Agrigento

Alarm went off at 7.30, and I got up at 8am. I ate the cake I’d brought with me and the juice I’d bought rather than having breakfast upstairs, then made sandwiches with ham, mozzarella and tomato. I left at 8.40 but promptly turned back for my umbrella and coat as it was raining and cool. I couldn’t work out how to get through the door into the bank nearly opposite the hotel in order to get change. Instead, I walked to the station, finding a bank nearby, and asked the nice security guard outside whether I could get change. He said yes, and I worked out the bank door trick (stand in the revolving bit and wait for the other door to open), and got change (cambio). At the station, I bought a ticket to Agrigento for €7.60 but had to wait an hour for the next departure, which was very annoying. I got on, and the train was comfortable and quiet. I texted Andrew again because I was a little lonely.

The train went through Termini Imeresa and then headed south through very rural country. The tracks seemed very flimsy, but the train ran OK. I was feeling self-conscious in my summer clothes, and some guys got on about halfway looking like Mafia. I ate some cake and took some photos out the window. There were very few people left by the time we got to Agrigento. I got off into a warm, sunny day, and went to the dodgy station toilets, bought two bus tickets from the café, and asked the woman where the bus left from. I had to get a 1, 2 or 3 from just outside the station.

I got the bus easily to the Valle Dei Templi (helped by the driver calling it out to those of us who were English-speaking tourists), and bought a combined site and museum ticket for €10. I then ate one of my sandwiches and headed into the smaller, less important western section. There was one corner of a temple standing that was cool. The view to the sea was amazing. It was here that the man from Evan Cycles chose to ring me. He said he’d ring back the following week. I couldn’t read the signs as they were in Italian (should have paid for an audio guide), but apparently one collection of circular rocks was a sacrificial altar. There were a lot of cactus plants around the site. (I later saw Melinda’s photos, showing graffiti on the leaves.)

I headed back up the hill, ate the other sandwich and made friends with an olive tree. I then headed across the road into the eastern section and was immediately and grandly faced with the Temple of Concord. It was amazing, and much bigger than I thought. I took a picture on my phone and sent it to Andrew. I kept going up to the Temple of Guinone, which was also cool, though more ruined. I walked back down with the intention of hugging the other side of the narrow site, but there wasn’t much more to see. I bought a postcard for Andrew of Concord, and got some water and some lemon gelato (overpriced and not great), and tried to decide whether to see the museum as well. I asked where it was at the ticket window, and it was 800m back up the main road. I decided to get the 6.10 train and walked up the hill in the heat.

The museum was new and shiny. I tried to read everything, but realised that I wouldn’t have time. So I looked at everything instead. I liked the painted Corinthian stuff the most. I had a quick look at the Ekklesiasterion and headed to the bus stop with an English couple. There’d been Germans, Americans, Brits and Aussies on the site. The bus came quickly and got to the station quickly. I bought a ticket, and some bready/cheesy/sausagy/olivy/hammy things, and got on the train. This one was noisier, but with fewer people. I asked the same English couple whether we were in fact heading for Palermo. They thought we were, so that was good enough for me. I took some photos of the beautiful sunset and stained clouds out the window, but couldn’t capture the moon later in the trip, even though it was looking gorgeous. The train got back to Palermo 15 minutes late. I walked up Via Roma, and got some banana and coconut gelato (yum!). I took some pictures of the street lights and a random guy called out to me from a window above (‘Segnora!’). I ignored him.

Back in my room, I chatted to Melinda and drank Limoncello. Bed at 10.30.