France (via Concorde?), Malta and Southern Italy
Sep 19, 2003, 7:23 pm
#61
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Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Marietta, Georgia, United States
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Day 5 Part III
I noticed that this ferry (named the San Gwann and manufactured by Fjellstrand) was large, nice and clean as the sun peeked through the dark morning air. There were plenty of seats inside on two decks, but no seats outside on the vessel that I could find, which I thought was odd. There were places to purchase snacks, drinks, sundries and souvenirs on board, but there was no place to buy real meals. No problem, I thought. The day tour of Sicily includes a stop for breakfast (although meals are not included), so I will eat then. As I sat down by a window seat on the left side of the vessel, there was a flat screen up front, which displayed the DVD logo.
The high-speed vessel departed on time under partly cloudy skies (this is going to be a perfect day, I thought) as it slowly plied through the dark-green waters of the harbor in Valletta. The sun shone onto the fortress-like walls and the architecture, both ancient and modern, all of which reflected the sunlight as a pale limestone yellow. Safety and information announcements were made in three languages: Italian, English, and Spanish, in that order.
Immediately after leaving the harbor and the announcements were finished, a showing of the 1998 movie Ever After starring Drew Barrymore commenced. I watched this tepid remake of Cinderella with little interest, but at least there was some form of entertainment. The movie was shown in English with no subtitles.
Looking out the window, I viewed the rocky yet hilly terrain of Malta. Large cranes were evidence of much of the new construction Malta was experiencing. The ferry eventually sped across the portion of the Mediterranean Sea between Malta and Sicily in approximately 90 minutes. I was treated to a great view of Malta as we departed. The view even included the Hilton Malta, where I was staying at the time.
Visibility was not great upon the approach to Sicily, but there was not much to see anyway. One may as well have been taking the ferry to Staten Island, except that Staten Island has a more impressive view. The movie was about to end as we arrived at port in Pozzallo.
Everybody attempted to disembark from the ferry all at once, which made exiting the vessel long and tedious. Once again, control of the flow of people was disorganized at best.
After disembarking the vessel and then walking across a large asphalt parking lot, I arrived at this little white shanty of a building near where the buses that awaited us were parked, where there was about three dozen or so people ahead of me waiting in line outside the building. However, the line behind me was much longer. A medium-sized scruffy tan stray dog ran around, randomly greeting those who stood in line.
After waiting at least a half-hour, the line finally started to move. When I finally was inside this shack, a friendly Sicilian official who sat at an old wooden desk in a very small room asked a few questions and stamped my passport, while another Sicilian official stood nearby. Only one person at a time was being processed! Therefore, it did not matter whether one was first or last in line, because after I was processed by the Sicilian official and exited out of the other side of this shack, I boarded my bus and awaited the rest of the passengers to be processed. Many of the forward seats on the left side of this modern bus behind the bus drivers seat were already occupied, but none of the seats on the right side were occupied. I took the front seat on the right side for photographic opportunities. I immediately realized why these seats were not occupied: there was far less legroom in the seats on the right side of the bus. Nevertheless, I sat there anyway, figuring that I am not going to be back in Sicily anytime soon, so I may as well seize whatever opportunity I can get to get the best pictures and video that I could. In fact, all of the buses waited until all of the passengers boarded their respective buses. It did not matter whether the passengers were there for a day tour or otherwise all of the buses waited. I sat on the bus a very long time because after all the passengers were processed, we still had to wait for the guides and bus drivers to board their respective buses and then get things organized.
We finally departed out of the very tiny port of Pozzallo. I saw no evidence of the town of Pozzallo as the bus rambled down a two-lane limited-access highway between hilly fields on both sides. The hills and valleys progressively became larger as we ventured north.
As we crossed over what our guide with the thick Sicilian accent said was the third-largest bridge in Sicily, we had a grand view of the city of Modica below, complete with train station. After that, a lot of the hilly landscape consisted of rocky and brushy terrain, pockmarked with houses and crops here and there. There eventually were plenty of gardens on either side of the road, growing all sorts of different fruits and vegetables, including olives, lemons and tomatoes. The weather, terrain, vegetation and crops reminded me of California.
