Waking Up in Sardinia - Part 3
Nothing excites a greater sense of childlike wonder than to be in a country where you are ignorant of almost everything. *A three-minute visit
The music playing in the breakfast room this morning is eccentric — one might even say schizophrenic. The following tracks are courtesy of the local radio station: Frank Sinatra, followed by Vivaldi, Michael Jackson, Tina Turner, Albinoni, Verdi and some ubiquitous, frenzied accordion scattered in between. It makes it a little hard to get into a groove, but it is actually a perfect backdrop to the strong coffee, the bread, the peccorino cheese, and the juicy blood oranges brought to my table to start the day.
I don’t begin my work until tomorrow, so the day is free for wandering and exploring. A poster is tacked to the lobby bulletin board for a special exhibit this month at the Bastione Cagliari: Strumenti di Tortura fra i Siecoli – “Instruments of Torture Down Through the Ages”. Cool. I will get over there this afternoon and see if I can learn something of a practical nature.
Cagliari is a strikingly exotic ocean-side city. The colorful, bustling capital of Sardinia, it is a cultural, educational, political and artistic center, well known for its diverse Art Nouveau architecture and monuments. It is also Sardinia's economic and industrial hub, having one of the biggest shipping ports in the Mediterranean and an international airport. For me, though, it is a heady, sensual setting, redolent of spicy fish, of fresh-baked bread and olives, of romance. The perfect place for a day dream.
All the Sardi I meet are, without exception, warm, kind and helpful. They are quick to assist, eager to talk and laugh. Whether bus driver, newspaper seller, desk clerk, waiter or teacher, they all seem to have a story for me. Okay, maybe they just want to practice their English, but I have never felt more welcomed. So much so that, somehow, I am able to deal amicably with the late dinner hour here. Ten o’clock is not so unreasonable when one is in fine company.
I feel I should give the would-be traveler in Sardinia, one fair warning, however. Speaking in general terms, and based on a very small sample, Sardis drive as if slipping in and out of consciousness. They are not the rabid, noisy, aggressive, crazed drivers one would find in, say, Naples or Boston, but more on the sleepy side or distracted, as if they simply forget they are at the wheel. I rode with six different drivers here, men and women, and quickly learned not to speak to any of them en route, and to keep my eyes closed. I count it as one of life’s miracles that I was not killed.
The Giants of Mont’e Prama
In 1974, two farmers plowing their field in western Sardinia unearthed a gigantic Iron Age carved limestone head. Subsequent excavations revealed a monumental necropolis complex, dating from 900 to 750 BCE. The giant head was the first of thousands of ancient sculptural fragments to be recovered by archaeologists at that site in the following decades.
The necropolis, which features individual tombs covered with stone slabs, included imposing statues of super-manly men, from six to more than eight feet tall. They are three distinct types of figures - boxers, archers, and warriors. This group of huge sculptures, is known collectively as the Kolossoi or Giants of Mont’e Prama.
Conservators have now reassembled twenty-eight figures from fragments excavated in the 1970s. New excavations starting in 2014 uncovered thousands of additional pieces, and at least eighty sculptures, including models of the tall stone towers called nuraghi.
In Cagliari, both the Cabras Museum and the National Archeological Museum offer spectacular exhibits of the Giants of Sardinia. And I have to say, the sculpted creatures look like visitors from other planets. Those eyes, ears, and weird tube-like projections hanging from their heads do not look like earthlings to me…
I worked with teachers in Italy for six months, and this short assignment across to Sardinia was most enlightening. Bill Bryson once said, “I can't think of anything that excites a greater sense of childlike wonder than to be in a country where you are ignorant of almost everything.” Based on my brief first-hand experience, I agree whole-heartedly. I came to Sardinia to coach teachers, but I learned as much, if not far more, than I taught.
** On Saturday, I will re-post the last of these little Sardinian travel stories.
Fantastic series on Sardinia! Sharing!
'Sardis drive as if slipping in and out of consciousness.' Sharron, I'm glad you survived in order to write such brilliant words!
I've learned so much about this beautiful island in this series of posts - thank you so much for taking me 'with' you on your travels. Wonderful!