Leisurely exploring Italy and Sicily

So we’ve been back from our wonderful, loooong (3 ½ weeks) vacation driving 6.500km from Germany/Holland all the way down to Sicily for more than a month now. What sticks out in my memory?

Besides that it was super pleasant throughout travelling with a husband who shares my love for good food, wine (a bit too much), and just exploring new places without too much of an agenda. Our route took us first to Torino, a city which surprised me with its ease, great urban architecture, and walkability.
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We then moved on to Livorno and stayed in a supercute beachfront boutique hotel. Onwards to just South of Naples on the Amalfi coast (with a daytrip to the Greek ruins at Herculaneum). Further down the coast to reach the ferryboat taking us to Sicily.
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​In Sicily we first stopped on the beach for a night in a very cool art hotel before reaching Palermo which I loved.

From Palermo we moved to Trapani which was lovely and I got to meet a friend’s daughter there. A couple relax on the beach and then inland to absolutely stunning Caltagirone, the artisan city with the famous ceramic stairs. Then a farm hotel (agriturismo) right near lovely Siracusa and to wind up Sicily a night’s stay near Etna. We drove all around the volcano with our car before going back to Messina to take the ferry again (only a half hour ride).

Back on the mainland it was a night in Crotone and on to Matera, the famous white hill city with age-old cave dwellings all around. What an experience! From Matera we went on to three nights in Cupra Marittima, a small place on the Adriatic coast where I lived for 3 years three decades ago. And our last stop was Milano – which impressed me greatly with ist diversity.
 

Here some highlights, starting with Torino:

Our supercute beach hotel near Livorno:

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Onwards down the coast, past Rome and even past Naples, we reached the gorgeous Amalfi Coast. We had breathtaking views, fantastic weather, great food, and a very special individual tour in the antic ruins of Herculaneum, at the foot of volcano Vesuvius:

A rather long drive then took us all the way down to the Southernmost tip of the Italian "boot" and we crossed the Messina Straight by ferryboat. Sicily greeted us in all its glory, with rocky and picturesque beaches in the North, mountains, bays, and great seafood.

​Oooooh, Palermo:

... and more Palermo:

... TO BE CONTINUED!