The guide gave some more information along the way (none of which was particularly memorable). He then announced that we will be stopping for breakfast shortly in the town of Ragusa. He knows the people in the place where we will eat, and he kept raving about the food there. Great, I thought. I cannot wait!
The bus veered off the highway onto the exit ramp and pulled into an Esso fuel station at the end of the exit ramp. The bus needs to fill up?, I wondered.
No this is our stop for breakfast.
The bathrooms were typical gasoline station bathrooms. The food was typical gasoline station food. There was a long line for a limited choice of expensive, unappealing food, which included pizza that was not fresh, sandwiches in plastic wrap, pastries and pre-packaged goods. I would have been better off eating on the ferry, I thought to myself.
I would up not eating after all, as I did not think it was worth waiting in line for a long time for what I felt was sub-par food. We did not have much time there anyway, and fortunately I had some snacks that I brought with me, just in case.
We boarded the bus and got back on the highway to go further north. Sicily became more populated as we ventured further north. We exited the two-lane highway and went on a six-lane highway towards the city of Catania. The guide had dribbled out sparse bits of more useless information pertaining to the parts of Sicily which we passed. The weather had been cloudy since our arrival in Sicily, but it started to rain shortly after we reached Catania on our way to Mount Etna. We were already well more than two hours into the bus trip, when the guide announced that we should have seen Mount Etna by now, but the thickening fog that enshrouded the mountain kept it out of our sight. I was feeling a dull pain in my cramped legs by this time. The bus exited the highway (which was now a busy six-lane divided highway) off an exit ramp.
After we passed through a busy area of Catania, we passed through a quiet neighborhood until we reached the road to Mount Etna.
Coming up: Mount Etna and Taormina...
I noticed that this ferry (named the San Gwann and manufactured by Fjellstrand) was large, nice and clean as the sun peeked through the dark morning air. There were plenty of seats inside on two decks, but no seats outside on the vessel that I could find, which I thought was odd. There were places to purchase snacks, drinks, sundries and souvenirs on board, but there was no place to buy real meals. No problem, I thought. The day tour of Sicily includes a stop for breakfast (although meals are not included), so I will eat then. As I sat down by a window seat on the left side of the vessel, there was a flat screen up front, which displayed the DVD logo.
The high-speed vessel departed on time under partly cloudy skies (this is going to be a perfect day, I thought) as it slowly plied through the dark-green waters of the harbor in Valletta. The sun shone onto the fortress-like walls and the architecture, both ancient and modern, all of which reflected the sunlight as a pale limestone yellow. Safety and information announcements were made in three languages: Italian, English, and Spanish, in that order.
Immediately after leaving the harbor and the announcements were finished, a showing of the 1998 movie Ever After starring Drew Barrymore commenced. I watched this tepid remake of Cinderella with little interest, but at least there was some form of entertainment. The movie was shown in English with no subtitles.
Looking out the window, I viewed the rocky yet hilly terrain of Malta. Large cranes were evidence of much of the new construction Malta was experiencing. The ferry eventually sped across the portion of the Mediterranean Sea between Malta and Sicily in approximately 90 minutes. I was treated to a great view of Malta as we departed. The view even included the Hilton Malta, where I was staying at the time.
Visibility was not great upon the approach to Sicily, but there was not much to see anyway. One may as well have been taking the ferry to Staten Island, except that Staten Island has a more impressive view. The movie was about to end as we arrived at port in Pozzallo.
Everybody attempted to disembark from the ferry all at once, which made exiting the vessel long and tedious. Once again, control of the flow of people was disorganized at best.
After disembarking the vessel and then walking across a large asphalt parking lot, I arrived at this little white shanty of a building near where the buses that awaited us were parked, where there was about three dozen or so people ahead of me waiting in line outside the building. However, the line behind me was much longer. A medium-sized scruffy tan stray dog ran around, randomly greeting those who stood in line.
