From Mountains to Mountains

We had a fantastic finish to our 2 month adventure. Our Swiss daughter and partner planned a week-end trip to the mountain village of Zermatt in the southern part of the country, close to the Italian border. The 2 bedroom apartment they booked had a direct view, from our spacious living room, to the pointed peak of the Matterhorn (4478 Metres). On Saturday morning we departed early to catch the cog wheel train, used for steep gradients, from Zermatt to Gornergrat (3135 metre peak). With the weather forecast calling for a cloudy afternoon, we got off the train at the Rotenboden station (2815 metres) one stop before the top. The blue sky allowed for some great views of the Matterhorn and many of the other 28 Swiss Alps peaks that were within sight and over 4,000 metres in height. We walked down to a small valley and frozen lake that offered mirror views of the Matterhorn during the summer. After returning to the station, Pocahontas opted for the next train to the top, while the rest of us hiked our way up along a steep, snow path. The views at the top offered a full 360 degree view that was impressive but the clouds were starting to roll in and the Matterhorn peak was slowly disappearing, to the chagrin of other travellers who opted to sleep in that day. While waiting for the next train down the mountain, we visited a small museum that offered a 3D, virtual paragliding flight to the Matterhorn and back, while sitting in a swinging chair off the ground. It was a fun experience and the new attraction was being offered for free till the end of the year, so our timing was fortunate.

Once we were back in Zermatt, we wandered around the town that had many similarities to Whistler with it's pedestrian-friendly streets. Shops and restaurants were at street level and rooms for accommodation above, not to mention the early-season skiers walking to or from the lifts with their gear. We found a nice spot for lunch and then walked uphill to our apartment, where we enjoyed 30 minutes in a sauna and then relaxed for the rest of the afternoon. Another evening surprise awaited. A dinner reservation had been made prior to our w/e trip at one of the nicest restaurants in Zermatt, Brassiere Uno. Once there we were treated to a 7 course meal with wine pairings. The food was excellent, with artistic presentation, and appropriate sizing so that every course could be enjoyed. It was a glorious finish to an outstanding day, and to our time overseas.

We are now safely back in Canada, but it didn't come without some apprehension. Our pre-flight Covid tests both came back negative late on Sunday night, but my bride's confirmation was provided using her maiden name which obviously did not match her passport name. Our hugs were exchanged Monday morning and we headed to the airport early not knowing if we were going to be allowed to board our flights. Fortunately, the Covid test lab at the airport was open and they re-issued the correct document and we were on our way. We had also decided to purchase a Covid home-testing kit to bring back with us so that post-flights we could ensure we were still healthy in between visits with family and friends.

Hopefully, we won't have to deal with all the Covid-induced travel requirements next time around but if we do we will certainly be experienced with the routine! 

After arriving in Zermatt at night, the next morning we woke up to a beautiful view of the Matterhorn from our apartment window. It doesn't look like an easy climb but 3,000 fit trekkers do the technically challenging climb annually. Unfortunately, over 500 others have perished along the way.

Our pack leader checking out the surrounding views on our way up to the Gornergrat peak. There were a few spots like this with rock showing which was easier to navigate than the snow covered uphill path.

The view down to the Gornergrat hotel from the peak, with the cog wheel train stop further below. The impressive Matterhorn peak was no longer visible for the rest of the day, so our early start paid dividends.

Our daughter taking her turn enjoying the 3D virtual reality paragliding experience around the Matterhorn and back, on one of the 3 suspended chairs available. It was a unique activity for us, and a safer option! With limited crowds earlier in the day we were able to try the second option which was a 3D panoramic paraglide trip.

Walking along the pedestrian-friendly streets in Zermatt. It reminded us of Whistler Village which copied the successful street plans from the Swiss Alps towns and villages.

While wandering around Zermatt we came across this interesting tree art. Look carefully at the design, would you drink from this water source?

The view of the Zermatt village while walking back to our apartment. Notice the green taxi vehicle coming up behind us. Zermatt is a car-free town and the only vehicles allowed are electric taxi's and a few battery driven buses, making it a quiet and clean place to be. The taxis are larger than normal to accommodate ski equipment and up to six people squeezed in to the two bench seats facing each other. Anyone visiting Zermatt with a car, needs to park in a village 5 km's away and then take a train, taxi or shuttle bus to Zermatt.

