Port 45 Trapani, Sicily
Ciao!
It was a cool, misty morning as we quietly glided into port in Trapani, Sicily, Apr 6th, 2022. Trapani is pronounced “TRAH-puh-nee” which is very different than I thought it was! (I was saying “Truh-PAN-ee” before today!) The sun had trouble piercing the cloud cover.
We see what we belive are the great salt pans on our starboard side. Little forts appear to guard the salt pans.
We have to slide behind two breakwaters. The first has a fort on the end. The original breakwater is quite old, and the new extension is very obviously modern.
Behind the fort we can see two additional breakwaters and a lighthouse!
On the starboard side we see where the port loads the salt onto the ships. the piles are high! Mr. Seagull says, “hi!”
Joy and I are on the same excursion today, to see the city of Marsala, taste their wines, and tour the salt pans.
As we pull out on the bus we see one of the government buildings facing the port – beautiful! – and a statue of someone named Garibaldi. We’ll see these again later!
We passed truck after truck selling goods on one street. I wasn’t fast enough to get a shot of a beautiful flower display – rats! But I did catch this orange truck…
…and this truck selling strawberries and artichokes! Several other photos were too blurry to share. But it was a nice way to start the tour!
This building had this “hook” leaning out of its parking lot. Curious and strange!
On the waterfront, the fishing boats were hard at work. It’s not obivous whether they were preparing to go out for a couple of days, or had just returned and were making repairs. Another boat nearby was loading bins with ice, but I saw no fish. My guess is they just got in and were unloading the fish and covering them with ice.
A park we passed had this monument. It appears to be a tree and a soldier helping a wounded man, but there is no sign visible to the street to help us understand. The weapon is much newer than some of the battles we know were fought here.
We passed many olive tree groves! It’s always interesting to see how short the trees are – only about 6 feet tall!
Similarly, we passed many vineyards! Some had significant new green growth starting. Others had none yet. But this is the start of the growing season!
Piles of harvested salt were left behind at this location. Sicily exports about 120,000 tons of salt every year!
This lateen-rigged fishing boat is interestingly displayed! These were the main boats used for trade along the coast for centuries!
As we make the turn to the South gate of Masala we pass this scenic corner. It looks like a little chapel on the near corner.
We arrive at this point. The column signifies this is the western-most point of Sicily!
Continuing on to Marsala, we pass this cool miniature golf course, all laid out in concrete!
Then we see the monument to General Garibaldi! It was at this site that he came ashore to take Masala from the southern papal states. He reportedly came here rather than Trapani because he was bribed with the Marsala wine. True? Hmmm… But he ended up unifying north and south Italy and is a great hero to Italy and Sicily!
And so we arrive at the south gate to the walled city of Masala. The domes are marvelous, rising above the gate!
This is now known as the Garibaldi Gate! That is our tour guide, Regina, holding the number 7 sign.
Regina gives us a little briefing on Marsala’s history and layout. You can see the Girabaldi Gate (Porta Girabaldi) sign behind her!
We enter the gate and wind our way to the ancient marketplace!
We first encounter the fish market!
We are surprised at the varieties of seafood available from this morning’s catch! This is squid, obviously in its own ink.
Next to the squid is a catch of octopus.
Shrimp, cuttlefish, crab, and several types of fish I don’t recognize are available!
The stingray surprised me!
Then there are sharks!
Then around the corner is the veggie mart. We only stopped at this man’s stand to admire the italian eggplant that is grown on this island. They are the purple round plants next to the regular eggplants. Apparently Sicilians really love to eat eggplant!
Leaving the marketplace, Joy fell in love with the pottery rain gutter downspouts. They are unique and interesting, so I include them here!
A block away we enter a plaza, and this is the first building we see. It’s the government building. Typical of most city squares there is a government building on one side, and a church on another side.
And here is the church!
The detail in the church is phenomenal! The cherubs on top admiring the cross, and the cross itself! And the pediment below the cherubs – beautiful!