After waiting at least a half-hour, the line finally started to move. When I finally was inside this shack, a friendly Sicilian official who sat at an old wooden desk in a very small room asked a few questions and stamped my passport, while another Sicilian official stood nearby. Only one person at a time was being processed! Therefore, it did not matter whether one was first or last in line, because after I was processed by the Sicilian official and exited out of the other side of this shack, I boarded my bus and awaited the rest of the passengers to be processed. Many of the forward seats on the left side of this modern bus behind the bus drivers seat were already occupied, but none of the seats on the right side were occupied. I took the front seat on the right side for photographic opportunities. I immediately realized why these seats were not occupied: there was far less legroom in the seats on the right side of the bus. Nevertheless, I sat there anyway, figuring that I am not going to be back in Sicily anytime soon, so I may as well seize whatever opportunity I can get to get the best pictures and video that I could. In fact, all of the buses waited until all of the passengers boarded their respective buses. It did not matter whether the passengers were there for a day tour or otherwise all of the buses waited. I sat on the bus a very long time because after all the passengers were processed, we still had to wait for the guides and bus drivers to board their respective buses and then get things organized.
We finally departed out of the very tiny port of Pozzallo. I saw no evidence of the town of Pozzallo as the bus rambled down a two-lane limited-access highway between hilly fields on both sides. The hills and valleys progressively became larger as we ventured north.
As we crossed over what our guide with the thick Sicilian accent said was the third-largest bridge in Sicily, we had a grand view of the city of Modica below, complete with train station. After that, a lot of the hilly landscape consisted of rocky and brushy terrain, pockmarked with houses and crops here and there. There eventually were plenty of gardens on either side of the road, growing all sorts of different fruits and vegetables, including olives, lemons and tomatoes. The weather, terrain, vegetation and crops reminded me of California.
The guide gave some more information along the way (none of which was particularly memorable). He then announced that we will be stopping for breakfast shortly in the town of Ragusa. He knows the people in the place where we will eat, and he kept raving about the food there. Great, I thought. I cannot wait!
The bus veered off the highway onto the exit ramp and pulled into an Esso fuel station at the end of the exit ramp. The bus needs to fill up?, I wondered.
No this is our stop for breakfast.
The bathrooms were typical gasoline station bathrooms. The food was typical gasoline station food. There was a long line for a limited choice of expensive, unappealing food, which included pizza that was not fresh, sandwiches in plastic wrap, pastries and pre-packaged goods. I would have been better off eating on the ferry, I thought to myself.
I would up not eating after all, as I did not think it was worth waiting in line for a long time for what I felt was sub-par food. We did not have much time there anyway, and fortunately I had some snacks that I brought with me, just in case.
We boarded the bus and got back on the highway to go further north. Sicily became more populated as we ventured further north. We exited the two-lane highway and went on a six-lane highway towards the city of Catania. The guide had dribbled out sparse bits of more useless information pertaining to the parts of Sicily which we passed. The weather had been cloudy since our arrival in Sicily, but it started to rain shortly after we reached Catania on our way to Mount Etna. We were already well more than two hours into the bus trip, when the guide announced that we should have seen Mount Etna by now, but the thickening fog that enshrouded the mountain kept it out of our sight. I was feeling a dull pain in my cramped legs by this time. The bus exited the highway (which was now a busy six-lane divided highway) off an exit ramp.
After we passed through a busy area of Catania, we passed through a quiet neighborhood until we reached the road to Mount Etna.
Coming up: Mount Etna and Taormina...
Sep 20, 2003, 6:20 pm
#62
Moderator: Delta SkyMiles, Luxury Hotels, TravelBuzz! and Italy
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 26,558
Loved these last two installments. Looking forward to reading about Mt. Etna and Taormina.
Keep up the good work, Canarsie Great writing and great information.
Keep up the good work, Canarsie Great writing and great information.
