A walk in the park (Vendicari and Pantalica)

The end of this week was accompanied by a time change (we lost an hour), a rock concert (I could hear it from my house), and two splendid field trips.

The small dots on the right side are bullet holes.

On Friday, instead of zooming off to an Archaeological site, students from my Volocanology class along with an Enviormental Studies class took the bus to the Vendicari Nature Reserve.










There I learned about different plants, and how they adapt to the environment. I saw wild almonds, olive trees, cacti, and many wildflowers including one that had a very sour taste if you chew the stem (it was quite addicting!),

This patch was not very large.

The whole beach was covered in fluffy ball-like things. They were sea grasses rolled into perfect spheres by the wind. In spots there were so many that they completely covered the sand! Upon discovering that they floated in the water, we played catch with them in the ocean.














We explored an old tuna fishery and also saw a salt water marsh, a giant lake covered in flamingos, and played in the sea for a while. Too bad no one had  their swimming suits!









 On Sunday I woke up early and met my ride at the train station. After about an hour of beautiful winding roads, we arrived at Pantalica.

This was what was waiting for us at the top of the plateau. This area is very different from the flat coastal areas around Syracuse.

Here is what remains of a defensive trench (once there was also a wall) built by Syracusans against the Athenians. They trapped the Athenians in the narrow isthmus in front of the wall and destroyed them.

 Rock cut tombs (two here) on the side of the hill.

 More tombs here - in these you can clearly see double lines framing the opening.

Pantalica is still inhabited today - by a group of hippies! In some caves near the bottom of the river gorge you can see their own rock art, self-portraits and names. Some visitors to Pantalica have stumbled upon them dancing in the woods or swimming naked in the river. However, because they never stay in one place we didn't happen to find them on this trip.

 A Byzantine fresco on the wall of a cave. Many of the tombs and natural caves were reused during this period. Also the inhabitants carved paths in the rocks leading down the cliffs for easier access - the same ones we used to explore Pantalica.

 Above the large bat-filled cave, all the black holes on the cliff face are actually tombs. Look for rows of openings - you can see a good spot just above and a bit to the right of the cave mouth, in the center of this shot. Another good area to spot the tombs is on the top left.

 

We made it to the bottom and saw the river. Then we had to climb back up! This was my favorite trip so far, partly because it is off the beaten path. The bridge on the most direct path to Pantalica is out and there are no bus routes nearby, so not very many people visit it (though local Italian families love to picnic there!). We went with an Italian archaeological group, and had almost the whole place to ourselves.


This weekend I will visit Palermo and then show my fellow Buckman Scholar, Michelle, around Syracuse.