Seven days in Italy. A motorbike trip.

Italy, 2016
"Finally, the real adventures have begun!" I thought when I saw a red triangle and two strokes in the place, where should be numbers, suddenly lit up on the dashboard of my motorbike. It registered the tire pressure of the front wheel. Climbing a steep mountain serpentine to a 1.5 km height, which offered the incredible views of snow-capped peaks and green gorges with a winding ribbon of road, I punctured a tire somehow.

The hole found was so big that two fingers could be easily inserted into it. This fact dispelled the illusory hopes for a quick repair possibility. Yeah, the stones here have sharp chipped edges… So, I should find a solution. There's no chance to move further at all. So I have only one option left: a tow truck. It's about a hundred kilometers to Naples, and one hundred and twenty kilometers to Sorrento, the final destination of my route today. Probably, there is a high-mountain village nearby, but how could they help me?

The situation is being complicated by two circumstances. Firstly, today is Sunday and the whole Italy is having a rest. They don't like to work on weekends. Secondly, I know Italian better than Chinese, of course, but with a vocabulary of five words, I can't fulfill all my needs either. As for gestures and facial expressions, they aren't of much use when talking on the phone, according to my experience.

But I also have good points. Our team consists of three people, so we still have two proper motorbikes. And one of us, Dimka, has been so fond of this country in recent years that he comes here several times a year and has learned a lot of Italian words. Fifty or maybe even more. While Stas and I, having unfolded the map of Italy, were finding out our location, he went to the village and met two idly staggering men there. Dima managed to describe them our problem. And a miracle happened! One of them had a relative working as a driver of a tow truck.

By and large, less than three hours later, I was being driven in the cab with a talkative Italian and a wounded motorbikey crucified by straps on the platform. We were going to the sea in the direction of wonderful Sorrento…

Today the weather is finally nice.

On Saturday Rome met us with a drizzle and a gloomy sky. The temperature was +12°C, which is quite cold for sunny Italy! It wasn't hot on Sunday either, especially when we climbed the mountains. It was good that I was wearing thermal underwear and a multifunctional brand Rally jacket, which had been tested successfully in the cold weather conditions of the Kola peninsula and the snow-covered passes of the Caucasus. It warmed my body and soul. However, in the morning of the third day it was of no use anymore, since me and my motorbike continued our journey in the cab and on the tow truck platform from Sorrento to Naples. I was going to contact with the official BMW dealer company, since there was no suitable tire and service for its replacement found in the wonderful city on the shore of the Tyrrhenian Sea.

After paying the bill for €165 for a new tire, including its replacement and tow truck services, I said goodbye to the friendly staff of the official BMW dealer company in Naples and raced to catch up with my mates. The first stop was in the port city called Solerno, which can be described as a huge logistics hub with cargo terminals and all the necessary infrastructure.

Walking along a simple embankment, I looked at the moored yachts. No of those impressed me. Then the route led me along the coast to the south, where, according to the plan, we were going to make another stop in Marathea. Roads in Italy are quite good, especially toll highways, where the speed limit is 130 km/h, but in fact you can go at 200 km/h.

But there are also sections of secondary roads with broken pavement and in the mountains we could see how the asphalt coating slipped off the path. Anyway, there are warning signs and fences everywhere in this case.

There are many tunnels: some can be a few kilometers long. Sometimes you can see piles of garbage at the roadsides: plastic bottles, bags, etc. I think it depends on local services. It was especially dirty near Naples and in the town itself. When I was riding along the sea in the area of Agropoli, I observed an interesting phenomenon. Along the road there was a forest of tall, straight trees, which was similar to a giant comb, growing with an equally sharp angle to the ground!

And on a wooden fence along the road there were sitting streetwalkers of various appearance, just like along our motorways in the 90s.
But the greatest impressions and positive emotions I got from the fantastic views, especially while wandering in mountainous area along the sea.

The beauty is incredible! I made frequent stops to capture these gorgeous landscapes of the west Italy coast in memory and in pictures.

Late in the evening we reached the final point of today's route, which was a small resort town called Marathea. Having checked in the hotel room with a seaview, I went out on the terrace.

Looking up, I suddenly saw an amazing sight. High above, in the dark sky Jesus Christ was hovering, being illuminated by the rays of invisible searchlights!

