A slice of Sardinia

Help, I need a rental car!

2008-08-07T07:44:00.000-07:00

What in the name of Jesus, Mary and Joseph is going on!

It's August and naturally I'm searching for a rental car from Olbia airport for our two weeks in the sun. I trawl the net my standard 7 days before we leave, and what do I find?

NO BLOODY RENTAL CARS that's what!!!!!!!!

No rental cars from Avis! No rental cars from Hertz!! But most unbelievable of all

NO BLOODY RENTAL CARS FROM AUTO EUROPE!!!

The only car I can find is going to cost me a staggering £324 for two weeks.

I've never paid that in 5 years of travelling there and I don't intend to now.

CAN SOMEONE PLEASE HELP!!!!!

Bike Championships hit Olbia

2008-07-10T04:32:00.000-07:00

The Sardinian port of Olbia is set to host the next round of the S1 and S2 World Supermoto Championships this weekend.

Bernd Hiemer is on top of the S1 standings while Adrien Chareyre is first in the S2 class. In the UEM European series Oliver Pope is first in the S3 class while Heino Meusburger heads the Open class.

Read the full article at superbike-news.co.uk

Sardinia has world's highest level of Type 1 diabetes

2008-07-09T04:13:00.000-07:00

So, maybe Sardinia isn't the as healthy as we first thought.

TV and newspapers reported earlier this year that due to their diet Sardo's have one of the longest life expectancies in the world, but if Canadian web site CBC is correct maybe we're not getting the whole story.

It turns out that the area on the planet with the highest level of Type 1 diabetes is the sunny, sunny Italian island of Sardinia. Novosibirsk in Siberia (think a locale situated north of Flin Flon), had an incidence rate less than one-third that of Kuwait, two-and-a-half times lower than Puerto Rico, and below that of Sao Paolo and parts of Tunisia.

"We are extremely interested in the high rates of Type 1 diabetes in Sardinia. It is anyone's guess about the reasons, " said Cedric Garland, Diego professor of family and preventative medicine at University of California at San and author of the report.

"Our guess is that it could be that some residents of the island have an unusual dietary intake pattern, or a higher-than-usual prevalence of an inborn defect in metabolism of vitamin D that interferes with absorption, metabolism or action of vitamin D."

Kitchen nightmare

2008-07-07T03:53:00.000-07:00

All the talk in the media about jail sentences for those caught carrying knives reminds me of a story one of our Sardinian friends told me.

A chef by trade, and a wide-eyed bundle of twitchy nervous energy at the best of times, he was working in a bar on the coast during the tourist season. Driving home to his loved ones in the early hours of the morning he was stopped by the police who insisted on looking in the boot of his car.

Within minutes he'd been arrested and was on his way to the local police station. For a short while he was flummoxed as to exactly what crime he'd committed. Until he remembered that among the large picnic blanket and gaffa tape stored in the trunk were the tools of his trade.

A very large, very sharp collection of kitchen knives!

If it's August it must be...

2008-07-03T05:23:00.000-07:00

Costa Smeralda in Northern Sardinia is among the top spot for second home owners according to Canadian site Canoe.

The spot attracts Europeans as well as those from the Arab states, most of whom stick around post-August for the Sardinia Cup, an annual regatta.

With August almost upon us the one thing you can guarantee is there'll be an influx of major sporting and film stars over the next few weeks.

Human potato Wayne Rooney and his other half spent their – rather wet - honeymoon there, Man United striker Ronaldo has already been keeping European paps busy cavorting around the Costa Smeralda with his missus before handing the baton over to the Redknapps.

All of which reminds me of August last year when the other half's daughter spotted in one of the Italian tabloids that L Ron Hubbard's unofficial PR man, Tom Cruise was present in fat cat's playground the Costa Smeralda. Cue an hour sweating profusely in bumper to bumper traffic as we and a few thousand other peasants trotted off to gawp at the rich people.

A walk around the harbour revealed that despite having multi million pound gyms in their multi billion pound yachts Russian oligarchs like nothing better than to exercise in a makeshift, elevated exercise area set up in a harbour car park. Much better for staring down your noses at the paupers I guess.

Vroom by the Sea

2008-06-28T07:53:00.000-07:00

Travel writer Peter Moore has just released his new book, Vroom by the Sea, though sadly it's only published in New Zealand and Australia at the moment.

