Post 2: Planning the Trip Continued

     I finally got our tickets to Sicily, after a long harduous search, and pulling my hair at the high prices. The best Google could come up with was about $2100, and that was on specific days only. Changing the return date by one day could jack it up to $3500! Crazy.
    Finally, I found a different Search Engine that returned unbelievably low price:

                      BookAirfare.com

and ended up getting Rachel a 3 way Birmingham> Palermo>Lyon>Birmingham on Alitalia for $1578, leaving March 24 and returning April 27. Mine with a return on May 10 may end up being $1800 or so, still not bad.
    Hard luggage is a problem these days (heavy and hard to fit in a trunk), so I ordered a pair of good matching Duffel bags with wheels (Rachel’s green of course), so we can keep everything out of view in the trunk(with those Italiens, better safe than sorry…!). I found great car rental rates at a site I ran across by accident:
                        Kemwel.com/
and booked a Peugeot 304 with 400 liters of trunk space at $396 for 24 days...  

     I finally broke down after an 8 months of fruitless wait for the new long rumored "Super Duper Thin Magic Retina Display" MacBook Air 12”. Since there was no announcement from Apple even on Steve's 60th Birthday February 24, I ordered a refurbished maxed out 11" MacBook Air: 1.7GHz Dual core i7 with a 512 GB Solid State Drive, 8GB of RAM, TWO USB 3  and a Thunderbolt outputs. It is so incredibly thin and light, but the screen is really tiny, so I am taking a 22” monitor with me to work on my pictures. I know, I could have bought the 13", but that's still not big enough for me to see what I am doing! And the 11" is sooooo Amazingly beautiful. It should be in MOMA's permanent collection.
     I have been loading Adobe software, Photomatix Pro Topaz and other goodies, and am really amazed how fast it is.

     I have worked out itineraries, printed maps, and packed my smallest camera sling pack light: my Canon G1X, and my Very Special Canon Rebel XTI Infrared body with my favorite super wide angle 10-22mm Zoom. I had the IR filter removed years ago before our Trip to the Greek Isles, and it shot stunning pictures on sunny days with blue skies and cumulus clouds:

Chapel, Santorini, Greece

     I also got great shots of the American West in 2009:

     The Greek Temples and the Limestone Baroque Architecture of Sicily should be perfect subject matter, provided of course the sun is out...
   I even started a Blog I hope to be able to keep up:

                   http://sicilianjourney.blogspot.com

   I am just about packed and ready to go! Still 27 DAYS TO GO...

Post 1: Planning the Trip

    I started planning early for this trip, as we are going for Easter Week in Enna, a traditional mountain town famous for it's processions and Easter pageantry, and I wanted to book a nice Air BB that has a fabulous view and is right downtown in the old city:

     We never liked staying at big hotels, and since we discovered AirBnB and used it for our trip to France last year and our November trip to New York, I didn't even think of going around Sicily any other way. The only problem with it is that you pay when you book, so you loose flexibility and spontaneity. 

    But after I started studying the guidebooks(as always, "DK Eyewitness Travel" for pictures and descriptions, "Lonely Planet" for practical things, and the French "Guide Evasion Hachette  for Star ratings of attractions), I knew pretty much what we wanted to see, and Sicily is small enough that I could plan stays of 3 to 6 days in key towns from which we will do day trips.

     So first, I had to come up with a precise itinerary and plan more or less all the day trips and visits:

     Tuesday, March 24         Fly into Palermo, get car                    Palermo

     Wednes, March 25          Palermo, Montreale                            Palermo

     Thursday, March 26       Segesta, Scopello, Castellamare       Palermo

     Friday, March 27             Bagheria, Cefalu, Palermo                 Palermo

     Saturday, March 28        Drive from Palermo to Enna             Enna

     Sunday, March 29          Palm Sunday Processions                   Enna

     Monday, March 30        Piazza Merina, Caltagirone                 Enna

     Tuesday, March 31         Sottana Soprano                                   Enna

     Wednesday, April 1        Sung Mass, drinking in taverns         Enna

     Thursday, April 2           Foot washing, Sepulchres                   Enna

     Friday, April 3                Processions  all Good Friday              Enna

     Saturday, April 4            Driving to Canicatti, Racalmuto       Cianciana

     Sunday, April 5               Arches of Bread in San Biagio           Cianciana

     Monday, April 6             Drive to Palazo, Prizzi, Corleone       Trapani 

     Tuesday, April 7             Erice                                                        Trapani

     Wednesday, April 8       Calatafimi, Gibelina, Salemi              Trapani                                                                                                                                              

     Thursday, April 9           Marinella, Sciacca, Caltabellota        Agrigento

     Friday, April 10              Valle dei Templi, Palma                      Agrigento

     Saturday, April 11          Licata, Vittoria, expressway to           Siracusa 

     Sunday, April 12             Siracusa                                                  Siracusa

     Monday, April 13           Palazzolo, Noto                                      Siracusa

     Tuesday, April 14           Ragusa, Modica, Scicli                         Siracusa

     Wednesday, April 15     Augusta, Siracusa                                 Siracusa     

     Thursday, April 16         Drive around Mount Aetna                Catania,       

     Friday, April 17               Catania,Aci Castello, Acireale           Palermo

     Saturday, April 18          Fly out at 8 AM                                    Lyon

   I then proceeded to find the most attractive BnB's in each town, most of them under $100. My criteria were accessibility(no lofts with ladders for us seniors), parking, location(old town, renovated old building), and decor(stylish contemporary Italian). Every one I sent an inquiry about was free, and the friendly owners responded immediately. I booked them all. 

   I checked on flights and car rentals, but have not booked yet. It will be done by the end of the week.