A few clouds in the horizon today for our trip to Mt Etna and the town of NotoMount Etna appears to be covered with clouds tooAs we near Mt Etna the cover of smoke and clouds lift slightly to show the blackened terrain of the still active volcanoWe stop to photograph the abundant clusters of heavily scented flowering bushes of Mt Etna Broom and in contrast the endless hills of lava rockAs we get closer the mountain clears for a momentOn either side of the road are barren hills of lava with the occasion clump of green bushes and trees which makes one wonder how the plants ever survivedWe approach the car park of the Rifugio Sapienza Tourist Centre of Mt Etna which also is the beginning of the cable cars to the summitWe hired a 7 seater so that the crew of our 3 boats could do the sightseeing trip to Mt Etna and Noto togetherA stall selling local honey in many flavours, seemed popular with a lot of the touristsHalf of our group bought tickets for the return cable car trip to the summit of Mt EtnaAs we climbed higher in the cable car, the visibility got worseRoland, Ric and I were the only ones deciding to go all the way to the crater by the 4 wheel drive busOnce we arrived at the summit the freezing conditions hit us as we descended from the busThe group from the 3 buses huddled together trying to listen to the tour guides above the howling wind!We shuffle off in groups, heads bowed avoiding the driving wind and coldCarefully by foot we make our way towards the craterNext the rain and sleet arrived making the conditions even worse on the mountainRic and Roland both soaked to the skin and freezing cold in their shorts, still managed a smileI managed at the last minute to hire an oversized men’s jacket that covered my shorts, t-shirt and thin sailing jacket!!The edge of the craterLooking down into one of the craters on the summitThis photo of everybody returning to the buses, says it all about the cold miserable conditions at the summit of Mt Etna today!!Back on to the cable car for the return trip back to the tourist centreEva had done the tour to the craters before, so fortunately she decided to wait for us in the coffee shopWe pass one of the lower craters on our way downOur way back down to clearer and warmer conditionsGreat views from Mt EtnaMany homes have been swallowed up by previous eruptionsThe scenery from Mt Etna is also quite fabulous !!Our next stop is the old town of Noto. Following parking the car, we enter Noto through the town gateWe visit the San Francesco All’Immacolata Church with it’s Baroque staircaseBeside the church is a truly delightful fountainNext stop is the San Nicolo Cathedral of NotoOpposite the Cathedral is the beautiful Palazzo Ducezio which now is used as the Town HallIn the 3rd week of May every year, this street is covered in flowers for the Noto Flower FestivalPopular with touristsWe visit a rather interesting Art GalleryFinally Roland and Ric are warming up after freezing on Mt EtnaLots of fish in this ceramic shopEva trying to get the perfect shot!!Noto is famous for it’s Baroque architecture
Restaurants set up for their evening clienteleFinally after a long day of sightseeing, we head back to Siracusa
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