The follow-up to 2005's Vroom with a View, it follows Moore's travels on his vintage (and very orange) Vespa 200 - dubbed Marcello - from Livorno on mainland Italy to the interior of Sardinia, one eye on the clock as it ticks down to the birth of his first child.

Will Marcello go the distance? Can Moore finish his tour and make it back to London in time for the birth? Suppose we'll have to wait to find out.

In the meantime why not check out his web site.

Spain triumph against Italy

2008-06-24T08:44:00.000-07:00

It's not just in the world of football that the Spanish are giving the Italians a beating.

The Sardinia Rolex Cup organized by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda saw Spain trounce the home team for a second time, winning by 11 points over five days of racing.

The event came to a close on Saturday (21 June) with Germany, Southern Europe and Russia in fourth, fifth and sixth respectively.
Read the original article

Call this a holiday

2008-06-14T08:25:00.000-07:00

Two weeks back from Sardinia and this is my first post since our return. Shocking.

Anyhow our 5 days of respite from the drudgery of real life in Cardiff proved to be nothing but a whirlwind of meetings, work, bill paying and shopping.

A trip to Tempio to sort out the water rates, buy paint and generally clear the decks was just the beginning of what felt like the most exhausting holiday of my life. It also left me wondering why it seems to be me that does the lion's share of the work on the house , whether it's designing our website or repainting the the bog.

Anyhow the house got a freshen up, new linen was bought, cleaners were booked, our funds replenished and we came away a few hundred quid lighter. Oh, and the other half sulked a lot, claimed it was down to a bad stomach and then finally admitted on our return it was nothing of the sort. Something to do with my friends who came with us. Best leave it there I thought.

Still, after showing said friends the around the village (and the island) I was happy to find that they loved the place. Peaceful, calming, a place you could lose yourself just sitting on the balcony and watching the world go by was the general consensus.

Even the short drive to the beach - a bone of contention for some - didn't put them off.

'How could it when the scenery's so gorgeous'

I was beaming.

At present we have people staying there for three weeks. As you can see I've now added a webcam feed to the site (cheers Wilco!) and so I find myself checking the site each day and praying for good weather.

Barring one or two dodgy days so far so good.

Right must go. Bruce Springsteen awaits.

Italian government to build bridge to Sicily

2008-05-23T11:12:00.000-07:00

"It has been dreamt of since Roman times, and plans have repeatedly sketched out on the drawing board only to be torn up because of cost, bureaucratic obstacles and fears of earthquakes and Mafia involvement.

But today the new centre Right goverment of Silvio Berlusconi declared that an historic two-mile bridge from the mainland to Sicily over the Straits of Messina - the longest single span suspension bridge in the world - was an “urgent priority” and that work on it would start 'soon'”.
Read the full report on The Times site

The Times reveal Sardinia's best beaches (in their opinion)

2008-05-22T03:53:00.000-07:00

"Sardinia has some of the world’s most idyllic beaches. Mile upon mile of pearly-white sands dip into waters of dazzling shades of aquamarine and emerald green. Elsewhere, rugged cliffs plunge into the sea and tiny coves and picturesque harbours beg to be explored. The waters really are swimming-pool-blue — and the sandy coves are often deserted.

Locals say that God created Sardinia by stepping on it with his sandal — and ‘Sandalyon’ (sandal) was the ancient name given to it by the Greeks and Phoenicians. The coastline of almost 1250 miles (2000 km) equates with a quarter of the total Italian coast, indented by tiny coves and picturesque harbours."
The Times pick the best beaches in Sardinia

Italy announce squad for Euro 2008

2008-05-20T07:39:00.000-07:00

Italy coach Roberto Donadoni has announced his team for Euro 2008.

The provisional 24-man squad is:

Amelia (Livorno), Buffon (Juventus), De Sanctis (Sevilla); Barzagli (Palermo), Cannavaro (Real Madrid), Chiellini (Juventus), Grosso (Lyon), Materazzi (Internazionale), Panucci (Roma), Zambrotta (Barcelona); Ambrosini (AC Milan), Aquilani (Roma), Camoranesi (Juventus), De Rossi (Roma), Gattuso (AC Milan), Montolivo (Fiorentina), Perrotta (Roma), Pirlo (AC Milan); Borriello (Genoa), Cassano (Real Madrid); Del Piero (Juventus), Di Natale (Udinese), Quagliarella (Udinese), Toni (Bayern Munich).

Loeb takes Rally of Sardinia title

2008-05-20T07:20:00.001-07:00

Sébastien Loeb, the four-time World Rally Champion won the Rally of Sardinia last Sunday the 40th win of his career.

