Surrounded by the sea on three sides,
it stays cool under the Mediterranean sun.
With lovely beaches, ruins of Greek temples,
and the breathtaking mountain town of Erice,
there's something for everyone.
This area of the island is distinct even from the rest of Sicily.
The whitewashed boxes of the houses, the palm trees
and lively fishing harbours nod more to Africa than Europe.
This was the earliest developed part of Sicily, dominated by
the Punic influence, the Carthaginians and the Saracens,
with the Greeks largely restricting themselves to the east of the island.
And western Sicily today still has strong traces of its Arabic past.