Last Monday we departed Positano early in the morning for Naples airport and then on to Catania in Sicily. After a 45 minute flight, a 40 minute wait for our bags and an hour long wait at the Hertz office to pick up our car, we were on the road to Syracuse about 30 minutes drive south of Catania.

(Note to no one in particular – if someone can figure out a way for rental car companies to process customers quicker they could make a fortune.)

The Sicilean weather is relentlessly hot and the countryside reflects this with dry brown fields and terracotta villages that camouflage into the landscape. We have been staying at a casavacanza called Sant’ Agostino, an old farmhouse that has been developed into a series of apartments based around an impressive pool. It’s about 5 kms from Syracuse and the sea.

We are with Gill, Andre and the kids and it has been a relaxed week alternating days around the pool with days exploring the local sights.