The town Erice (pronounced Èh-ree-chay) is named for Eryx (or Eros), the mythical son of the goddess Venus and her lover, King Bute of the ancient Elimi tribe (NB that makes the Greco-Roman hero Aeneas his half-brother.). Erice boasts a 12th century Norman castle (pictured), known as Il Castello di Venere or the Castle of…
Tag: erice
Demeter Left Her Scythe Behind In Sicily
Ancient Greek legend says that the port of Trapani on Sicily’s coastline at the foot of Mount Eryx, is the scythe of Demeter, her principal harvest tool, which she left behind when she hastened to look for her wailing daughter Persephone. This view from Erice includes the Egadi Islands in the background.
What’s Hidden, But Not, In Erice, Sicily
You have to go through the tunnel to arrive at the light. When wandering the medieval streets of Erice, Sicily, politely peek through doorways. The homes, just like the town itself, are fortifications. So, behind the seemingly drab (but functional for protection) front walls are charming hidden courtyards and gardens.
Breathtaking View From Erice, Sicily
View of Custonaci, Sicily in Trapani Province from Erice’s Castello di Venere (above the Torretta Pepoli, the “Lighthouse for Peace in the Mediterranean”)
Piazza In Erice, Sicily
Piazza, Erice, Trapani Province
St. Joseph, Protector Of Fathers
Celebrated annually on March 19, Saint Joseph was the spouse of the Virgin Mary and the guardian-father of Jesus Christ. A carpenter by trade, he is regarded as the protector of all men who earn their livings through laborious work. He is also the patron saint of fathers. (NB March 19 is also Father’s Day…
A Journey In Sicily To Discover Your Vision
“The Cyclopean Walls of Mount Erice” is a painting housed in the Palazzo dei Normanni (Royal Palace) in Palermo by painter Michele Cortegiani (1857-1919), (Oil on canvas, c. 1890). Monte Cofano pictured in the background is a magnificent limestone monolith on the Tyrrhenian coast that you’ll see with this same view when on Mount Erice,…
Erice, Sicily Will Ignite Your Spirit
A view of Trapani, Sicily and the Egadi Islands from Erice. Erice is perched on the top of Mount Erice. It seems close, but it is remote at about 2400 feet above sea level. Approached by two roads of switchbacks or a funicular, it was developed by the Phoenicians in the 7th century BCE, yet…
Southern Secrets, Days 5&6: Embracing Sicily
On days five and six of our combined Feast on History and Experience Sicily tour we dove in to Sicily! We flew from bella Napoli to Sicily to embrace the sea and the sun. Our home base is the village of Scopello, where we had a wine-pairing dinner featuring the varietals of our agriturismo. Cinzia,…
Day 11 of Experience Sicily Myths & Mysteries of Sicily: As Above/So Below | Loving Kindness
Day 11 of Experience Sicily Myths & Mysteries of Sicily: As Above/So Below | Loving Kindness. We started the day with an out-of-this-world cannolo. Got salty at the Trapani salt flats. Erice, the land of Aphrodite-Venus bewitched us with its panoramas and labyrinth of alleyways. In this sacred place, in the shadow of where a…