Day 6: The Land of the Laestrygonians + the Land of the Cyclops

I woke up early this morning to catch a tour group going from Palermo through, ultimately, two important sites in my journey: (1) Trapani, widely considered to be the modern-day location of the Laestrygonians, and (2) Erice, considered by some to be one of the modern-day locations of the Land of the Cyclops.

The tour van picked up seven of us from near Palermo City Centrale and we drove around an hour to our first stop: Segesta. Segesta is a city in northwest Sicily in the Trapani province, settled by the Elymian people, an ancient indigenous population thought to have been descended by the Trojans. As we drove there, we passed through many agricultural fields, which our tour guide informed us were generally wheat, olives, and grapes. Trapani in general is very known for their olive oil, and according to the tour guide, ~130 different types of wheat are grown throughout Sicily:

After an hour on the road, we reached Segesta. To explore the ruins, located on Monte Bàrbaro, you are given two options: you can walk to the temple at the base of the mountain and then either take a bus up to the top or hike up around 30 minutes. It felt much more fun to do the latter, so that’s what I did. The temple has been well-preserved but interestingly is thought to be unfinished, though it was still very pretty. Once I hiked got to the top, I was able to see the ruins from the city there as well as the only that part is necessarily well-preserved: the amphitheatre:

I was the only one who chose to hike, so I got lost on the way down but ran into a man who helped direct me. Then, we were off to Nubia on the western coast in the Trapani province, where we saw the salt pans/flats (and the flamingoes who inhabit them). I had previously heard about the economic importance of the Salt Road (from Trapani to Marsala), so it felt cool to hear about how they were formed. The water was channeled in from the coast and because it went into places without much drainage, the water evaporates but leaves behind the salt (and any that precipitates eventually does the same). The salt pans in Trapani are the largest salt pans in Europe and they form a major part of the economy of the region. That said, I couldn’t help but think of plight of the workers I saw there — they wore some small garments on their heads, but given the extreme heat, they seemed to have very little protection or shade in any sense (as you can see in the picture below). The Salt Road is also generally a migratory destination for birds, notably flamingoes, whose feathers turn pink due to their iron-rich diets in the region:

Next, we headed to Erice, an old medieval town thought to be one of the possibilities for where the Land of the Cyclops would have been. It’s a historic town with two castles and many shops. It’s generally thought to have some of the best food in all of Sicily, so I was glad we stopped here for lunch. I ate a ham and cheese arancini from a shop rated the best arancini in Italy (the chef has apparently been on Food Network); some incredible prawn pasta with wine; and celery, lemon, and mint gelato from a shop rated the best gelato place in Sicily (the flavors sound wild but it tasted so good):

After that, we headed back home and I napped for a little while before heading into Palermo City Centrale. I had dinner at Torquemada, right next to the Teatro Massimo, which certainly lived up to the hype. I ordered the mini buffet for appetizers and the burrata pistacchio pizza, both of which simply redefined Italian food for me. Truly some of the best food I’ve ever had, so pictures may have to suffice here:

I ended the night by walking around the area, passing by the Teatro Massimo and walking down Via Maqueda, through Vucciria Market, which at night apparently turns into the biggest street party I’ve ever seen:

Finally, I got back home and slept a little early, to prepare for a rather physically demanding day tomorrow. Cheers, and see you then :)