Ancient Towns and Surprise 50k Bike Rides

Last weekend brought our second overnight trip, this time to Oristano. Our first stop was the Tharros Archaeological Site. Until recently, this site was believed to have been inhabited as early as the eighth century BC by the Phoenicians. However, it is now believed to have been settled during the Bronze Age.

We started just outside of the archaeological site at the Chiesa di S. Giovanni di Sinis. The oldest parts of the church were built during the Byzantine Empire (around 600 AD) on top of an old necropolis. The church later underwent extensions in the ninth and tenth centuries.

We then climbed up a to the archaeological site. Even though it was a cloudy day, the views were still stunning.

Remains of the city of Tharros are still very clear. Walls, floors, and doorways to homes and bathhouses are still partially standing, and it is easy to imagine what the town was like when it was still thriving.

After exploring the ruins and climbing to the top of the tower on the hill, we had lunch at a local fishery. Once again, there was so much food and it came so quickly that I didn't manage to snap any photos. Then, we went to Museo Civico Giovanni Marongiu to see artifacts that have been discovered at Tharros.

The pots above were funeral urns and held the ashes of the Phoenicians' sacrifices. Ancient Roman writers described frequent child sacrifices at Tharros in an attempt to give the Phoenicians the reputation of being blood-thirsty and barbaric. However, while child sacrifices did occur, it is unlikely that it was with any great regularity

There were also several giant statues displayed that had been restored from over 5000 separate fragments over the course of 8 years, like the one above. 28 statues were found in total, all depicting soldiers from the Nuraghi settlement of the area.

We spent the night in Hostel Rodia in Oristano, and went for what was supposed to be an easy bike ride along the coast on Monday morning. 3 hours and 50 km later, I think we'd all agree that it was definitely not easy. The views from the ride were worth it, though.

We finished off our trip at the Is Arutas beach, which is known for its sand. Unlike most beaches, the sand here is made up entirely of small, round quartz stones. It was absolutely beautiful, and even better, brushed off easily after swimming in the sea.