On Thursday, we had several lectures, and then Professor Aldo came and talked to us about his research (and he brought homemade tiramisu--yum!). I found his research very interesting--his research was investigating into harvesting of hydrogen from anaerobic digestion. Hydrogen could be a potential fuel of the potential, so "freeing" the hydrogen is a focus of a lot of research groups across the country.
The next day, we woke up bright and early and travelled to Nuoro, where we visited a costume museum of people in Sardinia. Our guide, Paula, talked about the culture and festivals that still prevail today, including one were people become their "opposite". For example, people that are shepherds then become the sheep. The picture below on the right exemplifies one of the costumes that people would wear on the days of the ceremonies. They would have 85 lbs of bells on the backs--ouch! I really enjoyed seeing the attire of people in the 1800's. The costumes were meticulously preserved, and the jewelry was very intricately designed.
The festival outfits with one featuring a chiseled jawbone.
Up next, we went to "The Church of Solitude" were Grazia Deladda was buried. She was a famous Sardinia author, and was the first French women to win the Nobel Peace Prize.
The Church of Solitude and the impressive door to enter the church.
After visiting the Church of Solitude, we went and had lunch with the shepherds. The lunch consisted of yummy bread, salami, cheese, potatoes (which you had to eat with your hands!), and suckling pig. Afterwards, all the older women flocked around the guys in our group, demanding to take a photo with them! Next, the shepherds sang a song depicting a story (no idea what the story was about, it was all in Italian).
Pictures featuring the suckling pigs and singing shepherds.
Next, we went to Orgosolo, a city famous for it's political graffiti. The graffiti, or "murals" were amazing--some were painted in very fine detail.
These pictures are some of the murals
Next, we arrived at our hotel. Our hotel was against the edge of some cliffs, so we climbed up one of the peaks, which was a steep hike consisting of several switch backs. At the end of the hike, you had to rock climb up some precarious rocks to the top; the view after climbing was spectacular.
On the way up and the view.
The next day, we went on a boat cruise! We started of by visiting the monk seal cave, which were amazing--one of my favorite parts of the day. The cave is over 8 km long, but we just went into the section where the fresh water meets the salt water. Where these two different types of water conjoined was very picturesque. Next, we visited two difference beaches, both which were amazingly beautiful.
On the way over to the Monk Seal Caves
Monk Seal Caves
At the first beach we visited
At the second beach
This beach was truly spectacular. Couldn't stop taking photos.
On the way back to the mainland
On our free day, me and Divya went to the Archeology museum. This museum was very extensive--had artifacts from the Nuraghe period, the Punic period, the Phoenician period, and the Roman era in Sardinia.
Some pottery and jewelry from the Archeology museum
Nuraghe statues and figurines
Next, we climbed the highest tower in the extensive Castello in Cagliari. The 360 degree views were amazing--you could see everything!
On top of the tower!
The view from the tower
Next, we went to the Kings palace. This was a small intricate building that features many elaborate rooms. There were several portraits of all the kings--very stately!
Main meeting room in the King's Palace
A beautiful church outside of the King's palace
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