From the top of Mount Giuliano, Erice, mythical and silent, meditates among the clouds, offering a magnificent view of Trapani. At night, the condensation of the sea water rises up to its sides and wraps it in a humid mist where it is difficult to see. This old village would have been founded by the son of Erycine, goddess of the fertility and the love, named Erix. When he became king of the Elymians, he had a temple built in homage to his mother. It was then used by the various peoples who occupied the place. The Phoenicians worshipped the goddess Tanit-Astarte, who became Aphrodite for the Greeks, then Venus for the Romans, but whatever the name of the goddess was, the temple never lost its first vocation. Only the myth remains from that time, and this fortified city of 29,000 inhabitants has preserved a typically medieval urban structure. A coolness, welcome in summer, due to the altitude (756 m) often surrounds the city. It is very pleasant to walk in its narrow streets where you can find small squares and beautiful flowered courtyards (Erice has more than 250 of them!) with wells and sometimes an old wash house. Its liveliness, due in part to the presence of the Ettore-Majorana Scientific Culture Center, which attracts many students, and to tourists, has allowed it to maintain the charm of a medieval town. It is also possible to find ceramic workshops, traditional pastry shops... Notice the staircases with steps decorated with ceramics, magnificent! Among the events not to be missed in Erice: the medieval music festival, during a week every summer, with internationally renowned musicians; the procession of the Mysteries, during Holy Week; Estate Ericina: all summer long, folk shows, concerts, exhibitions, etc.; and Maria SS. di Custonaci, the feast of the patron saint on the last Wednesday of August.

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Château de Venere. Picsofitalia.com
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