First, a bit of background about this cute little town where I ended up in Western Sicily: Calatafimi Segesta, formerly known simply as Calatafimi, is a small town in western Sicily. The addition of Segesta to the name was a decision to draw attention to the nearby ancient Greek Segesta Temple. Just up the hill from the temple, there are also archaeological excavations and an outdoor theater where they organize different performances at sunset and sometimes also at sunrise during the summer.

Sicily is divided into nine provinces; Calatafimi belongs to the the western-most province on the island: Trapani. Trapani is also the name of the province’s capital city, whose historic port is used for both fishing and transportation. Other points of interest in the area include Calatafimi’s own Eufemio Castle, the nearby obelisk Pianto Romano, the Segesta hot springs, the beach town Castellamare del Golfo, the Zingaro Nature Reserve, Trapani’s salt pools, the famous wine-producing town Marsala, just to name a few…

I happened upon Calatafimi at the beginning of last year while on a break from work. It wasn’t really in my plans to end up here, but luckily for me, the original agenda was a complete disaster, and I had to search quickly for an alternative. Three buses and 6 hours later, I found myself on the west side of the island, and much like my many other travel mishaps, this turned out to be just what I was looking for: a place to be quiet, work in nature, and reflect on life.