Oct 1, 2003, 12:45 am
#65
Moderator: Hilton Honors forums
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Marietta, Georgia, United States
Posts: 25,001
Day 5 Part IV
As the bus meandered its way on the road to Mount Etna, the trees, shrubbery and weeds eventually gave way to dark grey and black soil and rock. In some areas, there were massive piles of rocks that had been maneuvered by heavy construction equipment; in other areas, the rock and soil was left untouched. The shades of black and dark gray rock and soil were indicative of the different times when Mount Etna erupted; the last eruption was in 2002, according to our guide. In areas covered with lava from earlier eruptions (such as from 1983), flowers, small trees and other plant life has begun to reappear. The lava from the 2001 eruption was darker for some reason; perhaps it has something to do with the oxidization of the lava as it cools. In some areas one could notice steam, still rising from the remnants of the lava from last years eruption.
Along the road were several structures buried in the now-hardened lava. There was a church complex where the church and the structure where the priests resided was either destroyed or buried in lava from the 1983 eruption, whereas the structure where the nuns stayed was miraculously left untouched. All of the structures in this church complex were white with salmon-coloured shingled roofs not extravagant by any means. Even as some of the damaged structures that remained dotted along the road up Mount Etna showed evidence and proof as to why one should not build anything on the mountain itself, there was already construction of a new and expensive hotel complex, as well as a new highway system that was under construction. If you suffer losses in the future as a result of eruptions from Mount Etna, dont say you were not warned, I thought to myself. Some people will never learn...
As we ascended up the mountain, the warm, humid air was slowly replaced with chilly, damp air. The peak of Mount Etna, enshrouded for most of the time in the low, ominous cloudiness, appeared in its partially-snow-covered glory, with the patches of white snow starkly contrasting with the almost-black mountain itself. Low clouds haphazardly hung around the mountain like a loose towel barely covering the intimately private areas of a person.
We arrived at a small village on the mountainside for what was to be lunch. We stopped at a small cafeteria where busloads of people converged all at once. As a result, long lines went out the door, waiting for food. I walked around to see what the food looked like, and again it looked unappetizing, yet it was expensive, and there was only one hour to eat. Of course, the tour guides and bus drivers knew the proprietors of this establishment and go to cut ahead of the line to receive their provisions. They had plenty of time to eat. Screw the tourists, their aura seemed to convey as they sat at their table, eating and joking and exchanging stories, while people had to fend for themselves waiting in line to eat expensive, less-than-appetizing food.
Anyway, I had two choices: remain hungry, as I had not eaten breakfast (save for some snacks), or search for someplace else. Remaining hungry was not an option for me. I had to eat. If I waited on that long line, I probably would not get to eat. I ventured outside. This cafeteria was in a small touristy shopping area which had nothing but souvenir shops, so there was no other place to eat on the same side of the street as the cafeteria.
I decided to venture across the street and up the incline (we were on a mountain, after all) to search for provisions, at which that time the clouds decided to open wide and dispense a hard, frigid wet rain upon my person. I had no umbrella or jacket. As I trudged across the street past the throngs of parked buses to another establishment, it had a limited variety and few customers. Not satisfied with their limited offerings (such as ice cream, snacks and other items which would not qualify for a meal), I then went next door, which was some dozen or so meters away, and up slippery wet wooden steps besides. This place, which offered counter service only, also had a limited selection, but there were no other customers and they had more of a variety at more reasonable prices. The person behind the counter was also friendly and helpful. I ordered the baked ziti, a cream-filled pastry and a bottle of water for about 7 Euros, which is not bad compared to the prices at the original location for lunch. They did not accept credit cards, so I had to pay in cash, as I found I would have to do many times in Europe.
I do not recall the name of any of the places to eat, nor the name of this village, as I was cold, wet, hungry, tired, frustrated, and walking with aching legs left over from the cramped condition I was in on the bus. I was not going to let all that get to me, however. I managed to take pictures and video-tape Mount Etna anyway on this cold, rainy late morning.
