Sicily trip: Dec 25, Mazara del Vallo

On Christmas day a short ride to Mazara del Vallo and up to the hills. Mazara is a small town (pop. 51,000) on the sea. In the morning lots of people in the street, closed to traffic; first only men, later joined by women and children. Some people looking pompous, women wearing long fur coats, despite rather warm weather.



After a picnic lunch by the sea we went to town to browse with the rest of the people. The town is rather pleasant. We thought everything would be closed, but Museo del Satiro was open. The bronze statue of a dancing satir was fished out by the crew of a fishing boat by accident in 1998. (A year earlier, one of the satir's legs was found near the same spot.) The museum offers a 30-minute film describing the history of the find and the details of the restoration. See also a one-minute video on YouTube.

Back home early in the afternoon to rest and do some work before dinner at our agriturismo.