A continuation of a trip which started on Sept 10th with a visit to the UK, then Corsica
Corsica to Sardinia 9/29 (here)
Pula 9/30 - 10/3. (here)
Temple Antas/Dunes. 10/4 (here)
Sant' Anticio
Evening dawned by the time we arrived.
It took 2 hours to drive on SS126 straight down, from the Piscinas Dunes located on the Southwest coast of Sardinia's main land, (which we toured the previous day) as to reach the island of Sant'Anicio
Sant'Anticio is Part of the Sulcis Archipelago to which also San Pietro Island, another smaller charming island, belongs, and which we viisted as well, by taking a ferry.
Many of the inhabitants of the 2 islands are descended from the Ligurian inhabitants of a Genoese coral-fishing colony established in the 16th c on the Tunisian island of Tabarka.
Sant’Antioco is located on the southwest tip of Sardinia, an island off the main Island, and is the 4th largest island in Italy . It takes little over one hour to drive from Cagliari
Sant’Antioco is easy to reach by car: as it is connected to the Sardinia's island by an artificial isthmus. and a bridge.
Once reaching the Island a “Pontimanno”, a remains of a Roman unique bridge not only for his form but also for its position on the ground. is encountered.
Unlike other bridges, it connects the mainland with an island and not with the ford rivers or steps. Its name (Pontimanno: the big bridge) recalls the existence of other bridges, smaller, which bound the Island of Sant’Antioco to the mainland, through the union of the islets of the isthmus.
Sant"Anticio has been inhabited since very ancient times and it has always been a rich, prosperous land, especially thanks to the lead and silver mines in the area, and thanks tothe abundance of fish which made its economy flourish.
Now a days the island is famous for of its attractive beaches and tourist spot.
The island has attracted a range of civilizations since prehistorical times; , Since the 3rd millennium BC the Phoenicians, who lived peacefully alongside the Nuraghic populations, founded, here their first Sardinian city, exchanging trade and culture with the whole of the Mediterranean There are numerous Nuraghes and Domus de Janas -
'House of the Fairies' or, alternatively, 'House of Witches' . They are quarried out, rock-cut tombs that today provide evidence of the pre Neolithic period. dating back 5,000 years
Its archaeological importance is not only noted in Sardinia, but also Italy 's at large, since it is here that Sulki, one of the oldest cities in Italy, was was founded, around 770 BC, lending its name to the south-western territory of Sardinia.
Some findings suggest that it was founded at about the same time as Carthage
Sulki was a prosperous harbor, the arrival point for travelers from Phoenicia and the colony of Carthage, as well as trade with the Greeks and Etruscans. It became one of the most important Phoenician centers and passed to the Carthaginians in 520 BC.
The Punic victory brought a period of crisis, but Sulci flourished once again thanks to the position of its port and the enormous resources in the territory, and thanks to various businesses, like the rare byssus weaving. (see below)
It remained as a strong colony until the end of the Punic wars when it was invaded and annexed by Rome.
The 2 main Towns in Sant’Antioco Island are:
Sant’Antioco,
Calasetta.
Sant’Antioco Town
This main town of about 12,000 residents offers beaches clubs, nice shopping street numerous museums and archaeological sites.
The archaeological museum "Ferruccio Barreca"
Via Sabatino Moscati, +39 389 796 2114
consists of of preserved archaeological finds covering the Nuragic, Punic and Roman times.
The highlight of the collection is undoubtedly the original reconstruction of a Punic Tophet, a cemetery area reserved for children.sucrifized
Villaggio Ipogeo, an ancient area of the Punic necropolis , consists of numerous underground tombs of the Punic necropolis which were desecrated reused as private-dwellings for the most disadvantaged inhabitants, thus forming the Underground Village.
There are also many small craftsmen who have been keeping the millenary art of weaving the bisso alive: it is almost completely disappeared though handed down from generation to generation: it consists of fishing and processing of the Pinna Nobilis, a mollusk, noble pen shell and fan mussel,from which craftsmen gently collect their filaments, then process, wash and wave them like linen or cotton.or "silk from the sea"
Restaurant:
Zefiro Restaurant. -Sant' Anticio
Via Giosuè Carducci, 15 +39 0781 828014
There are not many top hotel resorts by great beaches on the island, so we decided to stay only for 2 nights at a small village 9 km from the center of Sant'Ancioco town
View from the Hotel at Maladruxia
Lu" Hotel - Maladroxia Village
Via Golfo di Palmas, 16, +39 0781 817403
In the small Maladroxia village, the newly refurbished hotel building is located a few metres from a beach, that is considered one of the best on the island,
The village is a tourist resort with private villas, holiday homes and hotels, surrounded by Mediterranean greenery, and its promenade has few cafés, restaurants and characteristic shops.
Overall we thought that both the Maladroxia beach and hotel are overrated
So we decided also to visit San Pietro Island and thus drove to Calasetta port the second large village on Sant'Anticio Island , from where the ferry sails to Carloforte
Calasetta Town and Port
Calasetta - the second smaller town of about 3,000 residents on the Northwestern tip of the SabtAnticio Island, dates to 1770 when .a handful of families of coral fishermen from the Tunisian island of Tabarka (who had originally settled there from Genoa) moved there.as a fishing and farming community. .
