37 43.8 N 15 12.5 E

Riposta Marina della Etna

What a lovely day sail we had to get to this very pleasant marina. The sun shone and the views as we motored up the coast were wonderful. The town is very pleasant and so clean and quiet compared with Catania we decided to stay for two nights and just 'chill'! We visited the local fish and fruit/veg. market to get some fresh supplies and also had a look around the large church dedicated to St Peter. It had beautiful stained glass windows.

We bought fresh mussels which we ate for supper (a la creme) - they were delicious. The facilities at this marina were very good and there was a pleasant bar and cafe/restaurant too where we had sundowners on both evenings. We were joined on the second evening by Judy and Frank from S/Y Athenea a very large catamaran who we had met earlier in the day. It was interesting to hear about their exploits of crossing the Atlantic and we were able to give them some information about places we have visited in the eastern Med.

The marina staff were great and especially Marzia at reception who spoke good English and called ahead to reserve a place for us in Milazzo. This is a good place to stop before heading up through the Messina straits.