Sardinia - 2018.02.05

This is the third stop on our cruise around the Mediterranean. We were just in Rome and the second stop was in Sicily. We were to go to Naples but due to bad weather and rough seas we sailed for a day without landing and ended up in Sicily before going to Sardinia!

Sardinia is a very ancient land mass, perhaps the oldest of all Italy, going back to the Cambrian period, 570 million years ago. With the periodic fluctuation of the sea level, caused by the coming and going of the periods of glaciation, Map of Sardinia the island of Sardinia had at times a land link to the rest of Italy.

During these periods, beginning two million years ago, many animals crossed the land bridge from Tuscany, through Elba and Corsica, then across the Bonifacio Straits into Sardinia. Of course in the interglaciation periods, Sardinia became an island once more. These animals, being cut off from any possibility of refreshing their genetic patrimony, slowly evolved into species quite different to their original ancestors.

Curiously, the tendency was to decrease in size, perhaps for lack of space and food and we therefore find that the elephants in Sardinia (the climate was tropical at the time) had shrunk in size to that of a dog!

In the recent Pleistocene and in the more recent Olocene, between 10,000 and 20,000 years ago, the first man ventured across the same land bridge and was similarly trapped on the island. Today, genetically, the Sardinians are very different from all mainland populations and are in fact a breed all of their own. Read More........

			Departure Lounge Travel Agency	Viviane Tondeur MBA, CTC, DS
			vtondeur@departurelounge.com	818-268-6552

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Panoramic Cagliari Tour: Enjoy a walking tour of this charming Sardinian city set on the lovely Golfo degli Angeli, or Gulf of Angels. Several empires left their mark at this Mediterranean crossroads, and you will see evidence of their thriving cultures. Join your guide for a scenic drive past the city’s coastal lagoons that host a variety of birdlife.

In Cagliari’s Castello District, or Old Town, you will see the magnificent Roman amphitheater carved into the bedrock; it is still a performance space today. Pass the imposing 14th-century Elephant Tower, named for the sculpted elephant by its gate, and the Tower of St. Pancras, both remnants of the Pisano period. These two towers once comprised the city's fortifications, along with ramparts from the Aragonese and Spanish periods. At the 13th-century Cathedral of Santa Maria del Castello, explore beautiful small chapels in the subterranean sanctuary. You will have free time in town to explore on your own.

I especially enjoyed seeing the buildings and homes built on the tops and sides of steep hills, hanging onto the edges of cliffs. Also the influences of various cultures and their style of architecture.