 

The huge 22-meter-high statue of the Savior placed at top of the cliff was absolutely amazing and enchanting.

The next morning we climbed the winding serpentine to San Biagio mountain to see the statue of Christ closer. It was surrounded by the ruins of an ancient fortress. The savior was pictured with his arms outstretched and covered with white marble. In terms of size, this statue is second to a similar one in Rio de Janeiro.

We saw a stunning view from the observation deck at the foot of the monument. Visiting the Catholic church (the San Biagio basilica, to be more precise) I was surprised to see a copy of Andrei Rublev's "Trinity". Then we descended from the mountain and proceeded along the coast to the south across Calabria, one of the provinces of Italy.

The mountains were alternating with plains and small towns: Pizzo, Tropea, Scilla… A new turn offered us a view of Sicily. Today we are going to take a ferry to cross the Strait of Messina. The ferry runs around the clock every half an hour. Everything was simple: we went to the pier, bought a ticket for €16 and in ten minutes we were already inside a three-tiered vessel. And forty minutes later we were already riding along the highway towards Messina. There we had already booked a room in the hotel. Tomorrow the second stage of our journey begins: "Aross the Sicily island".

Messina is the third biggest city in Sicily. To be honest, we did not like it very much. It is a dirty, faceless, big port metropolis, from which we all wanted to get out as soon as possible. Despite the fact that this is a very ancient settlement with a very interesting history, there is nothing to see in it. In 1908 the terrible earthquake completely destroyed all the buildings and architectural constructions. And in 1944 the bombing leveled everything to the ground again.

Our route led us along a secondary road to the northern part of the island. This is a fairly populated area: small towns stretched continuously along the coast. The traffic is dense and chaotic. In general, Italians (especially residents of the southern regions) do not bother to follow the traffic regulations. They consider the road signs more like an advice. And a sudden turn from the left row to the right without informing others by signalling headlights and without looking in the mirror is a normal case for them.

For more than an hour we were wading through the dirty streets, getting stuck in endless traffic jams. Meanwhile the air temperature exceeded the point of +30°C. I unbuttoned all the valves of a jacket, raised the helmet "visor", but it still was quite exhausting to keep on. We decided to choose the toll highway leading to Palermo. Finally, we could push the throttle and feel some fresh air! After half an hour, having overcome about 70 km, we turned off the motorway and went deep into the island, where we found a place to have lunch, and then headed for our next destination, volcano Etna.
The SS185 road leading to the famous volcano is one of the greatest I've ever ridden! Excellent asphalt coating, smooth turns, descents and steep ascents, minimal traffic and awesome views of mountain gorges and valleys! It was not just riding a motorbike as usual, but enjoying an incredible thrill, especially in comparison with a +34°C hell in the cities of the coastal part of Sicily.

Having had lunch in a small but cozy town called Liguaglossa (with a bottle of chic local bianco shared) we went in for climbing the volcano. The altitude was increasing. We have already passed the point of 1000 m high and quite soon, following the serpentine, we reached 1500 m high. The temperature kept dropping: +25°C, +20°C, +16°C... We made a stop to admire the fields of frozen black lava and I had a chance to button all the valves of my jacket back. Cold enough!

An excellent paved road to Etna led us up to the 1900 m high point. We could climb higher on the lift, but we were unlucky, as we arrived late and it had already stopped working. By evening we reached the next place for overnight stay — the ancient city named Syracuse.

An evening walk around the old part of this city located on the Ortagia island made a vivid impression. Exploring the narrow cobbled streets strewn with small shops, cafés and cozy restaurants, we went into the incredibly beautiful large piazza Archimede, surrounded by majestic buildings of various architectural styles.

The Baroque cathedral with a beautiful staircase made of light stone was built on the basis of an ancient Greek temple. It appeared to be the apogee of beauty!
The incomparable fountain of Artemis, the castle of Maniace, the fountain of Arethusa and the well-preserved antique part of the amphitheater created the feeling that you were going through the real history of a mankind.

There is a dramatic difference between Messina and Syracuse. I wanted to get out of the former as soon as possible, and as for the latter, I didn't want to leave it at all!

In the morning we walked through the ruins of the ancient city and had a cup of coffee at a small café on the Piazza Archimedes. Then we continued our journey across Sicily. That day we had to cover about three hundred kilometers along the southern coast of the island up to Agriente.

