6AM:  Walking to the Frankfurt airport terminal to get checked in for our flights to Palermo. Sleep last night was good….until 2 AM when we both awoke ready for the day. Refusing to accept that we dosed fitfully until 5:30 when we admitted defeat and got up, figuring we would get additional sleep time on our flights.

The airport was surprisingly busy at 6AM; even the shops were already open for business. Check in and security clearance went smoothly and we soon found ourselves in one of the many Lufthansa business lounges where we had a nice breakfast. The lounge itself is radically different than most lounges. There are a series of rooms with couches, chairs, small tables, etc. almost like being in a home. There is even a sleep room with long lounges to stretch out on. Never have seen this setup before.

History lesson for the day:  Sicily history dates back 3,000 years. Originally three tribes occupied it; then around 734 BC the Phoenicians showed up followed by the Greeks, then the Romans, then the Arabs. The Greeks ruled from 734-264BC. Ancient Syracuse (now Siracusa) became more important then Athens at the time. Plato and Archimedes lived there. The Romans ruled Sicily from 264BC until 410AD. Barbarians came next. The Arabs arrived in 827 and changed the culture as they ruled until 1060. Their considerable influence on Sicily remains today. The Normans arrived in 1060 and prevailed until 1189 when the French showed up. They were quickly displaced by the Spanish who prevailed from 1282-1860 when Italy was unified. But then Sicily got ignored by the powers on the mainland, allowing the emergence of what began known as the Mafia and the dictators of Italy. The culture of Sicily today reflects elements of all the previous occupiers of the country. End of lesson!

You have to be impressed with German efficiency!  Our Lufthansa flight to Zurich takes only 35 minutes. There were 36 passengers in the business class section of the plane. The flight attendants served us a breakfast basket (apple, cucumber/ cream cheese sandwich on a nutty bread, and a breakfast bar) and drinks in that 35 minutes!  US flight attendants complain when they have to do it in 1 hour! Needless to say we were impressed.

Almost no face masks seen in the Frankfurt airport; however, once you are on board a Lufthansa aircraft you are required to be masked up. The same story at the Zurich airport but when we boarded our Swiss Air flight to Palermo we were not required to wear masks. Swiss airlines is owned by the Lufthansa group but mask rules are different, possibly due to different government rules (German vs Switzerland). Scheduled flight time to Palermo is 1.5 hours.

All went well. We arrived on time, our luggage was there and so was our driver! Our hotel in Palermo was once a palace. It is delightful. Lots of public rooms decorated with antique furniture and our sleeping rooms are huge. The best part is that the AC works and is able to keep the rooms as cold as we desire.

Still fighting jet lag a bit we grabbed a hour nap before proceeding to the delightful roof top deck for cocktails where we met up with our travel companions, Gerry & Sue Bishop, who had arrived several hours before us. The bartender was friendly and maintained that he makes the best Manhattans in the city so we put him to the test. Yvonne was tempted by his suggestion and enjoyed a lemoncello spritzer. We quickly caught up with Gerry & Sue over drinks and then walked about ten minutes to the restaurant where I had made 7:30 (their opening time)  reservations for dinner. Every restaurant we saw along the way featured al fresco dining; it is the what they do in Sicily! We were treated to an excellent meal in a wonderful evening setting.

This ended our first evening in Palermo, Sicily. Tomorrow we will do a bit of local sightseeing on our own and will meet our local tour guide at 6PM.