One of the many great advantages of living in Europe is the affordability of traveling to (almost) anywhere on the continent. When researching discount airliner Ryan Air we found a deal we couldn't possibly refuse. We immediately booked a flight to Alghero for a weekend trip on the island of Sardinia off the coast of Italy. The city of Alghero appeared to be a well traveled resort town, therefore; we looked elsewhere for some peace, quiet, and a little adventure - finally settling on Stintino.
view of La Pelosa
We landed around 21:30 and promptly picked up our rental car, a Fiat, a.k.a. FiFi #2. Stintino was an hour drive from the airport and the closer we got we could see a searchlight beaming across the sky. The roving beacon appeared to have attracted everyone within 50 kilometers like insects to a bug zapper. After arriving, the majority of the streets were blocked off for pedestrian traffic and we soon realized the street of our rental apartment was also barricaded. Luckily, we found the only available spot in town, parking just five blocks away form our apartment.
As we carted our luggage to our rental, we heard loud noises with no particular cadence and didn't resemble what most people describe as music. The band pounded on their instruments like a child does a toy, they seemed more intent on damaging tympanic membranes than staying in tune or synchronizing melodies. Once we got up our third-floor apartment we could see the main stage of the festival was a short 200-meters away. Knowing sleep wasn't an option with the cacophonous "band" playing we decided to walk the streets and see what the local vendors had to offer. We returned to our apartment a quarter after midnight and there were no signs of the music or festivities drawing to a close. Based on the thin walls of our establishment, the concert ended around 2:00, allowing for a short night's sleep.
View from our balcony
Street view from balcony
DAY ONE
Having had a disrupted night's sleep, a nice day of relaxing was what the vacation doctor ordered. Sardinia is known for the famous beach, La Pelosa, and our rental was conveniently located 15-minutes away. However, by the time of our early afternoon arrival, the masses had already descended upon the beach. To avoid the large crowds gathered on the main beach we walked the coastline towards the Sarazene Tower. Here, the beach was significantly smaller and less populated. For an extravagant price, we could lounge on the private beach - private in the sense that a thin blue rope is the demarcation of exclusivity. We decided to go with the more cost effective route and established a small area adjacent to the nobility of La Pelosa.
Our little area, beach royalty to Julie's left
The location was perfect, just enough beach for two people, rocks behind us, and the Mediterranean Sea in front of us. Our area was mostly protected by the rocky landscape - allowing only the fleetest of foot sand-rat peddler to disturb anyone trying to enjoy their day.
Swimming over
Land Ho!!!
climbing
Unfortunately, a polite, "no grazie" wouldn't deter these peddlers. Often, engaging in any form of communication, whether it be verbal or non-verbal, they would pester you - expressing total disinterest was equally ineffective. For example, while reading a book, a peddler approached my towel, stood there with his merchandise and listed everything he was selling, "blanket, sunglasses, hats, real good price." He continued talking and waited for a response, finally, I kindly said, "no grazie." Instead of going on to the next group, the peddler started dropping the price of the previously undesired products. The most interesting of the sand-rats were those offering "Thai massages," surely a massage would feel great covered in sand while basting in the 35 degree heat (95 degrees for our Fahrenheit readers). To avoid further disturbances, we decided to snorkel and swim to the small island.
View from the North side
View from the East side
The water was a refreshing Goldilock's-temperature and shallow enough to equip our snorkel gear. The sea between the beach and small island housed a coral reef with an abundance of fish. Once we got to the island, we explored the shores - walked around the tower, took pictures, and I climbed the tower until my better half asked that I don't go any higher. We gathered our gear and swam back to the beach. While swimming, we noticed an aquatic fisherman hunting with a Hawaiian sling (essentially an underwater bow and arrow). This was interesting to see until he decided it was a good idea to go after a fish a meter from us. For our safety, we made our way back to the beach, but not before Giuseppe Slingtino schlepped his catch in front of our faces. We collected our belongings and looked for a restaurant on our return to Stintino.
After a quick stop at our rental apartment, we turned around and went to Ristorante Capo Falcone, the only place allowing us to make a 19:30 reservation (most restaurants don't open until 20:00). The food was adequate, sans the calamari - it tasted like a frozen Olive Garden meal (my assumption, I haven't been to an Olive Garden in 13-years). Far less fresh than Giuseppe Slingtino's catch to say the least. We made our way back to Stintino and prepared for another night of festival activities. We sat on our balcony waiting for the music to begin, but nothing had started and it was 22:00. Julie went to bed and I continued to enjoy my wine while listening to the fainted echos of Italian chatter and the waves crashing in the harbor.
View from dinner
Stintino
My tranquility was disrupted by the most pleasant sound of the festival. A group of Italian men had stopped at the end of the street below our apartment to perform four acapella songs - of which I was able to record half - a perfect ending to my evening. As I went to bed I overheard the opening song of the band taking the stage - a horrendous cover of Bob Marley's, "Redemption Song," certainly a performance with no redeeming qualities.
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