The French driver beat Mikko Hirvonen of Finland who still heads the drivers' standings on 43 points, three in front of him.

Expensive tastes

2008-05-19T08:16:00.000-07:00

Sardinian saffron could soon become the most expensive spice in the world.

The Italian government have asked the European Commisssion to give the product, first introduced to Sardinia by Phoenician traders, PDO (Protected Desination of Origin) status.

The spice which is gathered from the stigma of the crocus flower is incredibly labour intensive and can command prices of up to 7,500 euros a kilo.

Italy claims the special properties of its Sardinian saffron - its colouring power and aroma - stem directly from the soil and climate of the Meditterranean island.

If the application is successful the spice will be marketed with a specific label bearing the PDO logo.

Rally d'Italia

2008-05-16T04:27:00.000-07:00

The World Rally Championship moves to Sardinia for the the Rally d’Italia with Australian Chris Atkinson looking for a top five place after four podium finishes out of five this year.

Atkinson has never placed higher than tenth in the event which takes place between 16-18 May across the north of the island.

“I’m not thinking about another podium finish, but just concentrating on our pace and fighting as high up as we can,” he said.

“It’s important to drive smoothly and without mistakes in Sardinia, as the roads are very technical and narrow, but it’s a rally I enjoy.

“I just hope I can have a good event and run competitively. No talk of podiums, but well target a top five and see how things go from there.”

Follow the action on the official site

"No cheeses, no cheeses!"

2008-05-08T06:32:00.000-07:00

Only a few weeks now until we head back to Sardinia and already waiters across the island are beginning to sweat.

Soon their restaurants will reverberate to the sound of my better half frantically demanding “no cheeses, no cheeses!” in their mother tongue as she orders every course.

The other half you see is a fussy eater. Of course like all fussy eaters she denies this – the “no cheeses” thing apparently a result of migraines as a child.

Strangely though on our first holiday together in Greece she developed a liking for stefado. For the uninitiated stefado is a sort of beef stew, which as you may or may not know contains goat’s cheese, an ingredient the other half insists is “optional”.

Anyhow this food aversion has recently grown to include hamburgers, eel, veal, mussels, mackerel...

Add in our two guests – combined dislikes: fish of any kind, prawns, lamb and beef – and I only hope no one suggests eating in while we’re away.

Tax shock for mega rich

2008-05-07T07:34:00.000-07:00

As us the world braces itself for the much-anticipated global recession spare a thought for the super rich.

Sardinia’s annual luxury tax – that’s the tax applied to private aircraft and those enormous yachts the likes of Roman Abramovich swan about on during the summer - has been changed to a weekly tax.

The tax will apply from 1 June - 30 September for pleasure craft "using any Sardinian port facility, landing stages and mooring points located in regional territory," according to a statement released by the Sardinian Joint Regional Council, though yachts moored out will are exempt from the tax.

Yachting web site The Triton reported that, “one week of the new rate is equal to a quarter of the old seasonal tax, so for a megayacht between 30 and 60 meters, the new weekly rate is 2,500 euros compared to 10,000 euros for the season last year.”

Bad news - and an extra ten grand – if you're spending the summer on the island.

Not that it seems to bother most people.

"When I was there, I never paid it," said one captain - who presumably wished to remain anonymous.

"I didn’t volunteer it and nobody every came around to collect it.”

Sardinia - the best place to spot a star this summer, it's official

2008-04-23T08:02:00.000-07:00

I may have to think about raising our prices.

Forbes magazine, the bi-weekly publication for business fat cats and moneyed snobs has anointed Sardinia ‘the best place to spot a star this summer.’

Where you ask? Gallura they say, which according to the woman with the expense account offers “a less-crowded, higher-end alternative to France's oversexed Ibiza”.

Looking to burn off those carbs after overdoing the nosebag (people!)? Why not “go dancing at Nikki Beach”, which as it “plays house beats to an exclusive crowd”, sounds like it may require production of a bank statement to ensure entry.

And when you’ve finished waving your glowstick or hoovering up the gak, relax at the 60-room Hotel Su Gologone - other hotels are available - and enjoy the spring water pool and an impressive collection of Italian art?

Heidi Klum stays there you know! No I've never heard of her either, but I wonder if she fancies a week in Aggius? Don't tell the missus obviously.