I returned to the cafeteria and actually found a place to sit. After I finished eating, I noticed that some of the people that were on line were still waiting in line! Trying to be helpful, I told them about the place across the street where I got my food, but they ignored me for the most part. I would have still been waiting in line at this point (after I had already finished eating) had I not gone across the street. Anyway, the food that the other people on the tour ordered in the cafeteria did not look nearly as appetizing as my food.
Lesson: Do not be like a sheep and follow the herd, even if on a tour. I prefer to remain independent even when on tour. Most of the time whenever I travel, I have been better off being independent.
Quite frankly, I sensed that favoured treatment was afforded to the owners of both establishments for breakfast and lunch simply because they seemed to have connections with the tour group, rather than select better places which could accommodate large crowds. Incentives must have abounded somewhere in the contract negotiations with these places. Corruption and politics are everywhere, I thought to myself.
Once lunch was over, the buses sounded their piercing loud horns just as I was scrambling to get the last of my video footage. I also picked up one of the black lava rocks off the ground as a souvenir. They literally have billions of tons of this stuff lying around all over the landscape, I thought to myself. They surely will not miss one baseball-sized rock. The rock was light and porous, making it easy to carry in my camera bag. At this point, the rain lightened to a drizzle. It was still very cloudy, but the peak of Mount Etna was finally fully visible and clear.
I noticed where the street ended was a black dirt (lava) road on which many people were walking in both directions. It looked almost like the surface of the moon, with all the black rocks and dirt contrasting against the light grey sky, as silhouettes of people walked surrealistically along its surface. There was a circular traffic sign that was blue with a red circle and a red X, indicating the international symbol for Do Not Enter.
We all eventually got back on the bus. The bus heads towards the end of the street. The bus driver attempts to get onto the wet, muddy dirt road. The bus stops. Pedestrians look around the front of the bus as we heard a dull thud against what appears to be a large stone. At the same time we had thought about possibly pushing the bus onto the dirt road, the pedestrians seemed to entertain the thought of trying to remove the obstacle(s) that was (were) in the way of the bus.
The bus is now stuck...
As the bus meandered its way on the road to Mount Etna, the trees, shrubbery and weeds eventually gave way to dark grey and black soil and rock. In some areas, there were massive piles of rocks that had been maneuvered by heavy construction equipment; in other areas, the rock and soil was left untouched. The shades of black and dark gray rock and soil were indicative of the different times when Mount Etna erupted; the last eruption was in 2002, according to our guide. In areas covered with lava from earlier eruptions (such as from 1983), flowers, small trees and other plant life has begun to reappear. The lava from the 2001 eruption was darker for some reason; perhaps it has something to do with the oxidization of the lava as it cools. In some areas one could notice steam, still rising from the remnants of the lava from last years eruption.
Along the road were several structures buried in the now-hardened lava. There was a church complex where the church and the structure where the priests resided was either destroyed or buried in lava from the 1983 eruption, whereas the structure where the nuns stayed was miraculously left untouched. All of the structures in this church complex were white with salmon-coloured shingled roofs not extravagant by any means. Even as some of the damaged structures that remained dotted along the road up Mount Etna showed evidence and proof as to why one should not build anything on the mountain itself, there was already construction of a new and expensive hotel complex, as well as a new highway system that was under construction. If you suffer losses in the future as a result of eruptions from Mount Etna, dont say you were not warned, I thought to myself. Some people will never learn...
As we ascended up the mountain, the warm, humid air was slowly replaced with chilly, damp air. The peak of Mount Etna, enshrouded for most of the time in the low, ominous cloudiness, appeared in its partially-snow-covered glory, with the patches of white snow starkly contrasting with the almost-black mountain itself. Low clouds haphazardly hung around the mountain like a loose towel barely covering the intimately private areas of a person.
We arrived at a small village on the mountainside for what was to be lunch. We stopped at a small cafeteria where busloads of people converged all at once. As a result, long lines went out the door, waiting for food. I walked around to see what the food looked like, and again it looked unappetizing, yet it was expensive, and there was only one hour to eat. Of course, the tour guides and bus drivers knew the proprietors of this establishment and go to cut ahead of the line to receive their provisions. They had plenty of time to eat. Screw the tourists, their aura seemed to convey as they sat at their table, eating and joking and exchanging stories, while people had to fend for themselves waiting in line to eat expensive, less-than-appetizing food.
