Shore to make us smile

Our location is near the launching point for boat tours up the Baunei coast to not-so-sea-cret Instagram beaches and caves only accessible by boat. So we climbed aboard for a full day tour, swimming at three beaches and spelunking in a fig grotto and a few caves. Sardinia is best seen by boat. It's mountainous and the roads are small and curvy like good fusilli.

Go nuts!

In a nutshell, Sicily is the place for pistachios but Sardinia's proximity gives us ample samples of pistachio cookies, croissants, pesto, pasta, grappa, and, yes, gelato.

Game of cones

Sep 5

A gelato a day keeps the meltdowns away, especially when traveling with two kids. And by that I mean Arlo and me. Arlo said he didn't care if he weighs 300 pounds by the time he leaves and has to buy a second airplane seat, he will have a gelato (or two) every day. And I'd never let him eat a cone alone.

Beach beauties

Hearty sea daffodils watched over us beach bums. The white daffodils pop out of the dunes, most of their stems and leaves buried under the sand, and seem to thrive in wind and salt spray. Like us. Beach hair, don't care.

Brew-acracy

Georgio told me Italians never have a cappuccino after 11 am. But they drink espresso all day long (even on the beach) in tiny Lilliputian-sized cups. Our villa came with an espresso machine and a few dozen pods but we couldn't adapt. We managed to find paper filters at a store but no cone for drip coffee. A funnel had to do. I asked Paolo's daughter if they had a coffee machine that we could use and she said, disdainfully, "Oh, of course Italian coffee is too strong for you." Paolo then ordered an "American" coffee maker for us. We also asked about a toaster so he ordered one of those too. Here's how our kitchen counter looked when we arrived and how it looks now. Brew-tiful!

Can you pasta sauce, please?

Sept 3

Georgio, Arlo's GlaStar friend from Milan, flew in for a visit and gave Arlo & Ric scenic flights. Then, by way of example, he taught us all the proper way to dine in Italy. The restaurants open at 7:30 but he said it's rude to go before 8. We enjoyed prosecco first, followed by a half order of Sardinian fragola pasta (we didn't know you could order half), followed by fish grilled in a salt bath, followed by a mixed salad. The lesson was delicious even though we still feel like impastas.

La Dolce Vita

Aug 26
After a successful meetup with Ric and family, who arrived on the ferry, we all drove south to our rental villa in Porto Frailes. Paolo, the house owner, stocked the fridge with sandwiches, prosciutto, cheese, caprese salad, fruit, beer and prosecco. He also reserved a table for us at the nearby pizzeria where we dined at 10 pm like real Italians. We cannoli eat so much in one night.

Cone Apetit!

Aug 25
Upon arrival in Olbia, Sardinia, after 24 hours of travel, we forced ourselves to go out for a stroll before collapsing and were rewarded with our first gelato. I was thrilled to find Sardinian fig flavor that was probably the best I've ever had…so far. The gelato was churning away right in the display case which I have never seen before — fresh as fresh can be. Cone apetit!

Carry-on curling



Aug 25, 2025

With five hours to kill in the Frankfurt airport en route to Sardinia we invented carry-on curling. We competed by rolling our luggage down the rink. The winner got a pretzel. The loser earned the Wurst Case Scenario Award.