This was how our dinner at Brassiere Uno started out, and this was only one of the two first course sharing platters delivered to our table. With two more servings on the second platter, one might have thought our advertised 5 course meal was sitting in front of us.....but 6 more courses followed in order.
This particular platter featured a stuffed mushroom, corn salad and baba ghanoush filled pastry.

A Dose of Vitamin D

Our Swiss daughter arrived safely in Malta and we found a quiet, relaxing seaside apartment to rent for the week in Marsaskala. With a private pool and patio facing the Mediterranean, it was indeed a respite listening to the waves crash against the rocky shoreline less than 100 metres away. We spent 3 lazy days in the large apartment, only venturing out for short walks, groceries, and a few meals. Our only distant outing was a bus trip for a short visit to the fishing village of Marsaxlokk where we walked alongside the harbour admiring the luzzu's, small colourfully painted rowboats, with the Eye of Osiris painted at the front of the bow for "protection" while out at sea. We also enjoyed a fresh seafood lunch of swordfish and sea bream.

Re-energized, the next day we took a Bolt taxi, similar to Uber, over to the west coast to check out the Blue Grotto. The large waterside arch was picturesque but the windy day precluded small boats taking us out on the water and inside the small caves to view the blue hues in the water. Undeterred, we walked 1.5 km's slightly uphill to visit the coastal megalithic temples of Hagar Qim and nearby Mnajdra. Built between 3000-3500 BC, using massive limestone slabs, including one weighing over 20 tonnes, one wondered how the temples were assembled using manual labour only. Carbon dating has determined that these temples were built prior to both Stonehenge and the Pyramids. From there we took a bus to Valletta so that we could provide our daughter with a quick tour of the busy city, followed by a small boat ride over to Birgu to enjoy dinner at one of our favourite seaside restaurants in Malta (Cargo).

On another day we took a taxi from the south end of the island to the north end (40 minutes) and then a short ferry to the pedestrian only island of Comino (3.5 sq. km's). The major attraction there is the Blue Lagoon where a small, shallow, sandy beach with Caribbean-like blue hues stretching out into a sheltered bay made for heavenly views. Those views continued on our walk around the island visiting other bays and steep cliffs on the opposite side where weather induced rock formations ruled. Our final Malta day trip was to the small town of Tarxien, home of some additional megalithic temples, a continued theme to help us feel much younger than our passport dictates. Tarxien was also home of the Hal Saflieni Hypogeum, a complex underground cavern dating back to the 3000-3600 BC times. The Hypogeum was carved out by hand and used to hold the bodies of over 7000 humans. It was discovered only when a cistern was being dug in the early 1900's. Because of the fragility of the find, it is kept climate-controlled, no pictures are allowed and only 80 visitors are allowed every day. It was amazing to experience the creations from so long ago, made without the tools of today.

We are now back in Basel, Switzerland, nearing the end of our 2 month trip. One more Swiss overnight trip is planned before flying back home, which will be a nice farewell with our daughter and her partner. 

The patio area for our 8 night stay in Marsaskala. Our 'sea view' apartment didn't match the one on the website, which would have been taken from the apartment above us, but it was still relaxing to hear the waves crashing against the rocky shore below.

The harbour area in nearby Marsaxlokk. The colourful luzzu's were a drawing attraction in this small fishing town.

Our seaside lunch in Marsaxlokk. My freshly caught Sea Bream is in the forefront and my bride's swordfish on the opposite side. Our daughter's vegetarian dish didn't make the day's headline. The Mediterranean tide reaches one metre and by the end of our lunch the water was starting to roll in under our table.

Our day trip over to the Blue Grotto on the west side of the island. This shot was taken from the viewpoint at the top and a combination of the waves crashing and no rowboats with tourists in sight we realized our hopes of visiting the small caves were dashed. Some nearby megalithic temples still made the venture worthwhile.

