ACCOMMODATION IN SARDINIA SOUTH YESTERDAY

Scene of a moving history of poverty, hard work and courage. A history of miners, shepherds, fishermen and tuna. A history of a people faithful to the traditions. A story of marvelous natural landscapes, in whose depths brave men dug thousands of miles of tunnels: down there, the mines

ACCOMMODATIONS IN
SOUTH SARDINIA TODAY

Sant’Antioco, Iglesias and Carbonia, which were mining centers and religious, are now three lively city, animated by a kind of tourists well-educated  and of good feelings. Tourists who do not like platitudes, and who do not like the crowding of cement and yachts. Tourists who love the pristine nature and the sincerity of the persons

A bit of history. The history of Iglesias ( it’s the same history of whole Sardinia) dates back to colonial times of the Phoenicians, Carthaginians and then Romans, all drawn from the exploitation of mines, rich in minerals to extract zinc, lead, copper, and silver. After the Romans, Sardinia was ruled by the Byzantine Empire and during this period, from 700 to 1000, had to endure repeated incursions of the Arabs from Spain. Subsequently, until 1200, Sardinia was governed by a particular form of State, called the "Giudicati". From1200 to 1300 Sardinia suffered the military and commercial  domination  of the Republic of Pisa, until the beginning of Spanish rule that lasted for 3 centuries, from 1400 to 1700. The long period of Spanish rule, from 1400 to 1700, gave most of all  the imprint to the religious and cultural Sardinian population. There are traces of Spanish influence on Sardinia today; you see it in the frequent Spanish names (like Iglesias it self) and in countless religious buildings.
At the end of the Spanish Empire, in the 18st century,  the Kingdom of Sardinia passed to the family  Savoia, and from here, finally, to the Kingdom of Italy in 1863.
Iglesias today. What’s interesting to see? The city of Iglesias has within it (here is revealed the reason that drove to give the name of Iglesias) a significant number of religious buildings. Among the most important we find the Cathedral of St. Chiara, who has a single nave and several side chapels, and preserves inside a painting of the St. Chiara Assumption and  sacred furnishings of excellent value);  and the church of San Francesco, who has a wooden doorway and a beautiful red facade).
A nice property is then the Castle of Salvaterra of the thirteenth century, built for defensive purposes. It was partially damaged in the nineteenth century but still retains its charm.
Do not miss a visit to the city's museums such as the Museum of Mining Art, housed in the Technical Institute of Mining, where there are several galleries, the Museum of the mines and the Museum of Mining Machinery that keeps the machinery used at work in the mine. The visit to the abandoned mines and to mining museums might be, it alone, a reason for a holiday near Carbonia Iglesias, and to search for a South Sardinia holiday accommodation, a villa or an apartment.
Conclusion: Iglesias, such as Carbonia and Sulcis, offers to tourists especially the extraordinary beauty of the coast along the sea and of the green hills covered with Mediterranean maquis, olive trees and vineyards. But a visit can be very important and instructive for students in engineering, and for all those who may be interested in  industrial archeology of mining. The old mines are open for the visitors.
If you decide to rent a holiday home, apartment or villa in Sardinia South West, it will be interesting for you a visit to the mines, even for the moving  human aspects of that hard work and humble.

Carbonia today is a former mining town of about 30 000 inhabitants, situated in south-western Sardinia. Carbonia has three focal points: the beauty of the sea and of the nature, the moving and interesting history of the mines, and the remains of ancient civilizations, that is the archaeology.
Mines. The city was built after the end of 1936, when it was calculated the vastness of the great coal basin of Sirai-Serbariu, which proved of exceptional breadth. The city was inaugurated by Mussolini on 18/12/1938.
After an initial period of intense mining activity  the production rate has slowed down markedly. And soon the re-opening of international markets and competition from foreign coal, mining starts at a slow but relentless crisis. Today's coal mines are closed, have been put in safe condition for the visits of tourists. In fact, you should leave for a few hours your comfortable holiday home, villa or apartment, to visit the mining museum and tunnels of the mine Serbariu. Do not fail to be moved by the images, machinery and tools, documenting this work very hard, played for years underground by brave men.
Archaeology. The Archaeological Museum "Villa Sulcis" collects materials dating between the Neolithic and the Byzantine period, from several sites, most of the municipal area of carbon in the rock shelter on Garroppu (Sirri), and the necropolis of Monte Crobu and of Cannas di Sotto, the gorges of Coderre, the prehistoric village of Barbusi; the nuraghe Sirai, the cave of Baccu Arrus.
Of great historical importance is the Phoenician-Punic settlement of Monte Sirai.From the top of the volcano, about 190 meters high, you can control both the  sea and the surrounding islands, the plains up to the mountains. The top of the mountain housed the residential quarters and public buildings of which the most important was certainly the temple of Astarte, which at first was built around a pre-existing dolmen which was the inner part of the temple, the Holy of Holies.
The cremation cemetery of Phoenician era is also very important, excavated recently, which is located not far from the next Punic necropolis . Around 520 BC the town is completely destroyed by the Carthaginians, who in the next decade complete military conquest of Sardinia.
In one of the 13 tombs found in the archaeological site, carved on the pillar at the entrance, you can see the symbol of the goddess Tanit.

The people of Sardinia is very proud of its past and of its history. It tries to maintain a link with its traditions;they create festivals, events and feasts that say aspects of the lives of their ancestors. Certainly it is not of great events. They are quite simple and spontaneous, not for this reason they are devoid of charm. Simplicity is a value: you will be pleased to find you mixed with sincere and simple people. And this is a good reason to spend a couple of afternoons at these traditional events, instead of staying in your comfortable holiday home, villa or apartment,  and instead to lie on the beach to sunbathe.
There is no official program of festivals and events. However, they are repeated with some regularity every year. Here we can point out some: - In Portoscuso, Tuna Fishing Feast (June) - in Santadi, Traditional Marriage (August) – Medieval week, in Iglesias (August) – In Villamassargia, Olive Trees feast (September) – In Villamassargia, the feast of Madonna della Neve (October).
You will not miss information on festivals, feasts on shows. You'll find their ads everywhere, walking around the city or taking an ice cream . The people themselves will not fail to inform you. And you will find flyers and leaflets in the holiday home, villa or apartment that you rented.Do not miss the most important of those events: the Girotonno of Carloforte (June)

A great vacation is certainly also in the pleasure of going to early morning to the fish market, to enjoy a nice patio between the house and garden, to lie in the sun on a sandy beach, to visit places new and interesting. But that's not all! The vacation is also an opportunity to practice outdoor activities, and here, in the South West of Sardinia, there are opportunities to do so. You can go walking along the cliffs, you can participate in a trek on horseback or bike, you can learn kite surfing, you can dive into the sea, you can rent a boat. The places and the sea here are wonderful for these activities. In addition, you will easily find the people who teach, who are accompanying you, and renting you the equipment, if you do not have it.