Gary Kirkpatrick

Artist and travel blogger.

We’ll be back in time- treasures of Sicily (Catania to Taormina)

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After driving around Sicily we are in a tiny basement apartment in the center of Palermo recovering from the 12 consecutive days in ruins and churches, and six months of almost constant movement on Viking that took us from the northeastern part of Netherlands to a small city in France on the Belgium border. We need a bit of a rest, but not before I get some of my memories down.

Catania

We started in Catania after winterizing the boat and spending a few days with friends in and around Paris. From Versailles we went across Paris to Charles de Gaulle. It took an amazing three hours, expecting no more than two. They’d changed things since we were last there. It was unclear what the E line from San Lazar was now doing. Did it still always go to Gare d’ Nord? Once we got off at Gare d’ Nord it was hard to find where you would need to go to get tickets for de Gaulle. When you found a machine (no people in ticket booths within sight) there was only one and a line there. In the meantime the clock was ticking. We eventually made it with plenty of time but by then I was well frazzled. The rest of the journey proceeded without incident- Paris to Catania on Easyjet, from whom we have multiple vouchers. Then it was just a matter of finding the apartment we rented for three nights with four other friends. That was easy. We even came upon two of them walking up the hill towards the apartment.

Catania was founded in the 8th century BCE by Greeks. It is at the foot of Mount Etna, which has made many unwelcome visits to the city. The eruptions of 1169, 1669 and 1693 caused severe damage as well as loss of life. There are over a dozen other recorded lava flows into the city. As a result of the 1693 eruption the old town has lots of fine examples of late Baroque architecture, making it a Unesco World Heritage Site. The Cathedral is one of the better examples but there are tons, secular as well as religious.

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The Cathedral in Catania

The original Cathedral was finished in 1093. Basilica della Collegiata was also destroyed and also rebuilt in the Baroque style. Needless to say once you have visited either one or seen the photos, the artistry of both the buildings’ exterior and interior are nearly beyond the imagination, but wait until you see Gesu in Palermo.

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One of the finest examples of ceiling art anywhere, Cathedral Catania

The Greco-Roman amphitheater is still with us and a must see. I always find it rather amazing that things of this size were buried. This one was excavated 1500 plus years later, in the 19th century. It seats 7000. Impressive, no? Yet it is fewer than the amphitheaters in Taormina and Siracusa, both smaller cities.

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Roman theater in Catania

There were 6 of us in a very nice three bedroom apartment. It only had one bathroom so we had to do a bit of shuffling. Also there was only one key, a common practice here that can make matters difficult at times. For example, one person or group plans to arrive before another but then is delayed, leaving the second locked out.

Just outside our door is a tabac- they sell tobacco products, bus tickets, this and that, somehow eeking out a living a euro at a time like millions of other small shop owners in Italy. Out front is a marijuana dispenser. Naturally we were curious so tried to buy some. It asked for a card of some sort, apparently a health card (tessera sanitaria) so presumably the law relates to medical use.

None of us have such a card. No problem. The shopkeeper swiped one for us and out came a product. I avoid inhaling anything that burns as much as possible so I can not account for the quality of the weed. There are many choices and I have no idea what any of it means.

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Pot for every chicken on the street corner

There’s a lovely restaurant up the busy street we are on. The service was welcoming, very friendly and nearly perfect. The offerings are fine examples of typical Sicilian cooking. Caponata is on the menu, as it will be in most every restaurant we visit from here on. It’s one of my favorite dishes. It’s eggplant (aubergine) based, with onions and garlic, capers and more in a vinegar-sugar mix. There are tons of variations, some including pignole (pine nuts) and others walnuts instead, or none at all. The wine was very good and there’s a good selection of beers. In regards to beers, Italy has come up in the world. In previous visits all you had were basics like Peroni, not bad but not outstanding and all more or less the same. Now there are lots of domestic and imported craft beers.