And the detail in the statues up high! These are strong, rugged carvings out of something other than marble – maybe limestone? I’m only going to show two of the four in detail.
This guy fits the material of the carving! Around his feet are what appear to me to coral! Maybe it’s supposed to be a thicket bush? The staff this statue is holding has clearly been replaced with a metal rod – you can see the flaking of corrosion.
This bishop looks ready to smite someone! But his book (Bible?) is cracked. Still, a very strong representation!
This is the Church of Thomas Beckett, also known as the Church of the Purgatory. Apparently every city on Sicily has a Church of the Purgatory! This church suffered a major fire which resulted in the belltower collapsing into the center. The church was rebuilt with brick. So you can see the original arches in white, and the rebuild in brick.
The details are quite simple and clean. OK, let’s revisit the name of the church. First, this is not a cathedral anymore as it doesn’t have a bishop assigned to it, so it is just a church. But it bears the name “The Church of Thomas Beckett.” Thomas Beckett was a British archbishop of Canterbury. He was killed on the altar of his church by a Norman. The killer’s daughter was ashamed of what her father did and asked the church if there was any new church being built that could be named after Thomas Beckett. It so happened that the British were building this church on Sicily. So it was named after Thomas Beckett, even though it is in Sicily and he was an archbishop in Canterbury, UK.
A curiosity to me – there are four confessionals in the church, two on each side. But only one, this one, has some interesting detail on it.
On the upper left side where the others have ornate rosettes, this confessional has the tools of a seamstress or barber, and a carpenter.
And on the right side are the tools of what I think is a leather worker and a blacksmith. None of the other confessionals have this. Is there a reason? I’m not Catholic, so this puzzles me.
Upon leaving the church we head west. Regina points out this building and tells us this was a nunnery. It is one of the few buildings with any color in it. The alternating green and white tiles on the roof make it splendid and unique!
This was once the palace, Pici Palace. Now it is an entertainment venue and restaurant.
Making our way to the western gate out of the walled city we come across this lovely structure.
Then we’re at the gate!
This is how the gate looks from outside the wall. It appears to be missing a couple of statues, but it is still imposing and beautiful!
Next we toured the Marsala Archeological Museum. I will minimize the photos from here to just two. There was a statue of Venus found around the foundation of a church. It was a Roman copy of a Greek Aphrodite statue. That church was embarrassed to have a nude statue associated with it so this was hidden away for a long time. Most of the stone artifacts in the museum were retrieved from a cemetery – I had fun reading the Greek inscriptions – Romans and Phoenicians used the greek alphabet during that time.
There were also remnants of two ships that were sunk during a war with the Phoenicians. The exhibit is interesting but there is not much to show in photographs. So let’s move on to some wine!
We went to the Florio Enoteca Winery. They invented the Marsala dessert wines!
This cute mural is on the wall in their courtyard!
And here is the still that inspred that great mural!
General Garibaldi is also recognized here! Here are many of the weapons used in his fight to free Sicily from southern Italy and reunite north and south Italy.
Valentina was our host at Florio. She explained that two Englishmen, John Woodhouse and Benjamin Ingham, were instrumental in the development of Marsala dessert wine. During those times people would add water to their wine, but these gents added alcohol, specifically brandy, to the wine. And Marsala fortified wines were born! Their statues are displayed along with the Florio founders.
Florio creates an amazing amount of wine each year. The large vat in front of us holds 62,000 liters of 2011 Marsala. The vat behind it holds 64,000 liters of 2012 Marsala. The wine will eventually be tapped off into smaller barrels for storage. Adding alcohol stops the aging process.
Multiple halls are lined with thousands of barrels of various sizes!
Valentina explains to us that early during World War II the Germans contrived information that made the Allies think Sicily was armed to the teeth, so the Allies bombed Trapani and Marsala. The specifically targeted the Florio winery because they thought the large halls were a hangar. It was reported that a flood of red wine poured from the halls into the sea for days. Such a loss!