Tabarka was occupied at various times by Punics, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Genoese and Ottomans. The language spoken in Calasetta is Tabarkian – an interesting Ligurian/Genoese dialect, completely different from Sardinian,
Today the town is a hot tourist spot in Sardinia
The town features bright white buildings; colorful balconies decorated with flowers; cobbled alleys, few attractive beaches and a port
Restaurant
Perla Da Donatello Restaurant - Calasetta
Lungomare Cristoforo Colombo, 16. +39 0781 88483
At Calasetta Port
Port's Ticket Booth, Ferry Schedule Ferry to San Pietro
It is worth to take the ferry from Calasetta port to San Pietro island, which is only 40 minutes sail away. The ferry departs and returns few times a day (see scheduled)
The reasonable fair's cost for a round trip inclusing car transport, which we did, is only 14.5 Euro per the car + 6.40 Euro per person x 2 =27.30 Total
Around the Port
On the Ferry
This small charming tourist spot is the sixth-largest island of Italy by area and
the second largest island, after Sant'Antioco, in the Sulcis archipelago.
Its boundless beauty: and incredible history. has it been Inhabited since prehistoric times known as "sparrowhawk island" by the Punics
According to a legend, the island was named so because St. Peter visited in 46 AD.
The small , San Pietro island is characterized by wild landscapes of unspoiled nature,: jagged cliffs up to 150 m. high that plunge into the crystalline sea, .and enchanting perstine beaches,
The 30 km coastline is mostly very steep rocky walls; The western and northern part includes some natural grottoes, inlets ,small sandy coves ,unprotected landings, and a few small beaches,
Swimming diving, snorkeling, sports fishing and bird watching are the main activities.
The island has no rivers or streams, but features numerous ponds and marshes
The eastern coast, on which the port of Carloforte lies, is more protected low and sandy.
The approximately 6,000 inhabitants of the island are mostly concentrated in the fishing town of Carloforte .
During our visit, a salsa music excited
the dancing public affair, at the port .
Carloforte
The town of Carloforte (Fort Charles) was dedicated to Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia, who had granted the island to the Tabarkan refugees.
This enchanting historic town is included in the list of the most beautiful villages in Italy.
Its colorful houses, labyrinth of narrow alleyways, doted with quints shops, restaurants and cafes,small squares, stairways that climb steeply to the upper oldest part of town, where the the Castle, were and and remains of the walls that once surrounded it, are, a feast to the eye.
The fortified area protected the town from raids and occupation
The fortifications were built after a raid by Tunisian corsairs in 1798 that enslaved nearly a thousand people. The population requested the fortifications from the King of Sardinia, who approved and construction began in 1806. The project was completed in 1813 and involved the entire population of Carloforte
Cosrso Cavour - a promenade busy with flocks of strolling tourists along the small port,
In 1738, like Calasetta when still uninhabited, the village was colonized by Genoese families who had initially moved to the African island of Tabarka to extract coral – hence the term Tabarchini for the island’s inhabitants. Once settled, the Tabarchini founded Carloforte, the only inhabited main center on the island,
They dedicated themselves to fishing for tuna, coral, and salt production.
Piazza Repubblica
Piazza Pegli - name "Pegli" refers to the Ligurian town near Genoa where the original settlers of Carloforte came from. The Vegetable market is there every Wednsday
After inhaling the beuty of this enchanting small town's center, we ventured to explor
the island's near-by beaches.
Beach La Boba is a beautiful, sandy beach recommended to be visited. However it doesn't have an easy access to cars, so we rather stopped at
Punta Nera Beach
About 10 minutes drive away from Carloforte's center, between the beach of Girin and the beach of Guidi. this
beautiful small stretch of white sand and its crystal-clear turquoise waters, is great for swimming or snorkeling around the various rock formations that line its shore. It is definitly more accessable to cars
Near by is the Punta Nera cave where archaeological finds dating back to 3000 BC have been found
For other Beaches
Steep stairs case and narrow ally, venturing from Via Cavour lead us up to a great Sea Food recommended restuarant, located on a quint balcony, midway to the upper part
of town, which we viisted after the beach,
Al Tonne da Corsa Restaurant
Via Guglielmo Marconi, 47
Other San Pietro's recommended
Da Andrea Restuarnt
Da Vittorio. --Restuarnt
Accomadation:
Sitting bext to us at the restuarnt, was a lovely couple, an English-man and his wife -a native Italian - Giuseppina Visalli, who spend thier time between Pharma on the main land, and in San Pietro, where they own a charming unit by the beachfron, in a newly built complex where rentals are ofered:
Guest House Mareluna B&B beachfront property for rent
Viale Osservatorio Astronomico, 32, 09014 Carloforte, Italia
The rental is managed by Vittorio
Pimpioxelli Host
Pimpioxelli.gh.cf@gmail.com. +39 377 3230481
Hotel Hieracon
We didnt sleep on the island, only visted it for few hours ,but alos noticed a charming historic Marina front hotel
Hotel Hieracon - Carloforte
Corso, Cavour, 62. +39 0781 854028
During its long history, this Art Nouveau building of rare elegance and refinement. hosted noble families, embassies, and consulates, before being converted into a 4 star hotel in 1980.
This delightfool day ended when returning, late afternnon back to Sant"Anticio
Bye Bye San Pietro
To be continued....
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