Sardinia – day 6

Sandy spot at Plage Mesu -> Between sheeps and the Mediterranean, near Santa Catarina di Pittinuri
Distance: 205 km

Scarcity is the mother of invention!
Scarcity is the mother of invention!

B/W in Iglesias town...
B/W in Iglesias town…

In the town of Iglesias I walk past a nun, aged around 70. Buon giorno, I greet her and smile to her. An hour later – after my morning cappucino – I meet her again in the streets of Iglesias. The old lady comes over to me, give me a warm smile, grabs my hand and gives me a little medallion with some religious message or “I dig you” or something written on it. She holds my hand longer than you’d usually expect from a complete foreigner.

The gift from the nun in Iglesias
The gift from the nun in Iglesias

Despite the remarkable age-difference it feels like real love at first sight. That she has a proper crush on me is beyond doubt at this point. I keep holding her hand too, smile, say grazie over and over (which was all I could muster in the situation) – and then the gray-haired lady lets go of my hand and walks away, leaving me slightly dumbfounded, in that happy way…

The gift from the nun in Iglesias
Lacking a photo of the nun, I’ll show you the other side of the medallion…

Piazza del Municipio, Iglesias, Sardinia.
Piazza del Municipio, Iglesias, Sardinia.

True to the classic Mediterranean scenario, men are remarkably more visible in the streets than women...
True to the classic Mediterranean scenario, men are remarkably more visible in the streets than women…

The spectacular (and free) Grotta di San Giovanni - a huge 850 m long cave right through the mountain range...
The spectacular (and free) Grotta di San Giovanni – a huge 850 m long cave right through the mountain range…

Grotta di San Giovanni
Grotta di San Giovanni

Inside the the spectacular Grotta di San Giovanni, just outside Iglesias...
Inside the the spectacular Grotta di San Giovanni, just outside Iglesias…

This is where the fun off-road / I-don't-know-where-this-road-goes started. Somewhere in the mountains behind the town of Iglesias.
This is where the fun off-road / I-don’t-know-where-this-road-goes / Hopefully-the-car-will-make-it started. Somewhere in the mountains behind the town of Iglesias.

My little Fiat Punto had a hard time in the off-piste 4x4 territory somewhere northeast of Iglesias.
My little Fiat Punto had a hard time in the off-piste 4×4 territory somewhere northeast of Iglesias

Spiaggia Piscinas on Sardinia's Costa Verde was a real treat. Incredible visibility.
Spiaggia Piscinas on Sardinia’s Costa Verde was a real treat. Incredible visibility.

Coast near Santa Caterina di Pittinuri. Western Sardinia.
Coast near Santa Caterina di Pittinuri. Western Sardinia.

Coast near Santa Caterina di Pittinuri
Coast near Santa Caterina di Pittinuri

Dinner time with a view. Santa Caterina di Pittinuri.
Dinner time with a view. Santa Caterina di Pittinuri