A special point of interest inside the South Temple of Hagar Qim, uphill from the Blue Grotto.

Notice the small hole at the back wall, where at summer solstice the sun would shine directly through onto a shrine in the chamber.......amazing technology for the time.

One of the many pedestrian and restaurant friendly streets in Valletta. This particular one was adorned with lampshades overhead.

After enjoying a harbourside dinner in Birgu, we were able to enjoy the night lights in the area.

The beautiful blue hues and limestone cliffs visible when walking around Comino Island. Looking at the almost treeless and rock coated island.....Gozo is in the far background.....it was easy to understand why the full-time population currently stood at 2 people. Due to it's history and the beautiful Blue Lagoon several hundred tourists still visited the day we went and thousands a day in the summer.

The South Temple at the Tarxien finding. Like most of the other megalithic complexes, the remaining limestone slabs were covered overhead with a protective shield against nature's elements, allowing future generations to enjoy the discovery. All of the more fragile artifacts (statues, utensils, etc.) have been moved to museums for additional protection.

While strolling from the Tarxien Temples to the Hypogeum underground cavern we came across this street view of the Paola Parish Church. The Maltese balconies enhanced the sighting.

Life is Like a Box of Chocolates

We flew from Italy to Malta more than a week ago on a ridiculously cheap Ryanair flight, one of many we have taken advantage of while in Europe over the years. Malta is such a small island country that we decided to return to normal public transportation, our usual mode of travel abroad......and an easy way to avoid driving on the left hand side of the road, with a right side steering wheel, while maneuvering around roundabouts. Between buses and ferries it is fairly quick to get anywhere around the country which is less than 30 km's in length and 15 km's in width.

We started off with one night in the busier than expected tourist city of Valletta, and then took a 10 minute ferry ride across the large harbour to the quieter and closely knit Three Cities side where we rented an Airbnb apartment for the week to use as our base. Before departing Valletta we, along with thousands of other interested observers, were able to watch the start of the Middle Sea Sailing Race, a prestigious race with boats from around the world attempting to be the first to return to the Grand Harbour after sailing around Sicily and back. To avoid congestion at the start, the 114 sail boats, ranging in size from 9 to 43 metres, departed in groups of 15 or so, with a cannon blast from the fort above signaling the start for each class. We returned to the harbour 2 mornings later hoping to see the winning boat arrive and break the 47 hour time record, which they did in favourable wind conditions, but while we were sleeping. While checking out the sites in the Three Cities for the next few days we observed the boats being cleaned up in the marinas, and the young, athletic crews celebrating not following off their sailboats in the middle of a race and being left behind to swim to shore (my interpretation).

Malta has an incredible history, which we have learned more about everywhere we go. Being in the middle of the Mediterranean, every mainland country around them has taken their turn of ruling the island, right up until 1964 when they gained their independence from the UK. As a result forts were built everywhere by different rulers, and renovated following extensive WWII damage (Malta was the only Allied country surrounded by Axis countries.) for those of us wishing to visit and understand the past. We toured some underground WWII tunnels below the Valletta fort which were quickly built to relocate troops and house radar tracking and strategy rooms where the key decisions were made. Medieval castles and palaces also exist, making for interesting walks every day. St. John's Co-Cathedral, the crown jewel of Valletta, was a sight to behold with it's immaculately decorated interior that included marble floors, ceiling paintings and baroque art that extended to the 9 side chapels as well. We encountered the first rainy days of our trip so we postponed our visits to the other parts of the country. With no flight booked to leave Malta, that flexibility worked to our advantage once again.

We received some exciting news that our Swiss daughter was going to come and join us here for a week so that she could get some rest........does that mean she thinks we move around very slowly? With that in mind we moved on from the Three Cities to Sliema, just north of Valletta across another ferry accessible bay to spend a few days in another area while waiting for our daughter to arrive. The Sliema area was much busier than Birgu, one of the Three Cities, where we stayed previously. Waterfront promenades connected several towns, making for a leisurely walk over to the neighbour town of St. Julian's. We also made two day trips, the first was inland to the original capital of Mdina, with a walled pedestrian friendly Old Town, where we learned more about the Knights of Malta and their Grand Master leaders (1530 to 1798 with some time outs in between). The second trip was to the island of Gozo, accessible by a 20 minute ferry ride. Our highlights there included a visit to some megalithic temples (Ggantija, 3500 BC) and to the Ta'Pinu Shrine where small miracles are documented on the walls from the grateful recipients. Sadly, our request to continue enjoying travel for another 50 years would have been classified as "non-urgent", and will likely never make its way to the top of the pile. 

