Shoestrappers

We kicked off our month in Sardinia, Italy by… immediately driving from the Cagliari airport across Sardinia in the dark to the tiny connected island of Sant’Antioco. Sant’Antioco is twice the size of Manhattan but with less than 1% of its population at only about 11k people. We stayed in the main town… also named Sant’Antioco. Many people claim that it is the oldest continuously populated Italian town, having been first created as a Phoenician port named Sulki around 775 BCE.

With the help of the ever-helpful Maurizio at the front desk of our hotel (Hotel Solki), we were able to get some late night food just down the street on the waterfront. We ate at Ittiturismo Cooperativa I Due Fratelli, an excellent local seafood place. We got calamari, ceviche, and fried potato wedges, followed by tiramisu for dessert. All were excellent and we learned some things right out of the gate.. 1) English is barely spoken in this part of Italy, if at all. However, their Italian, English, and often some other languages combined with our English, Spanish and bits of French mangled with a handful of Italian words, then combined with our horrendous pronunciation of menu items proved.. amusingly (to us at least).. barely adequate. 2) most ingredients were delightfully very local! 3) this part of Italy isn’t big on sauces or salt. Bread is usually served bare, no butter or even olive oil unless requested.

There is nothing quite like waking up in a different part of the world…

Sant’Antioco only reaches 222 m (728 ft) at its highest point so there are no mountains, but there is some significant topography. The roads are narrow and lined with grass and scrub in most areas. There are lots of rough fields and hills sprinkled with cacti. Coastal roads wind around the terrain so don’t expect to get into top gear. Still we were able to easily drive all the way around the island in one day, while fitting in several short hikes and three meals.

Sant’Antioco is very popular among cyclists, especially with e-bikers these days. We encountered several cycling groups from across Europe who were clearly having lots of fun! The Sant’Antioco Bike Island project makes this even easier.

We chose to go to Italy in mid-October, which is well after tourist season, and some communities and businesses are already shutting down for the winter. This meant that unfortunately some of the restaurants we were interested in were closed, but more importantly it meant that all of the tourist sites were empty! The difference between waiting in line to pose in front of a cove or viewpoint and actually being able to savor it for 30+ minutes on our own is striking. In each location we had absolute human silence, and could enjoy the natural sounds of the wind, waves, insects, etc.

Torre Cannai is a historic watchtower on a southeast-facing point named Capo Su Moru. It looks out over the Gulf of Palmas, which lies between Sant’Antioco and Sardinia. The tower was closed but we could climb more than halfway up on the external stairs, and the view from anywhere on the edge of the point was spectacular.

The walk from the parking lot to the tower is very flexible. It can be direct and easy going up step-sized rocks or you can wind through scrub along the somewhat precarious cliff edge to maximize the view. Either way it’s 10 minutes. Take the cliff route if you’re comfortable to see more.

The parking lot for the tower also provides access to Turri Beach below. The bright, sandy bottom extends well into the water for swimming and snorkeling.

A 10 minute drive southwest of Torre Cannai brings you to the trailhead for Capo Sperone, the southernmost tip of Sant’Antioco. There is a community there but they were closed and we were there to view the coastline anyway so we parked on the side of the road and walked the .8 km (.5 mi) trail to the coast. The trail is actually drivable with a bike or 4WD vehicle but we opted for the peaceful walk amongst the wildlife.

Arco dei Baci is 10 minutes north of Capo Sperone, and is a beautiful natural rock arch and swimming spot. It requires good shoes (at least sport sandals that strap on) to walk the .8 km (.5 mi) down to the cliff’s edge then climb down to the base on sharp rocks. Not for everybody but a stunning place once you’re there. If rock clambering isn’t your thing, the view from the cliff’s edge is still worth the walk.

The water was PERFECT. The local weather site says the water was 22˚ C (72˚ F), refreshing and comfortable! We just dangled our legs into the abyss but it was really relaxing and felt good after the day’s accumulated miles. It was so clear and so greenish-blue, with a nice current flowing through the arch and filled with little fish.

We drove to the northern tip of the island and had lunch in Calasetta. It’s the second largest town on Sant’Antioco but mid-afternoon on an off-season weekday meant that very little was open. We ended up at Porto Barla | spritz food & breeze, an outdoor bar overlooking the marina. They had a limited selection so we discussed their four options with the waiter and ordered a “layered pasta with red sauce” and a “salad with chopped tuna” . The former was exactly what we expected, lasagna, and quite tasty. The latter was.. fresh and “good” (and apparently called Capunadda Calasettana), but certainly not what we expected. It was local, traditional, salt-cured, bluefin tuna with crackers and cherry tomatoes. Savitri loves canned tuna fish while I can’t even be within smelling distance of it, but this was different. She didn’t care for it and I enjoyed it. I love pretty much any fish raw and this had the mouth feel of raw fish with the rich salty flavor from being packed in salt.

Purely out of obligation, not lifelong addiction, we still managed to find an open, highly-rated gelato shop just up the street called Gelateria Il Pinguino Pasticceria. Savitri got Kookie & Caramel and I got Dark Chocolate Fondant and Mango. I love pairing a bright, fruity flavor with a rich, earthy flavor (yeah I said it, wine lovers don’t own being wordy food snobs!).

You know you’re not in the US when you see this car..

After a tiring day we returned to our hotel and took a quick nap.. so that we could go to a late dinner (aka “normal dinner in Europe”) at Ristorante Zefiro. It was a beautiful spot high on a hillside overlooking the Sant’Antioco harbor and we got the best table, center of the veranda. Between the setting and the reviews we expected to be blown away and it was.. “good”. Very fresh, local, made with love, but bland. We’re starting to think that we have a salt addiction.

Great bread, but without oil or butter limited us to sopping up meal sauces.. which we did enjoy! The appetizer tasting menu was interesting but underwhelming. I liked the smoked tuna but Savitri not-so-much. The “shrimp salad” was Russian dressing over one shrimp and shredded iceberg. Admittedly I also enjoyed that but it wasn’t nearly as “elevated” as its presentation!

Ravioli needs a kick. Hell just some salt would help immensely. So they provided freshly grated cheese- perfect! ..except it wasn’t very salty either. Ok seriously the problem might be us. I did like the fish pasta (even though I can’t remember what type of fish it was), but it didn’t wow me..

The desserts were better. The crème caramel could have had a bit more zing but had great textures and flavors. The seada (also referred to as “sebada”, THE Sardinia dessert- fresh fried pastry filled with melted sour Pecorino cheese and lemon zest, then covered in warm local honey) was very tasty. I’d go with a a stronger cheese maybe but no complaints and I eat the sharpest cheeses I can find so am a bad judge.

If you’re in Sant’Antioco looking for a good restaurant I’d give them a try despite our mixed feelings. They do so much well and we enjoyed the experience.

The walk to/from Ristorante Zefiro was nice, especially since it was at night. Very quiet except the main drag (Corso Vittorio Emanuele) which had a few tables of people on the sidewalk in classic European style. Plus the cobblestones always captivate me.

Our little adventure on Sant’Antioco island was an easy-to-consume launching point for our Sardinia trip. At the same time we learned a bit about its unique position in the world, tucked away in the bottom of Europe. The nearest big city to Sant’Antioco is actually Tunis, Tunisia, which is about 250 km (155 mi) south. Far closer than Rome at 460 km (286 mi) or even the neighboring Italian island of Sicily at 372 km (231 mi).