Rhonda Bracey: At Random

It was a beautiful calm day for our arrival at Carloforte, which is a port on a small island off the bottom of Sardinia. But it was hot! This was a tender port, which means the ship was too big to dock (or the water too shallow) and so we had to get into lifeboats that took us to the docks.

We’d heard the beaches were great with crystal clear water, but despite waiting in the main street at a bus stop opposite the ferry terminal for 40+ mins in the middle of a normal Friday, we didn’t see a single bus or taxi. So even if we could get to a beach, who knows how we would get back! Short of hiring a car (cost, plus bond, plus credit card required, plus contract only in Italian), scooter or ebike (both too hot), we had no option but to head back to the ship and its pools and air conditioning. (I can see a business opportunity for someone to have a mini bus or two for taking tourists from the cruise ships and the regular ferry from the main island on a loop to and from the beaches.)

We wandered about this pretty little town for an hour or too (there was an open market area under some big shade trees, which was a blessed relief from the heat), but the heat finally got to us. Although it was meant to be 30 C in the shade, it was MUCH hotter walking in the full sun. My $10 ‘el cheapo’ hat is certainly getting used! Oh, and I bought a light cotton sarong as a cover-up, something I didn’t regret later on…

We have an ‘at sea’ day tomorrow as we make our way to our next port.

LOOK at that water—we wanted to jump in right off the ship!!! Tender boat for contrast

Typical street in Carloforte

Market in the shade

The yellow square marks the bus stop in the main road and there was one of the other side of the road too, right outside where the ferries land, but we didn’t see a single bus or taxi the entire time we sat waiting. One person in a shop said there weren’t any taxis, even though the ‘expert’ on the ship had told us the night before that there were and how much they were.