The restaurant across the street was the opposite of the first restaurant. So so food, mediocre service. I did not think Italians could mess up Italian food. They can, but even then it isn’t bad. And this was not in a tourist zone, so no excuses there. They even served lousy bread. That should be a crime. It was a crime that was repeated in a number of the restaurants we ate in. It was even hard to find good bread in the supermarkets we used. It was all wrapped in plastic, turning the fabulous crust into near mush.

There are a large number of churches in Catania. We missed almost all of them. Here’s a partial list

  • San Michele Arcangelo ai Minoriti (Franciscan) church
  • San Nicolò l’Arena (1687), unfinished basilica church and extensive Benedictine Monastery of San Nicolò l’Arena (1558)
  • San Nicolas al Borgo
  • San Placido (1769) church
  • Madonna delle Grazie Chapel
  • Santa Rita in Sant’Agostino church
  • San Sebastiano (1313)
  • Santa Teresa, Carmelitan church and convent
  • Santissima Trinità
  • Santa Ursula
  • Chiesa delle Verginelle di Sant’Agata
  • San Vincenzo de’ Paoli, church
  • Santissimo Sacramento al Borgo church
  • Chapel of the Blind’s Housing (Ospizio dei Ciechi
  • Santissimo Sacramento al Duomo, church
  • Church of the Holy Child
  • Our Lady of Providence
  • San Berillo in Santa Maria degli Ammalati, church
  • Our Lady of the Poor
  • Little Saviour’s Byzantine Chapel
  • Church of the Santissimo Sacramento Ritrovato (1796).[58]
  • Sanctuary of Our Lady of Ognina (1308).[59] 

Taormina

We’d parked in a lot near the apartment in Catania. I retrieved the van with someone to help just in case I had to detour. The last block is more an alley than a street but lots of cars and pedestrians squeeze through simultaneously. Turn right and our friends are there waiting so it could not be much more convenient.

Taormina is an hour or so by car. It dates to around the same time as Catania but it’s on a hill rather than being a port. The town is most notable for its Greek theater still used for plays and concerts and the lovely restored town center (mostly tourist shops and eateries). Nothing but willful destruction will ever destroy the seating in the theater, I should think, since it’s lasted this long. The views of the coast from the seating areas are marvelous, the clear blue waters of the Med spread below. There are excellent videos off one side of the stage, displayed on high resolution monitors. You get a better sense of what things were like at the theater in ancient times.

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The stage and the wonderful view of the Med. The Greeks knew real estate, didn’t they.

We found a quick, inexpensive yet decent place for a light lunch right in town. Then we returned to the pickup spot. You have to park outside of town, then call when you are ready. Better have an EU ready phone and having a least a bit of Italiano really helps. My B level does the trick most of the time.

Taormina from the castle By Solomonn Levi - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=94062292
Taormina from the castle – we did not go to it, photo by Solomonn Levi on Wikipedia

From Taormina we drove high up the side of Etna, aka Aetna, Etnea (in Catania only near as I can tell), and then there’s my own version, Edna, which makes her sound so human, an explosive Sicilian one for sure. Here we were treated to dramatic views, sharp switchbacks and a clamber over volcanic rocks and flows, boulders frozen in place where they cooled. We are still a good bit from the top, and I think we saw smoke coming from the crater there, or a constant cloud. I vote for the smoke. Edna needs to let off steam on a regular basis.

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The lava fields of Edna’s slopes. She was in a good mood that day, here at least

Next: Siracusa, an ancient Greek port city

Selinunte, Greek era temples

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Selinunte, Sicily

Selinunte is my favorite site for Greek temples, in large measure because of the setting. It overlooks the Med. The Acropolis in Athens and i Valli dei Tempi in Agrigento are a very close second, especially the former for its dramatic views from a distance. Watercolor sketch about 4.5 x 5.75″ , 10 x 15 cm. Fits in a pocket so good for on the spot work.