Addiju.

With Valletta positioned on a small peninsula, from the small hilltop centre everything sloped down to water on both sides. That didn't deter outdoor dining where wide steps facilitated chairs and single stem tables. The Bars also used large cushions for their patrons to sit on leaving just enough room for pedestrians to get through. 

The start for one of the smaller monohull segments in the Mid Sea Sailboat Race following the official cannon blast. In the background is Fort St. Angelo at the tip of the Birgu peninsula that we visited while staying on that side. There were marinas with beautiful boats on both sides and a promenade allowing dreams to take shape.

While visiting Marsaskala on the southern coast we came across some salt pans, just one of many around the island. A lot of them are still being used with harvest season lasting from May to September.

A typical side street in the older part of towns. This was was taken in Birgu while making our way to the Cathedral in the background. Note the colourful Maltese balconies that were prominent on the island.

This shot was taken from the top of Fort St. Angelo in Birgu, looking down towards the luxurious boats parked in the marina. The superyacht on the left had a small pool and a helicopter pad on top. The sailboat beside it was the Skorpios monohull that came second in it's division of the Mid Sea Sailboat Race.

The majestic St. John's Co-Cathedral in Valletta. This was one of 9 side chapels in the Cathedral, with each one of them artistically designed and none that looked alike. Audio guides provided excellent descriptions of the works in front of us.

While taking a guided tour of the WWII War Tunnels of this top secret area....at the time, we were able to see many of the war rooms where high level decisions were made. In this case radar tracking, not nearly as sophisticated as it is today, was then conveyed to officers in other rooms that we visited.

We saw this entrepreneurial venture while walking along the promenade in Valletta. My gelato-loving bride would love to convert our camper van into something similar, with no intent on selling any product. It would be primarily for personal consumption, and perhaps sharing with some close friends.

On our way to the Ta'Pinu Shrine (background) on the island of Gozo, we came across this piece of art. It was composed of recycled plastic bottles (bottom end showing) and came with a dire warning of the harm plastic was doing to our planet.

Inside the Ta'Pinu church we saw several side rooms adorned with thank you notes on the walls for small miracles asked for and received. It was heartening to read some of them.

The remains (and re-work) of a small section of the North Temple at the Ggantija ruins in the town of Xaghra on Gozo island. This World Heritage site was built prior to both Stonehenge and the Pyramids, sometime around 3600 BC. An attached museum provided models of the original layout  and the tools used back then, based on the findings of archeologists.

Puglia - The Heel of the Boot

 We have spent the past 10 days in the Puglia region of Italy. Almost everywhere we drove outside of the cities and towns, we saw either vineyards or olive tree orchards on the side of the road, so we were never worried about being lost. We have been enjoying the finished products, along with the fabulous fresh seafood along the coast.

Our first stop was in Bari, a port city on the Adriatic Sea. The city has a rich and colourful past, being founded by the Greeks and then taken over by the Romans in the 3rd century BC, and other conquerors  later, a history prevalent in the Puglia area. It is fascinating to see evidence and read about the ancient times and various rulers, especially for those of us from such a young and peaceful country. Bari's Old Town, like all the others was a joy to walk around with very few vehicles challenging the narrow and curvy alleyways. We made a daytrip to the inland city of Altamura, famous for its ornate Cathedral and heavenly bread. In older times with fewer ovens available neighbours worked together to bake, hand moulding bread dough in odd shapes so they knew who the loaves belonged to. The tradition continues today and the taste was great.

