Total Contrast

Welcome once again,

Well this our last blog from the fantastic island of sunny Sardinia.  We fell in love with the place and the people and are so glad that we decided to make the effort of getting the 10 hour overnight ferries across from mainland Italy.  We will definitely be back as there are so many beautiful beaches/places still to discover.  We have been a few places now on our travels including Croatia which we loved but for us Sardinia is so unspoilt and natural and has so many beautiful beaches with crystal clear water so it really does tick all the boxes for us.

Before we left La Ciaccia we had time for one last morning paddle board on the crystal clear waters with Sarah & Steve before the wind came up in the afternoon which meant a last minute kite session too.

I grabbed the camera and took some photos from the cliff top above of Julie & Sarah out kiting together

After yet another fantastic day playing on the water we were treated to our last sunset before saying our goodbye's and heading off, Sarah, Steve & Samson back home to the UK and us moving to another spot for one night nearer to the ferry port at Golfo Aranci.

We followed the fantastic NW coast road and were treated to more stunning views of what Sardinia has to offer and could even see Corsica off in the distance, somewhere else we want to visit one day.  The van was treated to a nice wash at the camper service before we left and is still looking sparkly new considering all the places she has been.

We arrived at our final campsite near to Cannigione on the NE coast.  The campsite was practically deserted as it was due to close for the season a couple of days later so there were only a couple of vans like us spending a night or two before heading off to catch their ferry.  It was great, really, really quiet and we parked in one of the premium beach side pitches which would be near on impossible in the summer. Where else can you get a view like this for just €16 a night? (mind you it's €50+ in the summer!!)

As we were only there for one night we just spent the afternoon and most of the next day just chillaxing and making the most of the sun as we knew that it would be the end of our beach days and having sand between our toes.  We can't complain though as the first beach we were at was back in March in Northern Spain and we have been lucky enough to be blessed by sun pretty much since early April and for the last 4 weeks here in Sardinia the weather has been absolutely amazing.

And of course we had to end the day in the sunset with a nice glass of Rose - it's been such a fantastic summer for us but the adventure isn't over yet but we must start to head North.....

We were well prepared for our ferry from the ferry port in Sardinia at Golfo Aranci back to Livorno on mainland Italy.  It's a very small port and when we arrived the boat was already docked waiting to be loaded and it wasn't busy at all.  It was a smaller boat this time and not the Mega Express and we could see the ramp which looked fine.  It's funny how everything is a great learning curve as now we  approach the ramps as "seasoned pro's" not "hit and hopers" and we have a routine too, Julie jumps out and checks the back end while I drive on as every ramp/boat is different so it's better to be safe than sorry.  Once loaded we went to our cabin, again a learning curve, as it's just so relaxing and chilled out with a nice hot shower too.   What were we thinking when we got our first overnight ferry from Croatia to Italy, a ridiculously steep ramp which we just "hit and hoped" and thinking we were 18 again and sleeping rough in a reclining seat for 10 hours would be fine!!   

We were really sad to leave Sardinia and weren't looking forward to being back on mainland Italy as to be honest we aren't that keen on the Northern coastal areas as they just don't really float our boat and have the same feel as other places we have been.  We were again a bit limited to campsites as a lot are now closed for the season so were hoping the one about 50 miles up the coast from Livorno would be OK but we weren't holding out much hope but it was only for a stopover before heading inland.  As suspected it was really disappointing and a "TOTAL CONTRAST" compared to Sardinia with 95% of the site being taken up with tarpaulin clad seasonal caravans and only a very small area for one or two tourers to park up and it felt really autumnal too but it is November after all.

As it was only a quick stopover we made the most of the day and went and found  the local Lidl's for a spot of food shopping and then decided to have a swap about in the van and put some of the summer stuff up in the roof box and get the winter sports stuff closer to hand and put it in the garage.  

We had free wi-fi too thanks to our wi-fi aerial and router setup which we bought back in the summer and had shipped to mum's.  It's been brilliant as it means we can pick up networks that are normally out of range and only available if you sit in reception or in the bar/restaurant all afternoon like a minion!!!  So we did a bit of research and found a nice spot to move onto inland on the shores of Lake Orta before heading off to the Alps. We arrived Tuesday afternoon in the pouring rain and is hasn't stopped yet so again a "TOTAL CONTRAST"....

Talking of learning curves before we go here's something else we have learnt recently.....Sarah & Steve spent 18 months travelling and told us that they did their washing while on the move??  So when we asked how, they said simple all you need is a water tight plastic container some warm water and washing detergent.  Then you put your small items in and place the container in the garage of the motorhome and let the sloshing motion commence while on the move thus cleaning your clothes.  It's then just a case of rinsing them and hanging out to dry when you reach your destination.  So we now have a "Vanussi Magic 150" fully plumbed in in the garage and our first load was done while sloshing on our 197 mile journey here to Lake Orta.....GENIUS!!

Fingers crossed the sun is back tomorrow as I need to hang the washing out!!

Well that's it for now.

J&J

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