Anyway, I had two choices: remain hungry, as I had not eaten breakfast (save for some snacks), or search for someplace else. Remaining hungry was not an option for me. I had to eat. If I waited on that long line, I probably would not get to eat. I ventured outside. This cafeteria was in a small touristy shopping area which had nothing but souvenir shops, so there was no other place to eat on the same side of the street as the cafeteria.
I decided to venture across the street and up the incline (we were on a mountain, after all) to search for provisions, at which that time the clouds decided to open wide and dispense a hard, frigid wet rain upon my person. I had no umbrella or jacket. As I trudged across the street past the throngs of parked buses to another establishment, it had a limited variety and few customers. Not satisfied with their limited offerings (such as ice cream, snacks and other items which would not qualify for a meal), I then went next door, which was some dozen or so meters away, and up slippery wet wooden steps besides. This place, which offered counter service only, also had a limited selection, but there were no other customers and they had more of a variety at more reasonable prices. The person behind the counter was also friendly and helpful. I ordered the baked ziti, a cream-filled pastry and a bottle of water for about 7 Euros, which is not bad compared to the prices at the original location for lunch. They did not accept credit cards, so I had to pay in cash, as I found I would have to do many times in Europe.
I do not recall the name of any of the places to eat, nor the name of this village, as I was cold, wet, hungry, tired, frustrated, and walking with aching legs left over from the cramped condition I was in on the bus. I was not going to let all that get to me, however. I managed to take pictures and video-tape Mount Etna anyway on this cold, rainy late morning.
I returned to the cafeteria and actually found a place to sit. After I finished eating, I noticed that some of the people that were on line were still waiting in line! Trying to be helpful, I told them about the place across the street where I got my food, but they ignored me for the most part. I would have still been waiting in line at this point (after I had already finished eating) had I not gone across the street. Anyway, the food that the other people on the tour ordered in the cafeteria did not look nearly as appetizing as my food.
Lesson: Do not be like a sheep and follow the herd, even if on a tour. I prefer to remain independent even when on tour. Most of the time whenever I travel, I have been better off being independent.
Quite frankly, I sensed that favoured treatment was afforded to the owners of both establishments for breakfast and lunch simply because they seemed to have connections with the tour group, rather than select better places which could accommodate large crowds. Incentives must have abounded somewhere in the contract negotiations with these places. Corruption and politics are everywhere, I thought to myself.
Once lunch was over, the buses sounded their piercing loud horns just as I was scrambling to get the last of my video footage. I also picked up one of the black lava rocks off the ground as a souvenir. They literally have billions of tons of this stuff lying around all over the landscape, I thought to myself. They surely will not miss one baseball-sized rock. The rock was light and porous, making it easy to carry in my camera bag. At this point, the rain lightened to a drizzle. It was still very cloudy, but the peak of Mount Etna was finally fully visible and clear.
I noticed where the street ended was a black dirt (lava) road on which many people were walking in both directions. It looked almost like the surface of the moon, with all the black rocks and dirt contrasting against the light grey sky, as silhouettes of people walked surrealistically along its surface. There was a circular traffic sign that was blue with a red circle and a red X, indicating the international symbol for Do Not Enter.
We all eventually got back on the bus. The bus heads towards the end of the street. The bus driver attempts to get onto the wet, muddy dirt road. The bus stops. Pedestrians look around the front of the bus as we heard a dull thud against what appears to be a large stone. At the same time we had thought about possibly pushing the bus onto the dirt road, the pedestrians seemed to entertain the thought of trying to remove the obstacle(s) that was (were) in the way of the bus.
The bus is now stuck...
Oct 1, 2003, 9:08 am
#66
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Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Marietta, Georgia, United States
Posts: 25,001
*** UPDATE ***
We interrupt this trip report for an important update...
