Sardinia is the land of my ancestors, and the place I call home for now. Although I live in the north, close to the famous coastline of the Costa Smeralda, I long to see the many facets of this beautiful island. Our day trip to northwest Sardinia opened our eyes to the stunning diversity of this land. There’s nothing more fulfilling than seeing your own land through the eyes of a tourist, acknowledging the familiarity of nature, the buildings, and the ocean, yet experiencing new places that although seem typically Sardinian, are so different than ‘home.’
We recently visited the stretch of northwest coastline, running from the Li Junchi beach in Badesi to Castelsardo. A few hours of driving in complete silence is the perfect antidote to a busy and stressful week. Greenery, serenity, cork trees, cows…lots of cows!
We stopped for photo ops in some of the small towns along the drive. Something so simple as a white granite place of worship nestled off the beaten path brought me such serenity and inner silence – and inspired a yoga pose or two!
Kilometres and kilometres of windy roads lined with bright yellow flowers (weeds never looked so beautiful!) was the perfect contrast to the bright blue sky. So many bright colours – and a reminder that spring is on its way.
We arrived in Castelsardo, a traditional medieval town that dominates the Golfo dell’Asinara, shortly before (a late) lunch. We took a brisk walk through the picturesque medieval old part of town, with its narrow streets and charming squares as far as the Castello dei Doria, the only fully intact castle in Sardinia and from which you can enjoy a breathtaking view towards Asinara.
After a mouth-watering seafood-inspired lunch, we headed to Badesi, stopping to admire the Roccia dell’Elefante (Elephant Rock), a large boulder of trachyte stone standing beside State Road 134, just outside Castelsardo. The origin of the rock is quite interesting: part of the rocky complex of Monte Casteddazzu broke off and rolled down the valley along the road. After years of erosion, the rock assumed the appearance of an elephant, with its trunk turned towards the road.
Our next, and last stop was Badesi, a small town along the coastline that welcomes thousands and thousands of tourists during the summer. We arrived just as the sun was setting along the horizon shining down on the calm sea along Li Junchi Beach.
We saw all of this in only one day, yet it felt like we were there for much longer. Time seemed to stand still, which often happens when immersed in the stunning nature of this island. Coincidentally, our cultural day trip was finished off with the perfect view of some nuraghe – just one of the thousands of neolithic stone formations that line the inlands and coastline all over Sardinia.
Love your photos! No doubt awesome place.. You’ve inspired me. Thanks!
Thank you! This place is magical!
I never tire of beach destinations! Sardinia looks beautiful. I visited an old leper colony in Crete and it’s a haunting experience.
Lovely write up Lisa. I didn’t expect Sardinia to be so lush – or for there to be soo many cows. For some reason I expected it to be more baron in the middle. It’s on our list of places to visit in Italy so this was a really great insight. Thanks!
You must visit! It’s a beautiful land full of many different terrains!
Thank you so much! There ARE places that are very baron. Sardinia has so many different landscapes!
Sardinia is one of my favorite places during the summer. I was there a while ago with my family and we really liked it. We had a perfect vacation – beautiful nature and great beaches. And, fishing for me 🙂
What a nice and calm place, perfect for out door activities and water sports (in summer). Just added to my next trips list.
Thanks for sharing!!
I listened to a podcast this week by ABC’s Conversations podcast. It’s titled ‘Island of the Ancients’ about the long lives of the Sardinian people. There are more centenarians there than anywhere else on earth! You should have a listen 🙂 I love the pictures of pasture and farm animals – looks so nice there! ❤️ Sara
WOW, Sardinia looks incredible! It has been on our family travel bucket list for a while but tickets for all 5 of us are just a bit too expensive! Also loving that it isn’t packed with tourists like other destinations are, I always get stressed out when I have my kids with me and there are crowds EVERYWHERE!
Exactly!! I took so many small things for granted at home, and now that I’m living here I wish I had visited more places, eaten at more restaurants, etc.
What a beautiful place Sardinia is! I would love to do one of those trips where I can go back to my home town and explore the places I used to love. Thanks for the inspiration. 🙂
I would love to do some ancestor tracing and then going to the places they were. What a great experience. Sardinia looks amazing. So beautiful.
It IS stunning!!
What a pretty area to visit. Tracing your ancestors can sure take you on a beautiful journey, your pictures and post demonstrates that.
You’re totally right, tracing your ancestors and travel to your homeland does feel pretty fulfilling. I would love to travel Africa and all of its countries. Costa Smeralda coast line looks stunning! I would love to go to Italy and spend a week or more exploring the beautiful country.
Most people are interested in visiting the main cities (Rome, Florence, etc.) but I always recommend that people try to make it a point to visit Sardinia. It’s so different than the mainland!
West Sardinia’s small towns definitely look like they make for great photo opportunities. The areas seem so peaceful and look like they would make a wonderful vacation for the whole family. Impressive you got to do so much in one day!
I’m so used to being here in the summer when it’s FULL of tourists. The town at this time of the year was practically tourist-free…it was so peaceful!
This really inspires me to take a different look at where I live. There are many historical and beautiful things in Kentucky that i take for granted. What a beautiful island. The coastline is magnificent. Your pictures are amazing!