My grandparents were born nearby. In fact Selinunte was fed by an aqueduct that originated in Partanna.

I will write about our travels in Sicily, including our visit to Selinunte and Agrigento.

Watercolor sketches from Sicily

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During our travels in Sicily in September 2021 I came across many dramatic scenes, both in nature and in the towns and cities we visited.

Modica from the Church, watercolor
Modica from the Church, watercolor sketch, approx 3 x 5″
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Lombardi Castle, Enna, Sicily pen and ink sketch, approx 3 x 5″
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Lombardi Castle, Enna, Sicily, watercolor sketch from pen and ink then digital colors, approx 3 x 5″
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Agrigento, watercolor sketch, approx 3 x 5″

Namur and Dinant

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Namur was settled by the Celts, who were replaced by the Romans. The Merovigians (550-750 CE) built the citadel, much strengthened and expanded over time by the Spanish and later Napoleon. The Germans attacked early in WWI to use the Meuse River as a path into nearby France. It is now the capitol of the region. Located on a narrow strip along the Meuse, the majority of the town, significantly the old town sits more broadly along and setback from the Sambre River. The old town is full of medieval charm and, of course, lots of bars and restaurants, well populated with beer sipping locals chatting the hours away.

Namur is on an important railway junction as well as being at the junction of two rivers, each of which supports a fair amount of barge traffic. In addition we saw several day trip cruise trips. The University of Namur (1831) and the University of Louvain are here, both well respected institutions.

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Namur
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Namur from the cable car
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Namur from the cable car

Dinant is much smaller and its downtown less charming than Namur’s, but there are fabulous views from our mooring, along the main part of the town, and from the citadel. The citadel offers a much more interesting visit compared to Namur’s, aside from the ride up, which is more dramatic in Namur. The Dinant visit takes you deep in the mountain, passing through a tilted corridor with a fun house feel to it- the sloping path makes you a bit dizzy. The main part of the town is only a few streets wide and not as charming as Namur. The Collegiate Church of Notre Dame de Dinant has a Norman facade on the north side, which dates it a 1000 years back, its carvings badly worn by the ravages of Belgian rain, but still it’s a trip back in time. Rocks heavily damaged the Romanesque structure in 1227. It was then rebuilt in the Gothic style.

Dinant shows traces of settlement dating to paleolithic times. Celtic tribes lived there, and of course the Romans. The St Vincent church was built in 870. There was heavy fighting in WWI during which DeGaulle was wounded. We ran across the statue honoring him. I’d forgotten how old he was as President of France in the 60’s.

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Dinant from the cable car
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Pulpit at Collegiate Church of Notre Dame, Dinant
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On the bridge in Dinant. The inventor Adolphe Sax was born here

Abbaye d’Aulne

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Abbaye d’Aulne sits on the Sambre River. On the way aboard Viking you pass through an old industrial area outside Charleroi. The Abbaye is a ruin now, but 500 plus years after its founding it had grown large and powerful, before being largely destroyed during the French revolution. Its presence adds to what is otherwise largely landscape charm as the river winds its way through the hills of the Ardennes. The Abbaye was part of the Cisterncian order that today gives its name to some 11 brands of Trappist beer. The Trappist order originated in the Cisterncian monastery in La Trappe, France.

We took the boat to the small settlement that hosts the Abbaye, mooring just outside the lock. Already there was a music, sounding like a concert in progress, although it turned out to be live bands at one of the bars across the street from the ruins. A few women were dancing. I ached to join them. Instead we took a look at the Auberge in the ancient building complete with a road passing through it, then the restaurant at the Abbaye itself, in the cellar of a ruin, and along the quiet street. Next we came to the entrance to the Abbye. You get a good look at the remains of the immense structure. You can walk around and even take a tour. The next day we skipped the tour and just enjoyed walking through the architectural skeletons.

