Sardinia and the ancient City of Nora

On our to sail to Sardinia the captain took us through the Straits of Messina which is a narrow strait between the eastern tip of Sicily and the western tip of southern Italy. Although on the map it looks quite narrow it is at its narrowest point actually 1.9 wide and almost impossible to get a single picture showing both sides. Each side at it's narrowest point is a now disused radio tower which was appearing out of the mist as we sailed by.

Also off the coast of Sicily is the island of Stromboli and its active volcano. The captain gave us a slow tour around the island but unlike the last time I was here, there wasn't even any steam coming out of the top. The volcano has however erupted many times and is constantly active with minor eruptions, often visible from many points on the island and from the surrounding sea, giving rise to the island's nickname "Lighthouse of the Mediterranean". Oddly people do live there and its population is about 500.

And then onto Sardinia which I couldn't remember having visited before strangely enough as a young metallurgist, I once had an interview for a job here but it never came to fruition. My excursion was to see the ancient city of Nora. This was just a short coach ride from Cagliari the Island's capital and where we had berthed. We passed many salt lakes used to extract salt and which attracted large numbers of flamingos.

When we arrived at Nora it was clear from its location on a peninsular it had been placed there to enable ships to shelter and sail from all directions irrespective of the winds and tides.

Nora, Italy. Originally it was built by the Phoenicians after a period of domination by Carthage, the town came under Roman control and most of what we saw was Roman. Because the southern part of Sardinia is sinking into the Mediterranean Sea, a substantial part of the former town is now underwater so we don't know the full extent of the city.

Nora was an important trading town in its time, with two protected harbors, one on each side of the peninsula. We saw a small theatre, many mosaic floors, and evidence of the complex system of water supply, and drainage typical of all these Roman ruins.

Then back through rural Sardinia to Cagliari and a chance to take in some views across the city.