...speaking of differences in cultures...a few words about the driving customs in Sicily...

The first rule of the road to remember is that, apparently, there are no discernable rules.  As an example, it is perfectly acceptable to go through a stop sign without stopping.  Why would you stop if no one is coming the other way ?   Makes sense, right ?  We have, in fact, been stopped at an intersection only to have the car behind us pull out and run through the stop sign.  Our friends, Karen and Diego, tell us that this is fine.

We have been stopped at a red light at a construction area where traffic is supposed to wait for the on-coming vehicles to clear the one way road before proceeding...note that I say "supposed to wait"...sure enough, we've had a small truck pull out around stopped cars and go full speed down the one lane road...I assume if he met a car coming, there would be an argument as to who would need to back up...at the same intersection the next day, the traffic lights weren't even working...why bother ?

Part of Karen's instructions to get to the local meat market include the phrase " go past the traffic lights where no one stops"....hmmmmmm

A few words from guest blogger Joe... since I'm doing the driving, I thought I would add my two cents... like everything here, it's intense.  Don't know how many times I've had someone plastered to my back bumper, then pass me on a blind curve, then stop a quarter mile down the road.  Its not about how fast you can get there, its about how fast you can go getting there... they're not anxious to be there, they're anxious to get there, a subtle but important difference.  This applies to all roads except the Autostrada, where rules and discipline are strictly adhered to.  Slower cars never occupy the passing lanes, and the slowest cars drive down the wide right shoulder so medium speed cars can pass.  Passing is always done on the left, never on the right.  Cars can easily go 100+ mph in the left lane for long distances.
Of course, we never go that fast... ;>)

Back to Chris...    As for parking...forget about it !  You can park anywhere, at any time regardless of what the signs say.  You can park by pulling in, backing in, pulling half the car in, parking diagonally part way in a space, on the curb, partially on the curb...there is no end to the creativity of the Sicilians when it comes to parking.  I've not seen any fire hydrants, but I'd be willing to bet that you can park in front of them, too !  Oh...and of course, you can double park ( and triple park...), especially if you're just going to run into the store to do some shopping...even if you run into a dear friend and need to have a 15 minute conversation...

The one thing that a Sicilian will NEVER do is pay for parking !!  There is a hospital at the bottom of the hill here, but there is a 1 euro parking fee for the lot attached to it (which is totally inadequate as far as a parking lot goes anyway...).  Needless-to-say, the entire road on the way down the mountain here is lined with cars at 9am, making it quite an adventure in the morning to travel through... because they would rather park on a dusty one lane road, clog up traffic, and walk half a mile to the hospital than pay one euro to park next to it.

Diego told us about his "secret" parking spot in Taormina near the soccer fields...it's free, but the walk into town is steep uphill...he says it "opens your lungs"...mine were about to burst !  Next time, I'll pay the fee....

Love to all, Chris and her happy to park anywhere husband