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Abbaye d’Aulne
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The old lock, our restaurant at the far end on the left

There’s a well recommended restaurant at the lock. We’d made reservations. We ordered an Irish steak with a Roquefort sauce. I assume they imported it from Ireland. It was not a pretty piece but the sauce was out of this world – Belgian sauces are outstanding. The vol au vent, which features a pastry shell normally in the shape of a volcano with the top blown off. This one had grilled chicken breast and a cream sauce, all excellent. The third dish was a rack of lamb with another great sauce, this a brown gravy. The wine prices were out of this world so it was beer or a glass of wine. My beer was the Abbaye d’Aulne label. This is not a Trappist beer so no monk had approached the production but it’s just as good. I got the blonde en fut (on tap). We were there two and half hours, munching on the superb bread while we waiting the first hour for our entree- in French an ‘entree’ is the starter course, not the main course as it is in the US, which uses the French word but not the meaning for some reason.

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The auberge. Their restaurant is closed

There are few rivers more charming than this section of the Sambre. The hills through which it passes are heavily forested with multiple shades of green (see next photo). The river’s edge flows with a pleasant irregularity, unlike a canal’s sharper edges. Trees occasionally push their way a few meters from the shore. There are a half dozen or so old locks, manually operated with cranks. They allow boats climb the hills. The river remains in its natural path at the junction with the lock. On the way back I was able to close one side of the lock, saving the lock keeper a walk around to the other gate and us a few minutes of engine time.

There’s an excellent cheese shop, Temp du Fromage. We bought some goat cheese, Morbier, as well as fresh, rich and creamy ricotta, just like I remember from my childhood when you could get raw milk ricotta. Some mighty fine stuff. Around the corner there’s a boulongerie (bakery) selling boules (large round rolls, the shape of a ball- boules is the word for ball). From “boules” you get the word “boulangerie,” or so it seems. Just makes sense that it would.

Thuin also has a rail museum containing street cars starting from late in the 19th century. They have all been restored and are now indoors. There is one in use for the tourists. We took the 40 minute round trip ride. The other passengers came well equipped with cameras. There were two stops for photos along the way, and click away they did, with real cameras.

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On the hillside at Thuin

The morning after our lovely dinner at the lock near the Abbaye we left, with the cliff lined Meuse our goal. It hosts the Citadels of Namur and Dinant. Between the two cities there is more dramatic scenery and fabulous chateaux.

Chez Gina and the Blaton-Ath Canal

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The Blaton-Ath Canal has a long series of locks, some 18 in all, that takes you from Blanton to Ath at which point you are back on the Scheldt River. These are old locks. The Wallonie waterways authority sends you through with a team of lock keepers in a small truck or car. You go part of the way with one team before another takes over. It took us two days to do the approximately 25km. The scenery is lovely along the way. There are some attractive houses, including the old lock keepers’. The locks are easy to handle so it is a relaxing experience.

We stayed one night in each direction at Ladeuze, a scenic setting with a small village nearby, and several days in Geraadsbergen, back in Flanders at that point. The latter has a small town square up the hill, but otherwise there is not much to see. The people are especially friendly in these small towns. We tried some local beers at the marina’s bar. The owner received a package for us, a replacement for our failed marine radio, texting us when it arrived.

I noticed a sandwich press behind the bar. I asked if she could make a croque messieurs. Yes, but for those who had too much to drink. She was not about to offer to make me one just because it was lunchtime. When you drink beer, you drink beer. You do not eat. I keep forgetting.

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One of countless canal scenes

Our lovely journey on this canal began with a night near a bridge outside the first lock, as a barge had just entered the lock, leaving no room for us. He said he was bringing a load of hops to the brewery up the canal. So we drove some stakes into the ground, I charcoal grilled a few few chicken thighs, and spent a quiet night there. On the way back we’d picked up a guest, Peg’s sister, but we sailed past that quiet spot, one of few free ones we’ve found in Belgium. It wasn’t pretty though, unlike the one in Ladeuze, and unlike Ladeiuze, there is no Chez Gina.