We made the first stop in a town with the short name Noto. This ancient settlement was completely destroyed by the earthquake at the end of the 17th century and rebuilt in a different location. Magnificent and pompous buildings in the Baroque style looked just like gigantic theatre set.

In the wide central street, which was more of an avenue, there were several temples of amazing beauty, including the Cathedral of St. Nicholas with a huge elegant staircase made of stone. Everything was perfectly tidy and there were many small shops and restaurants. If you happen to be in Sicily, make sure to visit this fabulous city!

Avoiding highways, we went west. We passed by small but also very lovely towns: Modica, Ragusa. The terrain was constantly changing, plains were replaced by mountains, so it was quite easy and interesting to continue the way. The weather was perfect! With the temperature of +20...23°C the sun was shining in the clear sky. And the dry road allowed us to enjoy riding our wonderful BMW motorbikes at full scale!

Not far from the small town Agriente, where we stayed overnight there was an interesting sight called Scala de Turchi. The high rocky shore reminded me of the famous Pamukkale white terraces in Turkey.

 

We went for a morning walk along the snow-white ledges of these rocks, had breakfast, clarified our route and now we are following the winding road, crossing Sicily from south to north. The closest destination is the highest mountain town of the island called Enna, which is located at an altitude of 950 m above sea level. It is a very interesting town and the views that its top offers are absolutely stunning!

And the beautiful roads never ceased to amaze us! Smooth turns, short high-speed sections, ascents, descents… and very few cars. Not a simple riding but a real joy! We kept flying, descending into gorges and crossing mountain ranges. On our way we stopped in a small town located on the top of a mountain. Its streets are so narrow that two oncoming motorbikes could hardly go along them at the same time. The roads are paved with stone. At one such intersection I lost control of my motorbike a bit. 🙂

It's okay, it happens…

Making our way through the labyrinth between the houses, we suddenly went to the square where a lot of senior residents gathered. Some were gambling at cards, others were just sitting at the restaurant, chatting and drinking beer or coffee.

Everyone looked at us in surprise. Apparently, guests on motorbikes do not come here often. We stopped, saying hello. Everyone was very friendly and happy to take a picture together. This is what a simple evening leisure of local citizens is like.

 

After having dinner in the coastal resort town called Cefalo and admiring the vivid orange-red sunset spreading all over the sky, we went out on the motorway and arrived in Palermo an hour later.The biggest city of Sicily greeted us with traffic jams. We couldn't really creep into the aisles, since all the people were driving in a chaotic manner and the traffic rules were followed only partially.

The navigator led us to the centre of the metropolis, where the hotel was located, in a very tricky route. The streets are mostly one-lane and there are stop-signs and areas with limited traffic everywhere. Following the navigator's prompts, we found ourselves on a narrow dirty street with crowds of people of uncertain occupations. There were a lot of black people sitting on the boxes and right on the asphalt, which carefully accompanied us with their eyes.

It was dark. While maneuvering between parked cars and piles of garbage, we suddenly went into a wide avenue with decent boutiques, restaurants and hotels. And here is our hotel. Finally, we have arrived! In general, Palermo is a city of contrasts.

If you turn off the main street into a narrow alley and proceed a few dozen meters, you can easily get into some local Harlem. There are houses with collapsed plaster on the graffiti-covered dirty walls, laundry being hung on the balconies and piles of garbage… But there exist another Palermo. The one which had beautiful wide avenues, graceful temples, pedestrian green streets where musicians play and street performers give a spectacle. It is very interesting city!

On Saturday morning we got out of city and headed west. And again the ground roads as a winding ribbon led us along the coast to new adventures!

The sun was warming my back, the weather was gorgeous and I felt a light breeze from the sea. Splendid! In Scopello (a small town on the west coast) we went down to the seacoast on a small pebble beach. The water was very clear, azure, but cool: +15°C. I wished I had swum but unfortunately we hadn't our swimming trunks with us.

 

We had lunch in a small cozy restaurant, washing down fresh seafood with local white wine. After that my mates decided to go back to Palermo and I continued the journey alone. I put the following destination in the navigator — the ancient city called Erice, located on the top of a high mountain thirty kilometers to the northwest.

I overcame a few kilometers along the highway, when the navigator strongly recommended me to turn onto a ground road. Well, I thought that a little off-road would be okay, so I switched the suspension to ENDURO mode and ran forward over rocks and ruts, passing by vineyards and fields and overtaking tractors with carts.

