Left Palermo this morning, driving to the western tip of this triangular island. It’s beautiful and varied geographically, and, again, not what I had imagined. We stopped at the ancient site of Segesta, with its temple and open air theater with a spectacular backdrop. Afterwards we continued west to the town of Erice, where we had an absolutely fabulous lunch at a cooking school. We were also treated to a cooking demonstration by a woman who learned to make Sicilian pastries as an orphan in a nunnery and grew up to be a celebrity chef/entrepreneur. Next we visited the hilltop town of Erice, with its unusual church. Good fun.

Our guide said something today that I found very helpful for understanding ancient architectural styles: according to her (but paraphrased by me), the Romans built with a brute force (with concrete) to get things done and announce their power, while Greek architecture has an ‘elegant intelligence’ (her words), built to enhance the human experience.

Fun fact: Sicily is the biggest producer of grapes in Italy. And every single wine I’ve had here so far has been really, really, really, reagood.

Here are some photos:

Live all you can. It’s a mistake not to.