Chez Gina is a bar just off the canal. Gina is 80 and still runs the place. She has one tap of Jupiler, the crap from the national vat, or Maes it could be, I’ve forgotten. She has a half dozen bottled beers, fortunately. I ordered a St Feuillen (approximate spelling) Reserve, another good blonde. She does a magnificent job of delivering a small bag of ‘ships’ (chips, crisps for you Brits). Lays – they are everywhere in Europe. Quite a few locals stopped in for a chat and a beer. And maybe eat an entire ounce of ships.

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Gina at the bar. Decor by Gina.

Peg lured another child onto the boat for a ride between a few locks as we made our way back south. We are headed to the amazing boat lift at Thieu followed by the Ronquieres elevator lock. However there is a lock between us and them, and as it turned out, the lock had broken so we were forced to spend the night in Mons. Mons was not on the itinerary but it was certainly worth the visit. See http://garyjkirkpatrick.com/mons-by-chance/ for my account.

Oudenaarde to Tournai

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Oudenaarde was a major tapestry center between the 15th and 18th centuries. Dating from the late 10th century, it began as a fortification. It’s location on the Scheldt was a major factor in its prosperity. Today it is known for its beer production. Oude Bruin (Old Brown) is its most noted beer, aged for a year. The Town Hall is a World Heritage site.

We stayed in the marina that sits in the shunt. It is convenient to the nearby friture. We bought mussels. As they were cooking I biked the one minute to the friture to get an order of fries. The fries are excellent, inexpensive and copious. You can get burgers and other grilled and deep fried items displayed in the large case at the shop, manned by wife, husband and daughter. I had to wait only a few minutes to get the order.

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City Hall, Oudenaarde

Across the bridge you get to the main plaza, another of these large, impressive main squares. The Town Hall is the most impressive building but there are a large number to admire. We drank a beer under an umbrella, as rain clouds occasionally spit upon us. A good small band played pop from the high balcony of the Hall.

The bus/train station are nearby. We took the bus to the Ypres WWI cemetery, located in a major battlefield. Each night the Last Post Association’s buglers honor the foreign dead who liberated Belgium. There is a good small exhibit, with excellent English translations . You pass through it on your way to the somber visit of the graves. In the town there is an arch with thousands of names of the dead from around the world. This city saw endless carnage. It remembers.

We moved along the river to Tournai, entering Wallonie, the French speaking section of the country. My wife’s family on the mother’s side came from this area. Her parents met not far from Bastogne, a major battle zone of the Battle of the Bulge. She spoke some English so she was able to communicate with the soldiers. David was housed with her family in Olne, and so the romance began. She also shuttled messages for the resistance, her guise as a tiny 16 year making excellent cover.

We first came to Belgium as a couple in 1983, and have owned two houses, which we rented. Peg’s cousin Arlette managed them for us. Her mother, Irene, ran a bakery when she was alive, continuing the business after the husband the baker died. She hired a guy named Mark. I tried tart au riz for the first time. It’s a rice pie made with raw milk cream, rice, sugar and spices. Wow! Also they made fruit filled waffles, which I like much better than the plain thick ones you find in most of the country, although add strawberries and whipped cream and anything comes palatable. Irene was a great cook so I got to try a lot of Belgian home cooking. Thumper in cream sauce- the first time I ate rabbit. Watercress soup. Moules pomme frites (mussels with fries, the national dish), lots of roasts with wonderful sauces. And of course the beer, although we had wine with all the meals as well.

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Grande Place (Main Square) Tournai

The ancient city (dating of least to Roman times) Tournai was quite the surprise. It has a huge cathedral and a magnificent square. The folk life museum is one of the best of its kind

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Cathedral of Tournai. Having 5 spires is unusual. You can see them from many spots.
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Jesus giving the keys to Peter. The most effeminate depiction of Jesus I have ever seen.