Friday, June 9, 2017

Sicily - Beautiful Countryside and Wine Tasting. . . . . . . . .


May 9, 2017, 7 AM - Docked in Licata, Sicily

You may need to put your sunnies on for this post!
The landscape of central Sicily is spectacular. So many shades of green
 draped across the rolling hillsides reminded me of exquisite appliquéd fabric.
For our visit on this bright, warm day, wildflowers were woven through the
 fields like necklaces. . . . . . red poppies, yellow daisies, yarrow, cow parsley,
 acanthus, and huge sprays of bronze fennel waved in the breeze from the hillsides. 
Acres of olive, almond and fruit orchards, and vines of the many vineyards could
 be seen for miles.
 Described as "an island within an island", this region is Sicily's larder.
This is also wine making country, recognized today as one of the best wine regions
 in Italy thanks to its production of high quality, prestigious red wines. . . . .and I assure
you the whites we tasted were excellent also.














The 320 hectare estate of Feudo Principi di Butera includes over 180 vineyards
 in an exclusive terroir, thanks to a warm and dry climate, optimizing the development
 of perfect ripening of the grapes, a sea breeze which carries all its benefits to the vines,
 and the warm strong sunlight which is typical of the southern areas of the island.
It was here we had another quite amazing lunch - delicious freshly prepared food in
 huge quantities served at table, along with copious bottles of their world class wines.

 Paula, dear friend who has shown me so many wonderful places in the world,
 taking a break at the winery before lunch was served.



Above, Babs, Sharon, Kim, Paula, Michelle and Mary - the feminine side of our
 travel group - after lunch with a lot of great wine tasting. . . . . . . . 

. . . . . . . . and here below, our entire lovable and fun group!


. . . . . .behaving. . . . . 


. . . . . and misbehaving for our 'silly picture'.

I'm at a loss for the right caption here!

A memorable day in Sicily.



7 comments:

  1. Oh my goodness. A feast for the eyes. All the shades of green and blue. Amazing landscape! I get so very tired of this drab, dusty environment I live in. And sadly, won't be traveling this summer. :( Looks like your group was having a fabulous time. How could you not? Such a beautiful place to be.

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  2. In the 10 years I spent my holidays on Sicily with the family back at the village, I have never seen it so green - it was always July/August by the time we arrived, and the countryside was predominantly yellow and brown. Amazing how different it looks!

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  3. I absolutely understand your excitement in visiting Sicily after seeing your gorgeous photos. The rolling hills and blue skies... paradise. I also love the photos of the whole group having a great time! Looking forward to more posts about your trip.

    Jane x

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  4. Oh my goodness... stunning scenery and the day at the vineyards looks like such fun.

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  5. Gorgeous. I never imagined Sicily so lush and green. Scorched and rocky maybe. What a fun group of companions.

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  6. So beautiful. The colors in the fields are amazing.

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  7. Aww..I love these photos and even the silly one of you lot. Fun. And, wow, I had no idea that wine barrels got so huuuuge! Whoa. I woudl so love that except can;t drink wine and Alex can;t either, let alone olive oil for her so we would feel quite left out. Still, the area is amazing--just as I would picture it. Beautiful. What a day you had. Thank you for showing us. I've so enjoyed your trip thus far. Need some REAL pizza or something homemade to enjoy whilst reading all your posts here. The current cup of tea isn't really cutting it, must say.

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