But a few barrels were saved, and they are the envy of the world. Their oldest wine is dated 1939! About 70 bottles remain in the barrel and go for an estimated €700 each! (That’s euros if you aren’t familiar with the € symbol.)
Valentina led us the back end of one of the storage halls to this lovely setting! We had lunch in conjunction with the wine tasting. They provided a fabulous box lunch! And we had four wines, each paired with specific items in the lunch.
We were given a white wine, red wine, a white fortified wine (amber), and marsala fortified wine. There were five items in the box as well as a dessert cannolo on the side. Sadly, for one of our guests, this was not a gluten-free presentation! The Sicilian pizza was heavenly!
Our last stop on this excurion is the salt pans. On the way, I captured this interesting structure. I saw it earlier this morning, but was on the wrong side of the bus. I remembered to look for it. It is strangely beautiful and curious! My guess is it is over 20 feet tall!
Joy captured this lovely scene. Tools of the trade!
Then we began seeing the salt pans. These are seaside areas that are about 45 inches deep. They flood the area with seawater, then as the dry summers set in, the water evaporates and leaves large quantities of sea salt, about 8-10 inches deep I was told.
When the wind blows sometimes a salt foam appears and collects on the edges of the salt pans. When the salt is collected it is piled into high pyramids that are covered to allow more drying time. There are stacks of roofing tiles all around the pans. These tiles are used to cover the salt pyramids until they are ready for delivery.
There is a bacterial microorganism that is reddish in color that grows in the salt pans. This bacteria is actually healthy for us, keeping the salt pans free of bad bacteria. Tiny crabs also eat the bacteria, so when the rains come they slightly dilute the salt water, the bacteria blooms, the crabs eat the bacteria and it turns their shells red, then the flamingoes eat the crabs and they turn the flamingo’s feathers red! Hence, pink flamingos!
We arrive at the salt pan tourist trap. We are directed to the windmill at the end.
Two windmills in the distance still appear to be in good shape. Others have lost their upper structure. These were once used to grind the salt crystals into a consistent size for delivery. Now modern machinery takes care of that. But the windmills give much more character to the coastline!
The windmill at the end of the walkway is now a souvenir store, and the local salt can be purchased here!
There are many small boats on a waterway that encircles groups of pans. We see a group of tourists coming back on one of the larger boats. But these can also be used to help the workers move around the pans.
Time to head back to the ship! Upon arrival we are informed we cannot board the ship due to bunkering shutting down the dock access. If you recall from a long time ago, we learned “bunkering” means fueling operations are underway. In this case the fuel trucks have to drive on to the dock, in front of our gangway. It is 4:30 PM. We are told it will be about a half hour. 6:30 PM is the all-aboard cutoff. So we head into town to walk around!
And guess who we see again? Yes, General Garibaldi!
We see Garibaldi is staring at our ship! Hmm, he must be watching the bunkering operations. Another tanker truck with a trailer has just pulled up!
Before we set off on our walk I want to explain a little about the city of Trapani. It is situated on a spit of land between two seas. So it is only a few blocks wide north to south! Our ship is docked on the south side, about where the map shows a ship! We set off to see what we can see! 
The wind is blowing like crazy! We duck into an alley that has an intersting wall. Fabulous medallions and a beautiful fountain! This fountain is actually flowing, unlike many we have been seeing!
Sharing the courtyard is this plain but stunning church! The rosette up above is breathtaking!
We left the alley and saw this building in front of us. OMG, how great this is! But a makeshift storage and seating area in front prevent us from getting a good photo directly in front.
The detail is great, but there has been significant damage to some of the statuary supports. Wings are missing, a face is missing, ram-curl rosette is missing. A lot of chips have been taken out of the left side. Vandalism? Are people throwing objects at these? Or are natural events, earthquakes in particular, taking their toll?
We turn around and look at where we just came from. Oh, wow! We walked right by a spectacular building and didn’t even see it! There is a clock on right that isn’t working – the time is now about 4:45 PM – and a calendar on the left that is also not working – the date is the 6th.