From Bari, we slid down the coast further south, making short stops into both Polignano a Mare and Monopoli, both seaside towns with a heavy wind day causing the waves to crash into the rocky cliffs with the town immediately above. It was captivating to watch the inevitable erosion and wonder how much longer the cliffside homes, some with concrete decks overhanging the cliff wall, would survive. Later on we saw coastal pictures of nice, sunny days with very little wave action and altered our initial opinions. We then drove inland for a one night stay in Alberobello, filled with odd shaped trulli homes. The huts consisted of white limestone walls with conical roofs stone slab roofs on top. Legend has it that the rooftops, put together without mortar, were easy to take down when the 15th century tax collector came to town, and then reassemble when he left. True or not, the stone rooftop kept the tiny homes cool in the summer and warm in the winter.

Our next stop was in Lecce, inland from the east coast. Lecce has a nice Old Town and we spent a day passeggiando (strolling around) the multitude of immaculately adorned churches (baroque style) and a couple of ancient Roman amphitheatres, one of which held 25,000 people in it's day. being inland the old town was not built on a hill so it was very easy to walk through the many alleyways and occasionally get lost. On another day we toured around the south end of the Salento Peninsula making multiple stops but the best ones were Otranto (east coast) and Gallipoli (west coast), both lovely places to visit. One of the highlights in Gallipoli was entering the seaside moated castle and watching an impressive 360 degree video displayed on the stone dome of a large room within the castle, depicting the history of the region.

From Lecce, it was on to Matera but not before stopping in Taranto on our way, where the Old Town was on an island in a bay with bridges on both sides moving traffic over to the small island. Avoiding the tiny old town roads we opted for a mainland parking spot close to one of the bridges and then spent a couple of hours wandering around the history in front of us. Matera though, was the highlight of our SE Italy trip, dating back to the 15th century BC and now a  UNESCO World Heritage site. Carved out of rocky slopes on a steep mountain it was filled with sorrowful beauty. Residents lived in rock hewn caves with their farm animals up until the middle of the 20th century when misery and unsanitary conditions forced the government to build homes and relocate the citizens close to the valley fields they farmed, kilometres away. More recently the caves were upgraded by businesses (shops, restaurants and hotels), creating a flourishing flow of tourists starting in 2014. The city is a maze of zigzagging staircases, winding alleyways and cave dwellings  but it was good exercise (Pocahontas kept calling it something quite different) and well worth it for not only the views but the history lesson. We spent two full days exploring different sides of the old town, Sasso Caveoso and Sasso Barisano. It was a magical and unique landscape that we were glad to have encountered.

That marked the end of our Italy adventure this time around. Beyond Matera, our highlights included Arzachena, Alghero and Santadi (Sardinia), Polignano a Mare, Lecce and Otranto (mainland). Tomorrow we will fly to Malta, a tiny country with a lot of history in the middle of the Mediterranean.

Ciao.

Polignano a Mare coastline. On this windy day, the waves were crashing against the rocky shoreline and it was clear this had been going on for some time. We wondered how long the buildings on the edge would survive Mother Nature.

We spent one night in the unique town of Alberobello, home to the limestone walled huts with conical roofs of stone. Although they date back centuries ago they are now used mostly for storage, and for tourists like us who wanted to share the experience.

The Otranto Castle and it's moat. The rooms inside the castle were well documented so it made for an interesting visit.

We stopped for lunch while visiting Gallipoli on the Ionian Sea coast. Most of our meals in Italy have been consumed outside with the lovely weather we have experienced.

After leaving Gallipoli we continued on to the inland town of Galatina on our extended day trip from Lecce. Looking for a parking spot, we accidentally drove right into the main square from behind the church. We then then quickly maneuvered around a barrier to prevent vehicles to get back onto a normal street. Hardly anybody noticed because of the double decker carousel entertaining everyone.

The Basilica di San Croce (Holy Cross) in Lecce. Almost all of the many churches in the city had the same baroque design. The interiors were similar, reflecting some amazing work by artisans of the time.

This was the smaller of the two Roman amphitheatres in Lecce, a city with history that we could only dream about.