The Pride of Wales... and Sardinia

2008-04-15T07:51:00.000-07:00

Jesus it’s quiet. With the country in the grip of an election – of which the outcome seems to be a forgone conclusion – there seems very little to write about if you’re not interested in Italian politics.

Here in Wales though adopted Welshman Joe Calzaghe - born in London with a Sardinian dad (tenuous links I shit ‘em!) – will take on American Bernard Hopkins in Las Vegas this weekend.

Hopkins is, unsurprisingly given his chosen profession, a bit of a hard bastard. Known as ‘The Executioner’, according to the good burghers at Wikkipedia by the age of thirteen he was mugging people for a living and at seventeen had entered the penal system. There he witnessed the rape and murder of a fellow inmate over a packet of cigarettes. It was also where he discovered his passion for boxing.

Calzaghe claims Hopkins is a ‘dirty fighter’ who will probably resort to using the ‘elbow and headbutt’, and indeed one major boxing site boxingscene.com is already running a readers poll on its forums entitled ‘How Many Headbutts In Hopkins vs. Calzaghe?’

More than 20 apparently!

Many - Hopkins included – believe this will be among the biggest tests of Calzaghe’s career. It’s his first fight in the United States and the first time he will have fought as a light heavyweight. It’s also one of the few times that Calzaghe has been drawn into pre-fight verbal spats.

When Hopkins boasted that he "would never let a white boy beat me", Calzaghe retorted, “If he tries to slap me I'll drop the f****** head on the guy, Sardinian style!”

That's good enough for me!

Ex-pats' car search takes them to Chorley

2008-03-28T05:32:00.000-07:00

News reaches us via the Blackpool Gazette of two British expats who travelled 1,400 miles from their home on Sardinia to pick up their new four-by-four from a dealership in Lancashire.

The purchase was sparked by an email following the couple’s near-fatal road accident on the Mediterranean island last year.

According to Richard Braithwaite, manager at the Chorley branch of Nissan: "A few months ago, Roger and Avril nearly lost their lives in a shocking accident back home in Sardinia.

"It took them a while to recover and they vowed that safety would be the priority when it came to choosing their next vehicle.

"Nissan managed to turn the order around in double quick time and Roger and Avril flew in to collect, spending a few days with family in Kendal en route."

No chance of escaping the Arctic blast

2008-03-26T04:15:00.000-07:00

Haven’t updated the blog over the Bank Holiday weekend due to the fact that I’ve spent most of it huddling in one room with my better half. Our boiler blew up on the coldest weekend of the year, knocking out the electricity in most rooms of the house and leaving us debating the benefits of a wind up laptop and whether we she have invested in a convector heater when there were actually some on sale. Still, at least I can console myself with the fact that it's freezing in Sardinia too.

A couple of stories I noticed on my return to the 20th century.

According to Reuters Naples police rescued two teenage Bulgarian sisters from a circus in southern Italy which forced one of them to swim with flesh-eating piranhas for the amusement of guests, police said.
While the 19-year-old sister swam in a transparent tank, the younger, 16-year-old was forced into a container where the circus staff tossed snakes at her.

The Pope took the controversial step of baptising former Muslim, Magdi Allam, and was branded “provocative” and accused of "scoring points" by Aref Ali Nayed, head of Jordan's Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre and apparently one of the ‘moderates’ we read so much about in the UK press.

According to Allam a writer for Corriere della Sera, Islam is “physiologically violent and historically conflictual” and “legitimises lies and deception”.

Needless to say he’s now received a number of death threats and is under police protection.
Read the full story here

And finally throwaway culture came back to bite Italy in the arse when - according to the Independent newspaper - it emerged that that most Italian of food stuffs buffalo mozzarella had become contaminated as a result of illegal dumping of toxic waste in Campania by a branch of the Italian Mafia.

Won't be long before we head home

2008-03-19T08:13:00.000-07:00

Not long now. I can almost smell the myrtle and lemon trees.

The clock is ticking down to the moment when I can finally book our flights to Sardinia for May half-term. All I’m waiting on is for one of my mates - who shall remain nameless – to decide if him and his better half can afford to tag along.

This isn’t as straightforward as it first sounds. He’s not the most decisive bloke you'll meet. A decade or so ago when we first began working together he decided he was going to buy a house. Six years on when he finally decided where he wanted to live he found he could no longer afford one.

Meanwhile as he does the calculations I have to watch in horror as the air fares tick ever upwards like the meter in a black cab.

At this rate I fear we shall be walking.

