Masks, Shepherds, and Bandits

Wednesday was our final overnight excursion of the dialogue. Unlike the other two, which included naps on the beach and more seafood than I thought possible, this trip was up into the mountains. Our first stop was in Mamoiada, where we went to the Museo delle Maschere Mediterranee, or the Mediterranean Mask Museum.

Masks and costumes play a major role in many traditional ceremonies in Sardinia. While the exact purpose of many of the masks in Mamoiada's Carnival festival are unknown, it is likely connected to the harvest and symbolic of life and death. Once a year, there is a large parade, in which men dress up as animals, carrying up to 30 kg of bells, and dance through the streets. Nearby towns have similar traditions, as shown the photos below.

Bells worn by men in traditional costume

The merdule and the boe are Carnival figures in the town of Ottana

After learning about masks in the local towns, we learned about some of the masks and costumes of other cultures in the Medditeranean, like the boitero in Spain and the Krampus from another part of Italy.

After finishing our museum tour, we set off for lunch with shepherds in Orgosolo. We were served very traditional foods, such as salami, cured goat meat, local bread, sheep milk cheese, suckling pig, delicious red wine, and ended it all with grappa.

After the meal, the shepherds performed traditional songs from the Barbagia region of Sardinia. The style of music is sometimes called su cantu a tenore and is similar to throat singing.

In this style of singing, four men stand in a circle with their arms on each others shoulders. There is one man who is the main singer, reciting poetic texts, and the other three singers, according to tradition, represent the sound of the wind, bleating sheep, and lowing of cows.

After the performance, we learned a few traditional dances, and headed to a mural town for an afternoon walk. The town was covered in murals, including one that struck a chord with many of us.

This mural was finished on September 28, 2001, just 17 days after the attacks on the Twin Towers.

We explored the town for about an hour, stopping to appreciate the beautiful paintings, and making a few friends along the way.

The next stop was our hotel. Many of us were planning on hiking the mountain in the morning for sunrise, so a few of us dropped our bags, changed, and immediately headed our on an exploratory hike to see what would be in store for us at 4 am. An hour of steep hills, far too many switchbacks, and rocky goat paths later, the views did not disappoint.

We made it back down the mountain just in time for a spectacular sunset and a big dinner.