We left Ragusa two days ago for our next stay, in Castelbuono, Sicily. This was to be the longest drive of our trip, and we made it much longer by trying to outsmart Garmina, our GPS unit. Garmina, and Google maps, told us the journey should take about three and a half hours, but in fact it took us closer to six hours, and that's with no lunch stop. Unplanned side trips through the tiny one-way streets of not one but two hilltowns, plus a couple of wrong turns, all contributed to the extended drive.
One of the hilltowns was Petralia Sottana, which is nestled on a hill just below a snow-capped mountain. Thinking we were following Garmina's instructions, we made a hard left into the town instead of by-passing it. Garmina "recalculated", sending us through some of the narrowest streets we've ever driven on, and that's saying something. The last tiny "street" afforded us maybe one inch clearance on each side of the car, and ended up with a tight turn to the left....
All that said, much of the drive was amazing... the views were incredible. As we climbed in altitude we began to see snow-capped mountains and quaint villages....
How beautiful is this town of Petralia Sottana....
The ground under your feet in Sicily always seems to be moving.... as are the roads....
Very common to see animals alongside, or in, the road...
We finally made it, tired and hungry, but very relieved, to the cute mountain town of Castelbuono....
The m. 423 s/m means that the town is 423 meters above sea level. And of course Castelbuono means "good castle". Here's the castle, and what it looks like from our terrace at night....
The long and winding road... eventually, and thankfully... leads us to our door....
Touch any photo to enlarge....
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