Around the left side of the building is another clock we now see in this photo, but didn’t see it at the time! More on that shortly!
Continuing our walk westward down the Corsa Y Emmanuelle (Rua Grande) we find this gorgeous church!
The upper section has my attention! Too bad we can’t get a better view, but the layers and layers of cornices are excellent!
We look left and right as we pass intersections. Joy is convined there will be Venice/Florentine bridges between buildings and, sure enough, we find one!
We also find stairs to the north that should lead up to the city wall. We don’t explore that yet – not in the plan!
This bookshop displays a cute painting on the rolling shutter!
This beautiful entrance leads to a courtyard for this building that is now a Bed & Breakfast.
A few blocks later we find a wall gate to the north. We go to investigate!
Walking through the gate was remarkable! The howling wind we suffered on the street ceased! It was warm and quiet!
A unique Madonna Degli Abissi (Our Lady of the Abyss) sculpture resides on the other side of the gate!
All is calm to the east!
All is calm to the west. BTW, that ship out there was there when we came in to harbor. No movement, no sign of life!
All is calm to the south. We see people walking on the top of the wall, confirming in our minds what those steps we saw earlier were for. The ground is all covered with a dense mulch – wood chips that have formed a dense mat with the wash of the waves. It is interesting, and helps muffle sound! Joy gets intrigued watching the old men under the tree chat. They are very animated, but are all masked and social distancing! Bravo!
We re-enter the gate and journey back to the east on another street. We arrive at an earlier target – a statue in front of arches. We discover this plaza, and find it was the original fish market!
The fountain has a beautiful nude adorning it, but the statue and the fountain heads all need help! Corrosion is taking its toll! The red sign in the background says the market and fountain have recently been restored. To this I say “bullsh**” and what did they really do? It is possible the pavers were redone and the cement crown above the arches is new, but that’s it! The fountain is a mess, the arches are a mess.
We decide it’s time to head back to the ship. Joy spots this sign and says, “orologio – clock! There’s a clock!” We look up!
On the wall, way up high, is a clock over the gateway. We learn this used to be the main entrance to the walled city of Trapani! And this is the clock we noticed was behind that fabulous building we saw with a similar clock and calendar earlier!
Once again, the clock and the calendars do not work. But the building in front are infringing on the original clock and calendar! and the water pipe is garish. Bad choice of locations!
We decide to walk through the gate! Why not! We find one, two,…
…three, and four roads all converging on that gate into the city! No wonder it’s the main gate! But look off to the right!
The Oceania stack! That’s the way to our ship! we walk down that narrow street, and we’re followed by a mini cooper determined to force us out of the way. But, no, we win! And then…
We find we’re back at that church with the lovely rosette again, near the fountain on the side of the building!
Now we know how to get back to the ship! On the way we find some functional pay phone “booths”!
And then we find some honest to goodness working pay phone booths!
Imagine our delight when we hear, and then see, a marching band tuning up in front of our ship! It’s 6 PM. All aboard is 6:30 PM. Sailaway is 7 PM. Not sure what their plan is. So we head in to the terminal, only to be told we can’t board the ship yet because bunkering is still in progress.
We don’t get to board until about 6:20 PM. We don’t think the band gets to play in front of the ship due to continuing bunkering operations.
7 PM departure slips to 8 PM then 9 PM. Two more trucks had to come in to fininsh fueling us. So I don’t think the band was ever allowed to play for us, if that was the plan. We finally pushed off at 9 PM, in the drizzly rain. We were still at dinner, so part of the lousy view through the glass is the lack of cleaning the dining room windows!
I make it down to our veranda, and the waterfront is in a beautiful glow.
As we pass the breakwaters the two watchful tugboats turn back to port.
Trapani, Sicily, melts into the hazy rain.
After a lengthy day and a lot of photos we say “Ciao” to Sicily! There’s lots more to explore here, so I hope our planned stop at Messina in a few weeks succeeds! Next stop – Valletta, Malta!
