Saturday 18th April 2026.
Palermo (Speed tourism) then San Vito Lo Capo, Sicily
What a lovely comfy sleep we had last night. Even though we are in the city, the night passed quite peacefully, well, after the noisiest dust cart had done his job. I can only liken the sound to a rusty – in need of a good oiling – out of this world machine from War of the Worlds.
I’ve no idea how near to us it was but it sounded as if it was bulldozing buildings after shrieking its heart out with the effort! Luckily it only lasted about 5 mins 
and then off to the land of nod we went.
It was lovely and warm this morning as we wandered into the old town of Palermo via one of the ancient gates – Porto Nuevo.
From this point the buildings are pretty impressive, many of the roads and pavements are old flagstones and the area is closed to normal traffic. Only taxis, bikes and horse and carriages are permitted.
As we have been here before we headed straight for the beautiful Cathedral, sitting in a cafe opposite to soak it all up.
We were surprised by the amount of student tour parties for a Saturday there were along with many other visitors.
I popped my head into the Cathedral, but as there was a service in progress I made a silent and hasty exit. It is as big on the inside and warrants more than a popping in. You can buy tickets for tours which include a walk on the walls/ramparts.
Walking around the Cathedral we were really impressed at how pretty the back is too.
We then headed towards the famous Ballaro market, taking in the amazing four corners junction, where a young man had set up a microphone and was singing opera. Beautiful.
Last time we visited the market I took a video of the madness as we walked through. You don’t really walk, you stop and start with the people in front of you and go with the flow – the stall holders don’t leave you a lot of room, a tactic we are sure to channel you into succumbing to their banter and purchasing something from them.
They have battles to see who can shout and play their music the loudest, but all done in the friendliest manner.
Most of the stalls are selling street food where you can have food cooked for you to take away or sit at a table.
We chose a stall near the top of the market and tucked ourselves at the back to get Meg away from as much of the noise as possible. She was more interested in a stray cat sat near us.
Gareth ordered whitebait, bruschetta, artichoke and an Arancini – the famous rice ball stuffed with bolognese or ragu. Gareth had a water and I had a limoncello spritz, these and Aperol are very popular here. It was very strong and delicious 
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While we were sat, the tables around us filled up with groups of families and friends. The stall owner then played a popular song that they all sang and danced along to. We likened it to someone playing Sweet Caroline in the UK 
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Leaving the market we wandered down some back streets and headed to the Massimo Theatre. Apparently its the 3rd largest Opera House in Europe beaten only by Paris and Vienna. Fun fact – it was closed in 1974 for renovations, supposedly for a few years but ended up lasting 23 years!!
Still, it’s a beautiful spot and another that is very popular. As we walked by we could hear music from inside and could imagine how that would sound during a show 
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With our little visit to Palermo Old Town completed, we packed up and headed out towards a little campsite Gareth had found in San Vito Lo Capo, as the name suggests it’s on a cape at the very north-western tip of the island 
Its a lovely little campsite, right near a beach and the town which we intend to visit tomorrow.
We went to the onsite restaurant for dinner as it comes with good reviews. Usually these are a bit average but we noticed that it was filling up with local families – usually a good sign of the quality.
The food was excellent and there was plenty of it. We had a delicious 1/2 litre carafe of local red for the princely sum of €6!
We shared a Sicilian meat/cheese platter to start with. It was huge and had the most delicious aubergine salsa we’ve ever tasted. It’s called Caponata if you get the chance.
Another highlight was fried local bread slices with a roll of cheese wrapped in ham. Artery blocker for sure, but blooming delicious!
For mains, Kelly chose her favourite Diavola spicy pizza whilst I went for the local speciality of couscous and fish. Another huge portion and absolutely delicious.
Takeaway boxes in hand we waddled back to the van for a mug of tea before bed.
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