At least we do not know Sardinia. We have also been very surprised by the variety of unknown corners in central and southern Italy. The following options are in front of us: Barcelona, Sardinia or Basilicata. We decide against Basilicata with a heavy heart, because we are afraid of the paralyzing heat inland. At some point we will come back again. For a ferry to Barcelona we would have to go back to Rome what we do not like. So fifteen hours night ferry ride from Naples to Cagliari is chosen.
Italy is behind us. The autonomous region of Sardinia makes you feel that its peple are more Sardinian than Italian. We often see the Sardinian flag, sometimes together with the European one.
Instead of Timbuktu or Naples we find ourselves in the Caribbean: crystal clear, turquoise water, well tempered. With southern German families during the Whitsun holidays we go on a beach holiday before we continue into the mountains.
Mountain hiking and climbing in the lonely mountains. The starting point is the beautiful Camping Theleme.
Camping Theleme is one of the special places of our trip this year. Its philosophy is to get rid of all obligations and responsibilities and just rest here. Sylvia, Antonio and Ester run the course which is mainlypopulated by sport climbers. Antonio grew up in Ulassai, knows every climb, every climbing route and every MTB trail. The three also run the in-bar of the village of Ulassai. And so in the morning workers come for coffee and in the evening the jugglers come.
Cappuccino in the heart of Sardinia: Seui. We take advantage of the rare opportunity on this stage through the empty interior.
And at the finish a beautiful campsite. In the village before, in Seulo, we drank a Coke with Gian Carlo. He told us everything about the owner family. Everyone knows everyone here. On the campsite there are nice campers who have already passed us kilometers before and now welcome us with biscuits. The cherry trees hang full for self-picking and with Timo, the dropout newcomer, we chat over house wine.
Park4Night is our new favorite when looking for beautiful campsites. Here you find camper pitches as well as tent sites, such as this one.
Mauro is a real Sardinian, proud Italian and totally enthusiastic about us. He speaks super Sardinian, Italian, French and English and out of sheer excitement he sometimes speaks all languages at the same time.
In front of Macomer we find a very secluded place. It costs 11€ including pool for both of us. For this we save the store with the consumption of some tapped beers.
Lunch break in Monteleone, the last climb of the day is done. Now it goes thirty kilometers undulating downhill. And the hot desert wind blows towards us again. Ten kilometers further on, a car stops on the road in front of us. The driver gets out, opens the trunk and takes out 1.5l of cold Agua Frizzante and half a melon. We are flat and show our gratitude by emptying the bottle on the spot. The couple wishes us a good trip and continues.
Sardinia is unique, has its own language, its own beer – Ichnusa, its own water – San Lucia, its own dairy products – Arborea and the Banco di Sardegna… Where they can, they take care of themselves and show it.
