Porto Rafaela Because of my little mix up with the boating outings, we ended up having our two boat trips back to back.  On Tuesday, July 14 we had another early morning and another awesome boat day.   We drove north this time to Palau for our boat trip to the Arcipelago de la Maddalena.  This outing was a little different from the day before - it was more expensive, was not an inflatable boat, they served lunch, snacks and water and was equipped with a kitchen,  bathroom, sun cushion and shade.  It felt very plush!  And even though there were 20 of us on there, it didn't feel crowded at all.  

Isola Spargi The Dea del Mare pulled out of the harbor around 10:30am and before going out to the arcipelago, it went past Porto Rafaela which was a darling sea village with artistic homes that reminded us both of an Italian Carmel.   Our first stop was the little island of Spargi where we spent a little over an hour at another spectacular beach.  The beaches that day were all sandy, but the water was just as amazing as that of the Orosei Gulf.  After Spargi, we navigated to "the pools" between Bodelli island and a couple of others.  The nearby beach, "spiaggia rossa" is protected, so no docking or sunning at that beach.   But boats can anchor in the pools, and we were here for nearly two and a half hours.   The pools of Isola Budelli - Lunch Stop The water here was shallow, the beaches were white and with the blue, blue skies, the turquoise was stunning.  While the captain and his wife made a a lunch of spaghetti with a little lobster and served up Sardinian appetizers (I fell in love with their olive oil, salt and rosemary "chips"), we jumped in the water, swam, and relaxed.  The location was very idyllic.   After our lunch, we had one final beach stop - and that was at Santa Maria island for a short 30 minutes.  This was our least favorite of the day, but still very enjoyable . You  just can't go wrong in Sardegna, especially those that require a boat to reach.    The trip back in took a little while, and most of the guests napped.  We rested a bit too, but enjoyed taking in the views of Santo Stefano Island and the Maddalena.    We decided we would take advantage of being outside of Porto Rotondo and eattt in Palau.  It was still early when we pulled into the harbor, so we did a little birthday shopping and then dined at C'era una Volta.  As with most of our other meals, this one was also incredible.  I really did fall in love with the Sardinia flat bread (carasau)!

Pools of Budelli

Spiaggia Liscia Ruja Wednesday, July 15 was our last full day in Sardegna.  We couldn't believe just how quickly the days had passed.  We loved Sardegna, loved not seeing a single American, the food, the water, the relaxation.  While it really doesn't make sense to fly half way around the world to go to a beach, we just might have to do it again.  We LOVED it.    We decided that for our final day we needed to spend time at a beach that was officially part of the famed "Emerald Coast".  We ended up choosing the one closest to Porto Rotondo, Spiaggia Liscia Ruja.   This beach was a long, beautiful, white sand beach.  We were fortunate that it was a weekday, so the beach was a little less crowded and we even had a little personal space for a couple of hours!   It was an incredibly lazy afternoon of dozing, reading and sleeping.  The perfect end to a perfect trip.  After returning back to the house for a shower and a little packing, we headed out to meet our dinner reservation at Agriturismo Agrisole.   Spiaggia Liscia Ruja After our phenomenal experience at Malga Pramper (another Agriturismo), we were really interested in having an authentic Sardignian dinner where food is closest to its source.   We found Agriturismo Agrisole in our Lonely Planet book and arranged for the pre-fixed meal.  It was our best meal that week and boy did we stuff ourselves.  The  menu included appetizers (zucchini with carrots, pecorino and ricotta, bread, salumi made at their farm and a delicious soup called fregola), mazzofrissa (sweet dish made with honey, panna and semolina flour), Sardinian gnocchi with tomato sauce, Zuppa Gallurese (baked dish with bread, cheese and beef borth), roasted suckling pig, and for dessert, ricotta with myrtle jam.    If you ever find yourself outside of Porto Rotondo, you should definitely eat here.  

What a fabulous five days!  Thursday morning came all too quickly.  We packed up, did one last loop through Porto Rotondo and  headed to the airport where we spent far too long dealing with flight delays.  I wouldn't have suspected that a hopper flight to Rome could have so many complications!  At least they were resolved that same day and we were landed in Rome and at our hotel by 5pm.