Erice

There is a small medieval hill town above Trapani known as Erice. Yesterday, we had confirmed with Michele where we could catch a bus to the Funivia that takes you up to the town. When we are ready to leave, Michele is in the lobby and we chat for about an hour before we get going. I find a Tabacchi store near the bus stop and buy two tickets for the bus. We walk a block to the stop and the bus arrives within a minute so our timing is very good for that.

View of Trapani

Three miles later, we get off and find the entrance to the Funivia which is basically a gondola ride to the top of Monte San Giuliano and the town of Erice. It is a very beautiful ride up with views of all of Trapani and the sea.
We get off the Funivia and walk through one of the old town gates. The narrow streets are all cobblestone and once we get off the main tourist drag are mostly empty. We check out a small church called St Albert and then pass by the pinkish St Martino Church. We do not have a set plan and are wandering aimlessly around the town. We come to a small piazza by the San Giuliano Church which also has a pink facade. This church was begun in 1080 by Roger I and then altered in the 1600s.

Fantabulous View

We continue down the street, turn a corner and are rewarded with a wonderful view up the coastline below. The church of San Cataldo lies below us and above us we catch a glimpse of the Castello Pepoli and the Toretta Pepoli. The castle was built over the ruins of the Temple of Venus and the starting point of fortifications at the top of the hill above Erice.
From here we can see down to,the salt pans where we visited on our Marsala day trip. We continue our meandering and than see a sign that has the name of a restaurant that was rated great but may have closed down. We decide to check it out for ourselves. This leads us down a dirt road and to another viewpoint. We find the restaurant here and it has indeed closed down.
We continue down the road and come to the old cyclopean walls which extended along the north side of town. These walls with megalithic blocks of stone date back to the Phoenicians. The upper part and gates were added by the Normans. One gate, Porta Spada ( sword) is named that because in the Sicilian Vesper War (1282-1302) , some Angevin soldiers were put to death here by sword. We climb along the old walls until we arrive back in the town. We decide we will have a sit down lunch up here and a light fast meal for dinner tonight. We find a small cafe and order a pasta dish and some more cous cous. The pasta is good but the cous cous is not as tasty as the one we had in Trapani. It is still good but the fish is not cooked as well and is a bit on the dry side.
After lunch we find a local pasticceria where an old Italian lady makes all kinds of pastries. Locals are buying here and in fact one lady is buying the pastries for her restaurant. I order in my broken Italian a small mix of treats and the whole thing ends up only costing 6 Euros for a few big pastries, a biscotti, and a mix of small sweet treats. We will taste them later after dinner.

Chiesa Madre

We walk around a bit more and then return to the Funivia and a ride back down the hill. At the bottom, we decide to walk the three miles back to the apartment. It is slightly downhill and flat so not a challenge and we get to see more of the town. At the apartment it is siesta time until dinner.
We knock on Michele’s door so we can pay him tonight and he tells us of a good place to get a Panelle Panino and arrancini so I go out to find it while Carol socializes. I get misplaced or more likely, I didn’t understand the directions and go back and get better directions. This time I find the small deli and the sandwich and arrancini only costs 3 dollars. Returning with our food, we chat with Michele for a bit longer, then pay him, and retreat to our apartment for dinner and sweet dessert with some Marsala wine. It is all good and we spend the rest of the evening doing the chores of preparation for our travels tomorrow. Trapani has been a very enjoyable place for both of us.
Expenses
Bus to Funivia 2.4E
Funivia to Erice 18E
Lunch at Caffe S Rocco 27E
Pastries at San Carlo Pasticcheria 6E
Panino Panelle and Arrancini at Antica Paolina 2.7E
San Pietro Casa Vacanze 52E
Walked 9.8 Miles