Sunday, June 09, 2013

Sardinia - part 5 - Road Porn

So where was I with Sardinia? Oh yes, at that lovely hotel set in a fabulous old bourgeois house. The dinner was amazing, so was the breakfast - a buffet of delicious things to eat - cheeses, olive oil, tomatoes, fresh bread, jams, honey, Italian cakes and wedge-shaped boudoir biscuits - plus a juicer to make apple and/or carrot juice, and an orange squeezer to rustle up your morning's freshly squeezed orange (and lemon) juice.

I had to squeeze myself into my leather trousers for our journey south. The road down took us through a dankly mysterious wild oak forest in the midst of which were a couple of spiritual centres, obviously at one with the dark forces that inhabited the natural environment. Actually, they looked closed, so maybe not...

At Cuglieri we got an attendant to fill up the petrol tank, at €1.79 per litre! To give you an idea how much this hurt, just last week, petrol was €1.50 per litre at the local supermarket.

After a blustery ride across the plains (it did my 'ead in it did, all that wind), we came to a section of road porn. It started after Guspini at the foot of Mont Linas, along the N126 (in case you're interested...) towards Arbus and down to the marvellously named Fluminimaggiore (or Flumin'eck for those who can't get their head around the 8 syllables). My DB got the bit between his teeth and rode it like a bat out of hell (as it were) taking the corners like a jumping bean and roaring down the straighter bits.

You won't be surprised to know that I did not take any photos during this action scene, or that I felt a tad queasy at the end of it. I did admire though, the scenery of grey granite rock with stunted forests and sweet-smelling gorse. There was a nice little gorge with high sides and a road that lovingly followed every twist and turn of the brave little stream that had cut its way so effectively through the tough old rock.

After a short break at the end of the mountain section, we carried on and came to another section of biker's wet dream. So off he went, unable to resist the call of the road. I was very relieved when we got to Iglesias because I was tired and dying to use the loo. We found an unassuming little bar which had beautifully clean loos, and enjoyed a surprisingly delicious home-made sarnie or two each plus a decadent hot chocolate (me) and coffee (him), and got a bottle of water all for €10.20. Bargain or what!
Unassuming bar that turned out to be a gem
Much refreshed, we rode on to the island of S Antioco at the south-western corner of Sardinia which you get to via a bridge. It's not a big island but it's big enough to have two towns, one of which was Calasetta, near where we had booked our hotel for the night. Unlike most of the other Sard villages, Calasetta was all in whites and blues - very nautical, and laid out in a grid so it was very easy to get around. It had a little port where you could take a ferry to the smaller island of Isle di S Petro, just to the north. We didn't have time for that though, and the weather was so wet there wasn't any point. We did notice, however, the mini beaches of white powdery sand and turquoise water. Lovely.
Mini beach

Calasetta port
We had booked into the Michelin recommended Hotel Luci del Faro, the lighthouse hotel. Sounds very romantic, doesn't it? It wasn't really. You couldn't see the lighthouse from any part of the hotel; it's actually located a few hundred metres out to sea and you have to walk to the beach to see it. When I say beach, I actually mean the basalt rock at the water's edge. It's a lovely dark pinky brown and, a few metres inland, was full of wild rosemary. In front of the hotel you could visit a little historical site and see the vestiges of gun emplacements dating back to WWII, and a disintegrating gun-aiming station. All were a bit the worse for wear because the basalt bricks have not stood up well to the pounding they get from the wind, rain and salt.
Lighthouse out to sea
Gun aiming station
Still, it was very wild and woolly on the coast, and totally isolated. The wind blew in squalls and the air was heavy with moisture. Outside the hotel it was much more romantic in a 'Wuthering Heights' sort of way (in April at least).

Hotel Luci del Faro from the 'beach'
The hotel was nice enough but dinner was a sorry affair despite being part of the Michelin recommended hotel. Bland and boring is how I'd describe it, and at €15 for a main course, this was over-priced. Even the wine was bland. Our first bottle of white had no taste, it was like drinking sturdy water. We sent it back and got a bottle of organic red called Le Sabbie which turned out to be the only good thing about the meal.

It was probably due to the uninspiring food, you know how it is, you're frustrated with what you're eating (and paying too much for) and take it out on the person nearest to you, well my DB did.. This did nothing to improve dinner in general although the wine helped... Anyway, dinner was a flop, but we made it up later...

18 comments:

  1. I'd like to have seen those luggers under sail...and what is it with these guides? They seem to have odd ways of rating places.

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    1. All the boats were in the port, the weather was that bad!

      The hotel gets good reviews on Trip Advisor, so maybe they improve the food in the summer. It's in a great location, it has to be said, and the rooms were okay but I'm surprised it was in the Michelin Red guide.

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  2. We pay €0.15 per liter of fuel. But then again, Kuwait sits on top of huge oil fields.

    At least you're able to get out and explore. Love all your photos!

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    1. I think I'd rather pay for expensive petrol than live in the Middle East to be honest. I did a year in Egypt and, as a woman, that was enough. Living in Europe is cool. :)

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  3. Emily Brontë on bikeback, LOL! Thanks for the breakfast time visit of Sardinia- I could smell that forest wafting out of the screen :-)

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    1. It did smell lovely too. That's the great thing about being on the motorbike, you get the full sensory pleasure of smell. I half expected to see the odd druid flitting about the forest. I was most disappointed to see the spiritual centres were closed.

      As for the island, the hotel was just wrong for its location. It needed to be cosier imo but maybe it all looks different in the summer.

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  4. What a trip! I envy you...I haven't had an 'adult' holiday with my hubby forever! Sardinia looks good (not too sunny, right?) I totally need a holiday now.

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    1. It was certainly not too sunny in April/May but I think it gets very warm in the summer, or maybe not with its island climate.

      Much as I love my kids, having these adult holidays is a real luxury where we do as we like. :)

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  5. Jeez your fuel is pricey - and I thought it was bad over here! Your description of breakfast made my mouth water. - must away to cook dinner!

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    1. It was heavenly, that breakfast. I tried a couple of the little cakes, the ones that appeared to be less sickly that the sugar-encrusted others, and found they were very nice. Not quite the thing for brekkie for me though.

      The petrol was all SP98 on the island, but what a price, eh?!

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  6. God. To me this sounds like heaven. Even the rough spots.

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    1. It was, Hattie. It was a lovely week.

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  7. Beautiful photos those, bucolic and with more than a whiff of nostalgia. Ahh, super. I hope the rest of the trip goes well!

    On another subject, I email-subscribed to yor posts but am not receiving them. Grrrr, snaaaarrrlll. I'll try again. Strange that.

    Excellent evening to one and all.
    Frip

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    1. Thanks!

      I have signed up for email subscription too to see how it works. Sorry you're having trouble with it!!

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  8. Have always wanted to go to Sardinia. I love reading about your travels on the bike. Shame about the meal, but glad you made it up later ...:)

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    1. Yeah, making up is cool.

      Sardinia is great. I hope you get to go there one day. :)

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  9. That man of yours and his scary roads! He would think me a complete wimp as I hit the imaginary breaks every few seconds.
    Should the weather have been better in April/May or were you unlucky with the squalls?

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    1. Bikers like the thrill. I just hold on and hope for the best. :)

      I think it was normal weather for April/May. We got sunshine too but it wasn't as warm as it gets later, thank goodness. It's not fun biking in hot weather.

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