[Sept. 2022] Our summer holiday, staying in Siracusa, Sicily, Italy is almost ending.
The next day after returning from an overnight trip to Modica and Ragusa, we went to the beach for the last time in this summer.
The destination was Fontane Bianche, which we went to a few days before.
It took about 45 minutes by bus last time, but we learned that it takes only 13 minutes by train, so we decided to go by train.
The bus was free (there should be a fare, but neither the driver nor the passengers pretend to know), but the train was €2.60 per person.
We went out to the platform and found the same one-car train full of graffiti as the night before when we returned from Ragusa.
Moreover, the conductor was the same person.
My husband overheard the conductor telling someone that he would be retiring in a few months.
In addition, the person sitting next to me on the train seemed to be an employee of Trenitalia (a railway company that used to be the national railway of Italy), and he was telling his companion that this car would also be retired in a few months.
Apparently this vehicle has been used for 40 years.
I thought it would be much older, though.
Indeed, it took about 13 minutes to arrive at Fontane Bianche station.
It was fast, but we ended up having to walk long to the beach.
Buses and trains have their pros and cons.
When we finally arrived at the beach, we went to the same parasol shop as last time, but they told us that the place facing the sea was fully booked.
We were told that even though it appeared to be vacant, there were people making reservations throughout the season.
So we ended up renting a parasol in the back for €20.
It was a different atmosphere from last time, probably because of the wind.
It was still warm, but maybe because of the waves, people were leaving early.
Because of that, the parasols kept getting folded up, so I felt uncomfortable even when I was lying down.
It’s only been four days since we last came here, but it felt like already the end of summer.
Well, both the train and the conductor are about to retire, and our holiday is coming to an end, and parasols being folded up….all of these made me feel sad.
Looking at the movement of the waves, I wondered, “When will I be able to swim in the sea again?”
Even if I say swimming in the sea, in my case it’s just floating in the sea, but why is it so much fun?
After a while we decided to leave and take a bus on our way home.
We went to the bus stop at the same time as last time, but there was no one else and no bus came.
This day was the weekend, and the bus schedule seemed to be different.
At a nearby gelato shop, we asked when the bus was coming, ate a frappe, and passed the time reading Montalbano.
While thinking that it is exactly the world of Montalbano.
By the way, according to my husband, when someone tried to withdraw money from the ATM there, the fat man at the gelato shop said, “Sometimes this machine will give you money, but sometimes it won’t.”
