Oristano to Cagliari

After a wonderful stay, with a wonderful breakfast including choice of 3 freshly made tarts and cakes, at Sa domu e Crakeras, we set off for a day full of new and exciting places to visit and roads to negotiate!

First stop the little museum in Cabras, which housed 8 of the Giganti, excavated only recently and pieced together by 2014. 5600 pieces were painstakingly reassembled after thousands of years. 

Although I am not super interested in archeology, I still find it fascinating to see the many household artefacts found during excavations, and to learn a little more about these ancient times.It was certainly a short, yet  interesting introduction to the archeology of the region. One of the exhibits was of particular interest to me now that I do pottery. In a sacrificial temple, hundreds of urns had been found, more or less intact with the ashes of children which had been apparently sacrificed to appease the gods. What a horrendous thought to leave your first born to die! Later in the day we visited the area at Tharros where the urns had been discovered.

At the southern tip of the Sinis peninsula lies Tharros, the ancient city of the Phoenicians, possibly founded at the end of 8 th century BC and developed further during subsequent ages. History aside, the region is stunningly beautiful with a multitude of wild beaches and turquois waters.

We climbed the tower of St Giovanni to get these spectacular views.

The tour of Tharros with its Punic and Roman dwellings and temples was wonderful, especially with such clear views. The colours were spectacular and an occasional breeze made the visit much more tolerable in what would otherwise have been 38 degrees!

Flowers everywhere in the front gardens of these ancient homes, and the tower we had climbed above us. Apparently much more of the city is submerged underwater as a result of subsidence.

A group of American students were excavating to try to find proof of the diet the inhabitants had had. They were really keen to answer our questions.

Temples, roads, thermal baths, drainage systems, etc, were all part of the visit. 

Once again the coastal road was amazing and the colour of the water almost unbelievable. It was really this colour! The beaches too!

We had the roads virtually to ourselves, though the peace was occasionally shattered by the roar of motorbikes enjoying the many curves of the road.

A friend recommended Marina di Arbus for lunch. The food was marvelous and we were virtually alone there ( in one month things will look very different I am sure) . The road there was rather narrow, but manageable.

After that, our GPS decided to give us a bit of an adventure. It took us inland over a very long, winding road, at first single lane. I have to say I was terrified. I don't think I breathed normally. Every blind corner I asked myself what would happen if someone came in the other direction. I can't remember seeing many passing places. Guni was her usual calm self as she did her best to avoid the often large potholes and calm me dowm! The road quality was reminiscent of ours after esrthquakes. Sadly, I did not fully appreciate the breath-taking scenery, including some very impressive mountain peaks.

This Costa Verde (Green Coast) is very aptly named!

Thankfully, we arrived safe and sound at our next destination, Cagliari, Sardinia's capitol.