Ragusa Ibla day 1

Had such a good sleep. The bed was very comfortable and it was very peaceful . We had arranged to have the first sitting for breakfast at 8am as knew we would be up early to get on with the day, which was to explore Ragusa Ibla. Ragusa Superiore is the new part built higher up after the earthquake in 1693, but the nobles who owned the palaces in the Ibla decided to rebuild, and they are connected by steps and they merged in 1927. The new part has the railways station and bus station.

The buffet breakfast was very good. There was also cooked eggs of any variety on offer so had scrambled, along with fruit and yogurt, pastries, coffee and a local sweet treat . There was the usual meats and cheese but not for me.

It was a lovely day , we walked down steps , up steps , through tiny little lanes with the most beautiful buildings and stunning balconies. Potted plants and flowers everywhere.

Our first stop was Piazza Duoma with the magnificent Duomo San Giorgio with its big flight of stairs leading to the entrance. Seemingly InSpector Montalbano tv series had lots of scenes from this square. Will need to watch it!!

It was 9 o’clock, and as we walked down the hill we decided to go into the Chiesa Di San Giuseppe for a look. We were the only ones in the church this early apart from four nuns who had their heads bowed praying. Then there was a rap on the wood from the chief nun and they all started singing. It was quite an experience listening to them, they sounded very good.

We decided next to have a walk to the public park which is on the edge of town with a convent hotel attached to it. The gardens were spectacular, with fountains, trees, lots of seats, roses in full bloom and a wonderful view over the valley to the new town and beyond. It was immaculately clean too.

After walking g round there we noticed in the church next door there was a photo exhibition so popped in there . I can’t recall his name but he was Sicilian and shit with a Leica and all the photos were in black and white many from the area. There were a couple I really liked .

We walked back up to the main square and noticed the wee tourist train was going in its journey round Ibla at 10:30 so bought a ticket (€5) and off we went . There was some commentary in E flush pointing out notable sights and it lasted 45mins.

Next was a sit down with a coffee and a connoli . You can’t go to Sicily and not have one. Yum, it was delicious.

Decided to walk the many steps towards the Ragusa Superiore for the view over to Ibla. It was hot but not scorching, it was around d 21 , perfect for sightseeing.

We managed thousand (!) of steps well. All that working out has paid off. This shot is taken at one of the viewpoints and you can see our terrace to the right of the Duomo top left. It has three windows.

By this time it was around 3pm and we were starving . Time for food. Found a nice restaurant and sat outside and the second of what turned out to be a holiday full of really tasty food. We also shared a tiramisu , a good one.

Decided to head back to our B and B and have some chill time. I made a cuppa and we sat in the beautiful gardens and did some reading .

Later, we went for a wander round the myriad of little lanes . Saw the lovely sunset but it wasn’t long before we hit a wall and probably were asleep by 9:30…..

Some more pics of Ibla in the extras.