Stromboli and Etna: A Tale of Two Volcanoes
Sicily’s stratovolcanoes and the destructive origin of life
Parking is always a problem
Especially when you’re driving a seven-meter (twenty-three feet if you hate precision) camper van rented from a company of crooks who want nothing more than to charge you for damages (Indie Campers suck). Especially when in your regular life, you drive a tiny little Toyota about the size of a city dumpster, with the hairdryer-engined horsepower to match.
We thought we’d left plenty of time to make our boat trip. But as we entered the outskirts of the Sicilian city of Milazzo, we could feel the minutes passing far too quickly.
I had a spot picked out, a tiny little carpark right on the beach. But when we arrived, translating the sign at the entrance revealed the awful truth: no parking for RVs anywhere on city property.
“There are parking lots down the street,” my wife said, consulting her own phone from behind the wheel as she sat with the engine idling, air-conditioning blasting, occupying three or four ordinary car spaces.
It turned out to be an understatement.
Milazzo is home to a major tourist port, and parking seems to have become one of its biggest industries. As we…