Still whatever the cost it’ll be worth it. There’s plenty of work do be done at the house. The place will need a fresh coat of paint inside and out but frankly I no longer care. I can’t wait to get away from the office and feel the sun on my face. Even if it is from the top of a very tall ladder.

What money can buy

2008-03-11T08:19:00.000-07:00

According to that august organ The Times, Chelsea’s first-team coaches will be running footie courses at Forte Village, Sardinia this coming summer. The courses are open to ages 4-13 year-olds and priced at a reasonable enough £190 a week. The catch? A week's accomodation at the resort starts – that’s STARTS!!! – at a jaw dropping £1,340 per adult.

At this point I’d normally drop in a crass plug for our house, but sadly it’s three or four hours away by car.

Still why not...

To rent our house click here

"Move the hands away from the nutsack!!"

2008-03-07T07:51:00.000-08:00

The Italian courts are a mass of contradictions, which I guess is in keeping with the country's Catholic roots.

Just last week the Supreme Court – the highest court in the country – heard the case of a Milanese man accused of "ostentatiously" groping himself in public, and ruled that touching of oneself under one’s clothing is “contrary to public decency”, going on to suggest, “if they need to, men can wait and do it at home”.

And yet this week the very same court ruling in the case of a 48-year woman engaged in an affair with a secret lover decided it was legal to lie to the police about extramarital affairs if revealing them ruins your reputation.

Note to self: Must buy VERY baggy pants for next trip

Why can't we have child free flights?

2008-02-28T03:30:00.000-08:00

I see Ryanair are in trouble again. After removing a Jamaican band from one of their planes as suspected terrorists - and then refusing to let them back on when it emerged they were entirely innocent – they have reportedly thrown an Italian doctor off a flight from Alghero to London for talking.

According to the good doctor, "I was talking normally, and a steward asked me to be quiet, in a brusque manner," he said.

"After five minutes, when the announcements came to an end, another stewardess came up and said that I had been warned and I should have shut up. She asked if I wanted to get off the plane.”

Now whilst the interminably verbose are undoubtedly in the top ten of life’s irritants there are usually far worse offenders in the cattle class conditions of most budget flights. Namely children.

I recall a recent flight from Italy where a child next to me managed to turn himself upside down attempting to get at the lifejacket beneath his seat. While across the isle one selfless parent, who couldn’t be arsed to keep their child quietly entertained, simply plopped a disc into his DVD player and blasted the surrounding rows into submission with the latest offering from Disney. And yet despite this Animal House-style mayhem the airline staff did nothing.

The late comedian Bill Hicks used to tell a joke about kids on flights.

“I was on this one flight right, I'm flying, I'm sleeping on the plane, I'm "knackered". Very tired right and I feel this tapping on my head. And I look up and there's this little kid - loose! on the fucking plane, he's just loose. It's his playground in the sky. And he has decided that his job is to repetitively tap me on the top of the head.”

“I look across the aisle at his mom. She's just smiling, you know.
Guy next to the mom goes, ‘They're so cute when they're that small.’

“Isn't that amazing, letting your kid run loose on a plane. And then the kid runs over to the emergency exit and he starts flipping that handle to the door. And the guy next to the mom starts to get up, and I go, ‘Wait a minute... we're about to learn an important lesson right here.’

“Kwoooshh.

“Why you're right, the smaller he gets, the cuter he is.”

All of which leads neatly on to my big idea. We have men free hotels and men free beaches, so why doesn’t some bright spark with a stately home sized amount of cash start a child free airline.

No doubt there'll be some who think such a thing is ‘symptomatic of how selfish modern society has become’, but all I'm asking for is choice.

I put up with the badly behaved little buggers scratching my car, playing football against my house and letting rip with a volley of expletives when I have the temerity to ask them if they’d mind playing outside their own front door. Hell, I'd pay double to avoid that tap-tap-tapping on the back of my head.

It’s golf Jim, but not as we know it

2008-02-21T06:49:00.000-08:00

The Royal Silver Golf Trophy arrives in Sardinia on the 8th and 9th of June with a new formula.

The third round and final of the Vice Versa Challenge, in aid of the Foundation Legato Dino Ferrar for muscular dystrophy, will be held on the magnificent course of the Pevero Golf Club in the Gallura region, but with a twist.

Organized by the Salvaterra brothers Giancarlo and Gianni, finalists will play on the regular course but in reverse, starting from the flag at hole no.18 and ending up at the starting tee.

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