We left France shortly after midnight with the intention of arriving in Corsica later that day. We were eager to get going because of the delay we had in Marseilles due to the Mistral winds. When we reached Corsica, the seas were calm and we weren’t tired, so we decided to continue for another night. Our next destination was the south end of Sardinia. By the time we reached the marina the seas were still calm and we were eager to get more miles under the keels. So we filled up with diesel and decided to spend a third night at sea and cruise to Sicily. To prepare, I listened to a few episodes of The Sopranos during my night watch. We had an early morning arrival in Castellammare del Golfo: a quintessential Italian village complete with a medieval castle and narrow, cobblestone streets. We had our first Italian meal in this beautiful restaurant. We left the next day since the harbor didn’t appear well protected from the incoming weather. When we arrived in Palermo, Mike found a small problem with one of the engines that would require a new part. We pulled out the e-scooters and learned that everything was closed in preparation for Christmas. Luckily, the main distributor would be open for just one more day before closing for the holidays. Unfortunately, they were located at the other end of the island, a three-hour drive. So early the next day we figured out how to ride the train to the airport, picked up a rental car, and drove the length of Sicily. On the way, Google Maps told us part of the main highway was closed (it was not) and routed us far out of our way through the hills of Sicily. We ended up in this amazing historic village perched high on a ridge. The next day we took advantage of having a car and took care of some major provisioning. On the last day of having the car, we drove to a nearby hot spring. Since a big storm had just passed through, it was a muddy mess, but the hot grotto was amazing. The spring pours into a small cave on the side of the cliff and creates an environment much like a steam room.We were “stuck” in Palermo due to high winds for over a week and spent our remaining time exploring the city, running errands, and taking care of boat projects. We had some real Sicilian pizza and tried what is known as “street food”: point to your choice of raw fish and sides which are then prepared to order and charged by weight.We spent Christmas Eve on the boat since everything in town was closed.When we were finally able to leave Sicily, we headed to an anchorage at the south end of Italy (the tip of the boot) where we watched the sun set over Mount Etna. The next day was to be an amazing crossing to Greece, complete with dolphins and sea turtles. Stay tuned for the next post.

This adventure has been a delivery of the boat from Spain to Greece. We’re currently “boat-sitting” while cruising Turkey; the owners are unable to return to Europe until later in the spring. If you are looking for captain services for a charter, delivery of your boat, or boat-sitting, please contact us or visit our professional website PacificCaptains.com.

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