We arrived in Ragusa by bus from Licata. In fact the journey was two buses. One from Licata to Gela (45 minutes) then a 3 hour wait in Gela for a bus replacement service for the train. I can understand why they stopped running the train from Gela to Regusa, as there were only 6 of us on the replacement bus. The train station in Gela was a little too far from the town centre for us to walk to with our bags, so we spent the entire 3 hours at the station. There was a cafe, so we found a seat and grabbed a sandwich, and a beer, and watched the action. It seemed the station acted as some kind of social club. Old men would pull up in their cars, take out folding chairs from the car boot, and then sit outside the train station chatting with other old guys. Some of them even set up a table to have a game of cards.
Photos of the Cathedral of San Giorgio, Ragusa Ibla
Video of the Cathedral of San Giorgio, Ragusa Ibla
Staying in Ragusa, Sicily
Hotel Affittacamere Bertini - http://www.hotelbertini.it/
We spent 3 nights at the Hotel Affittacamere Bertini (Corso Italia 52/54 Ragusa, 97100 Italy. Tel:+393389740139).
When we arrived we received a warm welcome from the owners. Their English was very limited, but not as limited as our Italian, but we all managed to communicate. Our room was a very good size, and it had a fridge, and a small T.V. which we never watched because we couldn't get it to turn on.
Positive Points:
1. Room size
2. Staff
3. Breakfast. Fresh cakes and coffee.
Negative Points:
1. Low rent sachets of shampoo and tiny bars of soap.
2. Noise from reception
3. WiFi. While we could use the WiFi in our room, first we had to walk down the steep narrow steps to reception with both the MacBook and iPad to get them locked on to the Wifi signal before it would work in our room.
4. It was cold during our visit but they only put on the central heating for one evening of the 3 we spent there.
7/10
Eating in Ragusa, Sicily
Osteria Vecchia Ragusa (Via San Vito 128-130. Tel:0932244272) -
A conveniently located restaurant just round the corner from our hotel.
I had veal in a tomato, olive, and artichoke sauce. Laura have spaghetti with tomato, artichoke, olive, capers, and Tuna. We shared a 'Ragusa Salad' of tomatoes, olives, and spring onions. It was all washed down with a jug of house red wine.
7/10
We shared an interesting sandwich, with consisted of sheets of pasta (lasagne) tomato, cheese, with a bread coating. What was not so interesting was the bill, 4€ for the sandwich, 4€ for a 40cl beer, and 1.50€ for a small bottle of mineral water. If that was not insulting enough, they added a 25% service charge on top. Given that we had to order from the counter, eat off of paper plate, and drink the water from a plastic cup, we were not really seeing the 'service'. Plus there were lots of men just sitting reading newspapers and not purchasing any drinks or food.
3/10
On our final evening in Ragusa we went to Konza for dinner. We shared a 007 Pizza, and a Mafalda salad. Not sure what James Bond would have made of the pizza. It was topped with a boiled egg, and a small frankfurter. The salad was large, and very nice, with raw carrot, capers, black olives, sweetcorn, tomato, and a couple of types of lettuce. The pizza was washed down with a Baffo D'Oro - Birra Moretti.
7/10
Antico Caffe Trieste -
Let them eat cake. Oh, and drink beer in my case. A nice cafe with seating on Corso Italia. We popped in on our first night for a drink, and a snack. For me a Pineapple pastry, and for Laura a choux pastry cream cake topped with miniature strawberries.
6/10
We stopped by one evening for a savoury pastry and a beer. The beer could have been colder, and the pastries could have been much warmer. The prices were not bad. 3.50€ for 66cl bottle of beer, and 1.70€ each for the pastries. Oh, and no cover charge. The owner even let us off 40 cents because he did not have change. We actually went to this place a couple of times, the location in the square was good for people watching, and the service was good.
6/10
Our last night in Ragusa, and our last drink. I picked this bottle of wine up from a little shop a few doors down from our hotel. It was a very pleasant wine with good structure. A good balance of fresh red fruits with a mellow finish.
7/10
We enjoyed our stay in Ragusa. Both parts of the town are pleasant for exploring on foot, with lots of interesting Baroque buildings. The only issue we had was food. While there are a few places to eat in both parts of Ragusa, finding a regular eating joint with decent food for less than 20€ a person was difficult. Even places to grab a cheap snack were thin on the ground.
Photos of Ragusa
Video of Ragusa
Leaving Ragusa, Sicily
Next stop was Pozzallo. We knew that there was a train to Pozzallo at 8am, but as we didn't fancy leaving so early we asked in the tourist information office about buses. They were very friendly and helpful, and furnished us with a bus timetable. We settled on a 10.30am bus to Pozzallo, with a change in Modica.
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