Thanks to information provided by fbgdavidson, here is an Internet web site documenting the ultimate fate of the Concorde aircraft on which I have flown.
-----------------------
Now back to our regularly-scheduled trip report already in progress...
We interrupt this trip report for an important update...
Thanks to information provided by fbgdavidson, here is an Internet web site documenting the ultimate fate of the Concorde aircraft on which I have flown.
-----------------------
Now back to our regularly-scheduled trip report already in progress...
Oct 1, 2003, 9:17 am
#67
Join Date: Dec 2001
Posts: 3,181
Canarsie: am I correct that your tour tour did not include the Mercedes Jeep Tour to the top of the volcano and the large craters? They basically left you at the hotel/restaurants which is below? The highlight of a visit toi Etna is to continue by jeep.
Oct 1, 2003, 9:48 am
#68
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Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Marietta, Georgia, United States
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Unfortunately, you are correct, Bretteee. In fact, I did not even know about that!
After some rocking back and forth, the bus driver eventually was able to back the bus away from the rock or on whatever it was stuck. They announced that they would be unable to continue up the mountain and exit on the other side of Mount Etna. Of course, I was disappointed.
We wound up descending the mountain on the same paved road in which we came.
Now I really feel like I missed something and thus feel even more disappointed, but at least this trip report will hopefully serve to help FlyerTalkers decide what to do and what not to do if they decide to journey on a similar trip to the one I am documenting here in this trip report.
I have seen volcanic craters at the tops of mountains before, such as in Maui. I know people who live near Mount St. Helens in Washington State, and one simple request (which I eventually plan to make) will bring me to its crater(s) if I wanted.
Is there anything I am missing by not seeing the crater towards the peak of Mount Etna, Bretteee? Please feel free to elaborate in this trip report. I would appreciate it.
After some rocking back and forth, the bus driver eventually was able to back the bus away from the rock or on whatever it was stuck. They announced that they would be unable to continue up the mountain and exit on the other side of Mount Etna. Of course, I was disappointed.
We wound up descending the mountain on the same paved road in which we came.
Now I really feel like I missed something and thus feel even more disappointed, but at least this trip report will hopefully serve to help FlyerTalkers decide what to do and what not to do if they decide to journey on a similar trip to the one I am documenting here in this trip report.
I have seen volcanic craters at the tops of mountains before, such as in Maui. I know people who live near Mount St. Helens in Washington State, and one simple request (which I eventually plan to make) will bring me to its crater(s) if I wanted.
Is there anything I am missing by not seeing the crater towards the peak of Mount Etna, Bretteee? Please feel free to elaborate in this trip report. I would appreciate it.
Oct 13, 2003, 11:31 am
#69
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Join Date: Sep 2001
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Thanx again, canarsie, for the trip report so far.
I just booked from Nov 17th to 24th with the Westin Dragonara and will not do the trip to Sicili, I guess...
I still think if I should rent a car at the MLA Airport or take the busses for the whole week. What would you say? How is parking at/near the hotel?
I hope I have chances for an upgrade at the Westin - I booked a cheap nonrefundable rate at the strwood website...
I just booked from Nov 17th to 24th with the Westin Dragonara and will not do the trip to Sicili, I guess...
I still think if I should rent a car at the MLA Airport or take the busses for the whole week. What would you say? How is parking at/near the hotel?
I hope I have chances for an upgrade at the Westin - I booked a cheap nonrefundable rate at the strwood website...
Oct 13, 2003, 12:41 pm
#70
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Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Marietta, Georgia, United States
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<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by ralfkrippner:
Thanx again, canarsie, for the trip report so far.
I just booked from Nov 17th to 24th with the Westin Dragonara and will not do the trip to Sicili, I guess...
I still think if I should rent a car at the MLA Airport or take the busses for the whole week. What would you say? How is parking at/near the hotel?
I hope I have chances for an upgrade at the Westin - I booked a cheap nonrefundable rate at the strwood website...</font>
Thanx again, canarsie, for the trip report so far.
