Fortunately this balcony isn’t a bad spot to hang laundry and enjoy the view.
Around 10:30 every day we have been hearing what sounds like a loud-speaker announcement but hadn’t figured out what it was until today. It turns out there is a fruit and vegetable truck that drives by each morning. On the loud speaker he is announcing what is available that day. Today Katie learned a lesson about Prickly Pears. They are a cactus (this she already knew) however they don’t have big pointy spines that you can see but rather glochids which are tiny hair like spines. Not knowing this she grabbed them and posed for a picture. Seconds later she was saying her hands hurt when she touched things. Some googling helped us learn about glochids and how to remove them. Life lesson: Don’t touch any part of the cacti.
After that crisis was averted we snacked on charcuterie and enjoyed reading on the balcony most of this sunny day.
More from Noto, Italy next week!
Keeping Up With Cam and Katie 