M&M Smith: JUNE 2023 : DAY 16 : SARDINIA : Alghero

Saturday 17 June 2023

JUNE 2023 : DAY 16 : SARDINIA : Alghero

Busy breakfast in a large dining area overlooking the coast.

We met Paola at 9am and walked along the boardwalk into the old town as she continued her commentary. Alghero, unlike the rest of Sardinia, is a Catalan-speaking town. In the 1300s when the Spanish seat of Aragon conquered the town they expelled all the local residents from within the city walls, invited Jewish refugees from Cagliari and brought residents and even prisoners from Aragon (eg Barcelona) to populate the town. As they were Catalan speakers they continued to use it and to this day it has become the main language.

Stories of catapults, cannons, churches dedicated to saints for protection against constant attack - St Elmo and St Michael. Alghero also suffered bombing attacks in WW2, evidenced in one of the chapels in the cathedral which is still in disrepair.

Facades from the old Jewish quarter, where many wealthy residents lived.

This is now a hotel.

The highlight today was a morning boat cruise and excursion to limestone caves off the coast of Alghero. The prevailing winds don’t always allow for safe landings, as in previous days this week, but today we were lucky. There were several chambers, which meant that about a hundred people per session could pass through.

Near the caves, one of the local wineries, Cantina Santa Maria La Palma, have been successful in storing their sparkling wines in crates in the sea.

https://www.santamarialapalma.it/en/products/akenta-sub/

The choice to see the Neptune limestone caves by boat (although not always possible) was an easy one for us due to the state of Mark’s knees. The other choice is to take a bus to the top of the Capo Caccia cliffs and to walk the 654 steps (down and back) on the Escala del Cabriol.