Erice is located at an altitude of 750 meters and the road to it appears to be a continuous serpentine with dozens of turns equal to 180°. But what gorgeous views the top offers! Erice is a museum city. There are some perfectly preserved cathedrals and buildings, which date back hundred years ago, but still house people! Having paid €2 I climbed the spiral stone staircase to the observation deck of the tower, from which I could see what was happening for fifty or a hundred kilometers around. I also walked along the narrow streets and visited two amazingly beautiful churches before leaving this beautiful city.

Just a dozen kilometers from Erice there is a town named Trapani, which us situated on the seashore. It's a pitiful small town, consisting of identical grey and orange square houses placed on straight streets. It doesn't have any architectural features: everything is simple and unpretentious, similar to some settlements in Egypt. After riding along the faceless streets of Trapani, I decided to visit a small town called Corleone, which is famous for being considered the birthplace of the Sicilian Mafia. Could anyone fail to know Don Corleone from "The Godfather" movie? I put "Corleone" in my navigator and found out that it was 96 km away in one direction. The time was only 5 p.m. and the sun was still high in the sky so I thought that would have enough time and went off.

After flying about 40 kilometers along the motorway, I turned onto a secondary road leading deep into the island. Right ahead there were mountains. The road started to wind in loops and there were few cars… Taking another turn, I suddenly felt that the rear wheel broke off and slid outwards.

In the blink of an eye my motorbike flew to the side striking sparks with the protective arcs and, turning around the axis, crashed against the metal fence of the road. Everything happened so suddenly and quickly that not a single thought could flash in my head. Well, maybe some bad word or just a sound of it managed to outlet... 🙂I got out from under my vehicle and began to assess the situation. The windshield was broken into pieces, the mirror and the footrest were curved and the arches with the side trunk were also scratched, which goes without saying. By and large, it's not that bad. As for me, I bruised my elbow against the asphalt but the protective cloth of my BMW jacket prevented me from hurting it more. Apart from this I have also hurt my left foot. I felt pain when making a step, so it must have been either a bruise or a sprain. I pray for it not to be a fracture. My summer lightweight airflow boots were of much help, however they are still not the shoes in which I would recommend one to perform such somersaults. I lifted the motorbike and got it out of the way. And I figured out the reason for the fall. The thing is, at the turn the asphalt was covered with a thin layer of some clay dust. It was not even sand, but a much finer substance. With a help of the tool that I had, I took off the remnants of the windscreen and put the mirror in place. I took a seat and made an attempt to change gears. Despite the pain I could continue my way. From personal experience I know that when the natural anesthesia because of adrenaline charge goes away, it will hurt more. So I need to get to the hotel as soon as possible. This is the story about me and the most powerful mafia, which didn't let me in its private area. 🙂While I was riding back, I reassured myself that I was still luckier than the detective Falcone, who was blown up on the 23d of May by the mafia, who had laid 400 kg of explosives in a tunnel under the highway (by the way, not that far from the place of my accident).

In the evening I returned to Palermo and, having creeped through traffic jams, got to the hotel. Yeah, this day was indeed remarkable. Actually, as well as all the previous ones!
Sunday was a day of rest and acquaintance with Palermo. My friends came up with an idea to take a horse with a cab for 1.5 h and go around the central part of the city, making stops at the most stunning sights. We said it – we did it. And now I am carried by one horsepower, not by 125 as usual. The horse was clattering its hooves against the cobblestones, while taking us through the labyrinth of alleys of the old city.
In the evening of the same day we packed our stuff and arrived at the port, where a comfortable ferry was waiting for us.

We parked our motorbikes at the lower deck together with cars and long trucks.

At 18:30 a huge white ship slowly departed from the pier, releasing a cloud of black smoke from the pipe. Goodbye Palermo! Arrivederci Sicily! It's a little bit sad that our journey has come to an end and tomorrow morning we will dock at a seaport 90 km from Rome, then cover this distance by the expressway and find ourselves in the capital of this beautiful country again. After that we will hand over our motorbikes and go home by Aeroflot plane right after lunch. But these eight days, 2.035 kilometers, four tanks of gasoline, dozens of towns that we visited and innumerable impressions will remain in my heart forever!

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