Nearly 2500 feet above the boundary of the Tyrrhenian and Mediterranean Seas is the ancient town of Erice with its two castles, Torretta Pepoli and Castello di Venere (Castle of Venus).  The mountain-top town has amazing views overlooking the city of Trapani, at the northern tip of the western coast of Sicily. A cable car joins the upper and lower parts of the beautiful town and with belvedere views from every corner of the town, it's well worth the trip.

In the northeastern portion of the city there are the remains of ancient Bronze Age  Elymian walls dating back to several thousand years before the time of Christ. The name Erice comes from the Greek hero, Eryx, even though the town was originally colonized by the Phoenicians. It was then ruled by the Greeks, the Carthaginians, and then the Arabs (the Aghlebids), until the Normans conquered it in 1167 and gave it the name Monte San Giuliano, a name that stuck until until 1934.

Pepoli Castle dates from Saracen times, and the Castello di Venere dates from the Norman period, built on top of the ancient Temple of Venus. According to legend, the temple was built by the Trojan hero (Venus' son), Aeneas to honor his goddess mother. Legend claims that an important cult used the temple for its sacrifices, and that the animals chosen for sacrifice would voluntarily walk up to the altar to be killed.

Today, there are no sacrifices, so you can safely take the cable car (funivia)--newly rebuilt after a forest fire--from the outskirts of Trapani to the town of Erice.

--GVI

Text & photos by our Facebook friend, Anthony J. DiLaura

Sharing photos from a recent trip to Venice, some were taken from the top of the Campanile, (the Bell Tower in Piazza San Marco). Other photos are of various points of interest, not necessarily in order: Grand Canal, Doge’s Palace, Giudecca Island, San Salute Cathedral, Saint Marks Cathedral, Rialto Bridge, Bridge of Sighs and some others.

We were fortunate while there, not to have to deal with the crowds from cruise ships. This has become an increasingly difficult problem as thousands of passengers are dropped off along the waterfront and scurry about with very limited time to see as much as they can. Craziness is a good word to describe it.