I just booked from Nov 17th to 24th with the Westin Dragonara and will not do the trip to Sicili, I guess...
I still think if I should rent a car at the MLA Airport or take the busses for the whole week. What would you say? How is parking at/near the hotel?
I hope I have chances for an upgrade at the Westin - I booked a cheap nonrefundable rate at the strwood website...</font>
Although I was unable to get the most inexpensive rate offered by the hotel (I got the most inexpensive rate that was available to me at the time of booking; then checked again several weeks later and was able to get an even less-expensive rate), I thought I had absolutely no chance for an upgrade but I got one without even asking for it. That was a pleasant surprise, and I am a Starwood Preferred Guest member with no status.
As for parking, I lucked out by getting one of the closest parking spots right near the front door of the Westin Dragonara, and the parking is free. Because I lucked out with such a great parking spot, I do not know how plentiful the rest of the parking is at the Westin Dragonara. I have never needed to park on the street, but it would be more difficult to do so at night than during the day.
The bus service around Malta is incredibly inexpensive and rather frequent, but I preferred a rental car because that was rather inexpensive as well. I had no problems parking around Malta, nor did I ever have to pay for parking. Having a car also gives one increased flexibility over public transportation.
I would initially be more concerned about driving in Malta rather than parking. I have never driven in Germany (or anywhere in Europe, for that matter), ralfkrippner. However, noting that you live in Europe, I would surmise that the driving in Malta might be similar (or perhaps easier) than driving in many major cities in Europe.
My advice would be that I would rent a car versus using their public transportation, especially if you plan to visit the island of Gozo as well as explore most or all of the main island of Malta.
If you or anyone else has any more questions, ralfkrippner, please ask.
I apologize once again for dawdling on completing my trip report, but I want to adhere to maintaining as much accuracy as possible when writing it.
Oct 14, 2003, 6:35 am
#73
Moderator: GLBT Travelers & Hyatt Gold Passport
Join Date: Jan 2000
Location: CVG
Posts: 15,300
Canarsie - we had a good trip. Yes we did go up to the craters of Mt Etna and it was great eerily different. It was very interesting to see all the different stages of regrowth of the vegetation and how the lava flow actually went up to the window of a building that was left standing. This was all on an excursion arranged by the Ship. Unfortunately, the travel agent consortium excursion in Malta was less successful - they got the bus stuck in the only wooded area of Malta for over an hour and had rushed us through the Mdina glass place 
Oct 15, 2003, 7:05 am
#74
Join Date: Dec 2001
Posts: 3,181
You probably did not have enough time to go up to the top in the jeep. It takes about 2 hours. The main point of going is to go to the top. Actually it's not completely to the top top but close. It is basically like being on the moon. All brown and you see two large craters and the stam etc.
It was freezing cold up there and windy and tiring walking around. My travelling companion stayed inside the jeep with a Japanese lady and were not impressed.
As long as you saw Taormina and Mt. Etna from a distance,that's what really counts. One cannot see everything, especially in 1 day. You saw the major points. I am sure you can see what it looks like on the web.
It was freezing cold up there and windy and tiring walking around. My travelling companion stayed inside the jeep with a Japanese lady and were not impressed.
As long as you saw Taormina and Mt. Etna from a distance,that's what really counts. One cannot see everything, especially in 1 day. You saw the major points. I am sure you can see what it looks like on the web.
Oct 15, 2003, 7:08 am
#75
Join Date: Dec 2001
Posts: 3,181
>> you have given me a good and rare insight into Malta, and how to get there! Keep those Tripreports coming. They are just great.[/B][/QUOTE]>>
If you want to get to Malta on a free ticket, Alitalia (with Delta) have 2 x daily flights via FCO and MXP. LH with OS (United) also operate there and BA. However the easiest way to get there is with AZ.
If you want to get to Malta on a free ticket, Alitalia (with Delta) have 2 x daily flights via FCO and MXP. LH with OS (United) also operate there and BA. However the easiest way to get there is with AZ.