The best traffic-free bike rides around Montevago

Selinunte is one of the most important and largest cities of ancient Sicily, today home to the largest archaeological park in Europe (about 270-377 hectares). The site is located on the southwestern coast of Sicily, in the territory of the municipality of Castelvetrano (in the province of Trapani), precisely at the seaside village of Marinella di Selinunte. Created in the second half of the 7th century BC by Greek colonists from Megara Hyblaea. It derives from selinon, a Greek term that indicates the wild parsley that grows along the local rivers. It was devastated by the Carthaginians in 409 BC and definitively razed to the ground by the Romans around 250 BC during the First Punic War. Rediscovery: Remaining buried under the sand for centuries, it was rediscovered in 1551 by the historian Tommaso Fazello.

Some beautiful images of the port of Selinunte. https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selinunte

The largest work of art in Europe and the memory of an earthquake that indelibly changed the history of the province. An almost mystical and extraordinarily evocative place.

A village uninhabited for decades, ever since the entire population was relocated en masse to a brand-new town. Three thousand people, the exodus of survivors of the 1968 earthquake that destroyed entire towns in the provinces of Trapani and Agrigento. Today, only façades remain, baroque railings, old majolica tiles, a tangle of houses leaning against the bell tower of the main church, and stairways that look like they were cut out with scissors on a sheet of paper. Before the earthquake, Poggioreale was a delightful baroque village, with noble palaces, the square with the club, the inn, and everything else. The ruins bear witness to a tragedy from 40 years ago: fear, escape, separation. A place that, due to its beauty and the evocative atmosphere it evokes, has been the setting for numerous famous films: it is here that Tornatore filmed some scenes from Malena and The Star Man. An island out of time, with the hands of the clock stopped on the terrible night of January 15, 1968.

The Belice Gate, or Belice Gate, is a stainless steel installation by Pietro Consagra erected on the road leading to the town of Gibellina Nuova. The work recalls the town lights that were once displayed for the holidays, but over time it has also become a symbol of the Belice Valley. It was erected following the artistic reconstruction of Gibellina, as desired by Mayor Ludovico Corrao. The work is 26 meters tall.

The beautiful Stella at the entrance to Belice. https://it.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stella_d'entrata_al_Belice

Beautiful, you have to see it.

The Selinunte Archaeological Park houses the ruins of the Doric temples of the ancient Greek city. Founded in the 7th century BC, Selinunte was an important commercial center before being destroyed by the Carthaginians in 409 BC. Today the park offers a fascinating immersion in history with temples, sanctuaries and the acropolis overlooking the sea.