One of the main squares in the old city of Matera. Underneath the square was a massive rainwater collection system (Palombaro del Caveoso) that was only discovered within the last 50 years. Upon

 discovery they still found clean water below, a tribute to the architects of the past. We went down to a staircase to see the cistern which could hold 5 million litres of water, and drawn up by the locals via numerous wells.

A view from Matera to some of the original cave homes carved out of the cliff below the Murgia Plateau. From Matera it was only a 4 hour hike down to the bottom of the ravine and back up the other side to explore the untouched cave homes but we settled for a nice lunch with a view instead.

A view from one side of Sasso Caveoso to the other, with the Cathedral tower showing at the top on the right. The Caveoso side of the old city had more of the original cave homes and rock chiseled churches intact vs. Barisano where a few more reno's had been completed.

This is a view from one side of Sasso Barisano to the other, with the Cathedral tower in the background. It was also fascinating to walk around, but as you can see, a walk down meant a walk back up at some point. We walked all around both Sasso's, one each day, with specific sites to enter sprinkled throughout the old city.

Another History Lesson

Further along the SW coast of Sardinia we stopped for a few days in the charming town of Oristano, another spot with a rich history. Beyond walking around the old city, we drove over to the nearby Sinis Peninsula for some more history at the ancient Tharros site, established in the 8th century BC. Generations of people lived there until 1050 AD. The foundations of the tiny homes, thermal baths, aqueducts and more were still in place making for an interesting walkabout.

Leaving Oristano we drove further south to the SE corner of the island where we settled into the village of Santadi. Our first attraction was the Grotte Is Zuddas, a beautiful cave system beneath an inland hill where a tour guide took us into 5 cavernous spaces filled with amazing tubular formations, millions of years old and still growing. While we have been inside lovely cave systems before, this was the first time we had ever seen the very rare erratic aragonites, bright white, curvy, thread-like formations with no sense of gravity, growing in whichever direction suited them. It was a masterpiece of nature. The following day we drove across a causeway to the 'island' of Sant'Antioco where we only found a few of the ancient ruins we were hunting for. Some days it might be useful to be surrounded by tourists seeking the same treasures at unmanaged sites! All was not lost, returning to Santadi we (I) got to enjoy a fine wine produced locally and rated highly by the Wine Spectator. I would have loved to purchase some additional bottles to take with us but we were leaving the island the next day.

We are now back to the mainland, in Bari at the SW end of Italy, also known as the Heel of the Boot. Arrivederci. 

On our way to the Tharros archeological site from Oristanto we stopped first at the impressive historical museum in Cabras. Some of the artifacts shown dated back to earlier than the 8th century BC. The background picture is from the actual site.

I took this picture from the top of the rebuilt Tower of San Giovanni. The picture only covers about one third of the actual site. We walked around the whole site with a map that described each of the areas.

A view of the old town in Oristano taken from the top of the Tower of Mariano II, a king who had the tower built and named it after himself, of course. Most of the streets in the Old Town were much narrower and usually vehicle-free, making it a treat to walk around or sit outside for drinks or meals.

The Organ, inside the Grotte Is Zuddas cave system, near Santadi. This particle piece was damaged when the floor of the cave dropped almost a foot a million years ago.

This is an example of the rare and amazing aragonites that were all over one of the vast rooms in the cave. The tiny extensions that were slowly growing (1 cm every 1000 years), grew in all directions, defying gravity. Our guide referred to them as 'angel's hair'. They were more impressive in person.

We were unprepared when we came across this lovely beach in Porto Pino so we had to settle for lunch while watching others enjoy themselves. A few days earlier, near Oristano, we did get to have a swim in the Mediterranean on another nice sandy beach.

Safe Driving in Sardinia

Without a good public transportation system on the island of Sardinia, we decided to rent a car to help get us around. We chose a small car knowing many of the roads would be smaller and parking would be much easier......which is true if you are lucky enough to find a spot. Fortunately it was October and there were fewer tourists on the road which made it a bit easier.......provided you stayed clear of the crazy Italian drivers who like to drive very fast.

Our first stop was in the capital city of Cagliari along the southern coast. We spent a full day walking around the hilly city, starting at the 12th century Castle of San Michelle up high above the city (a city within itself) and then immersed ourselves in the old historic centre below with some Roman ruins and narrow laneways. Escaping the busy city we drove all the way to the NE corner of the island (a leisurely 4 hours) with a plan to slowly work our way back to Cagliari. We picked a a rustic looking but well built B&B granite walled room, 20 km's inland from the coast in a rural area of Arzachena as our home for 3 nights. Our first full day took us over to the east coast where we acted like we were rich and famous, touring their haunts of Porto Cervo and Baja Sardinia. We saw some very nice homes, but some even nicer yachts that were 20-30 metres in length. Rather than shop in the Milan style stores, we purchased gelatos and watched the full-time staff clean every speck of dust off their owner's toys. On Day 2 we came down to earth heading for the northern coast near us, but it was fraught with disruptions that never would have occurred for the rich and famous. Our drive to Capo D'Orso was halted half way when the winding coastal road was closed for race car time trials over an 8 km stretch. After being shuttled into a beach parking lot we decided to watch the cars rev their engines and take off for a while then decided to find an alternate route to our second planned destination, Palau, where we enjoyed some harbourfront time and lunch. That went well until we visited an 1880's fortress beyond Palau and found it closed from 1-3 pm for "riposo" (siesta). We snapped a few photos of the fortress from below and moved on. Our haphazard tour was not over. After returning to Capo D'Orso just as the time trials were finished we found the parking lot and entry gate closed to the short hike to the popular The Bear rock formation. After a short riposo wait (till 3 pm) the entry gate opened but not the parking lot. Together with the other visitors we all made 3 point turns on the small dead-end street in search of roadside parking spots. We then made our way back and up to the top of the hill where we used our imagination to look at the large weather formed rock that was the main attraction, along with the scenic 360 degree views of the coast and villages below. We decided to call it a semi-successful day and headed home for some nice Italian wine, which we felt we earned.

Departing Arzachena, we drove from the east coast over to the west coast, stopping in Alghero for several more days. Along the way we made a slight detour to the town of Castelsardo and it's hilltop walled castle area, where we walked along the cobblestone alleys and visited a few museums. Alghero had it's own Old Town which we visited several times since it was only a 20 minute walk from our guest house. A trip to the beautiful Neptune's Grotto (cave) was unsuccessful due to high winds making for a risky entry into the seaside cave. Pocahontas was less disappointed since it meant we didn't have to descend 650 steps to the cave and back up again after. On another day we drove down the winding coastal road to the charming town of Bosa where we spent most of the day.

Tomorrow we will drive further south to Oristano, another coastal town. The seafood has been awesome and we are looking forward to more.

While in Cagliari, we walked up to the Castello di San Michelle which was surrounded by a moat. The views of Cagliari below were stunning.

Walking back down to the historic centre of Cagliari we came across an ancient Roman amphitheatre.

Our 'rustic room' patio, which was recently built, in a rural area outside of Cagliari. The inside was well designed and it was a pleasant stay

The beach area in Baja Sardinia, still quiet early in an October morning. There were many nice sandy beaches on the east side of the island, with more rocky ones on the west (but better for water sports).

Some modest seaside homes in Porto Cervo, a very wealthy seaside town. It was a favourite get-away for rich Europeans and the shops were ready for them to visit.

The northern seaside town of Castelsarda. Sardinia has a rich history that many European dynasty's relished so all of the coastal towns and cities had castles and fortresses to try and protect the ruler's at the time. It also meant a lot of hillside walks for the interested tourists.

Alghero Old Town at night when we walked there for dinner. Every day has been in the 20's so far in Sardinia, so night time dinners outdoors were popular.

Bosa, another coastal town with some good exercise to reach the Castle. We finished our visit with a fabulous late lunch at a well regarded restaurant.

An Old Town home in Bosa with some happy plants. The coastal drive from Alghero was very scenic to drive both there and back.

A few of the 650 stairs required to reach the Neptune Grotto (cave) just north of Alghero. The steps go all the way down to the shoreline and unfortunately the winds that day made it too risky to enter the cave so we will have to be satisfied with internet pictures.