PERSPECTIVE
Pantaleo. These days an artists’ colonywith its own art fair, it
is a surreal setting, where jagged limestonepeaks thrust out of
the vegetation at the summit, like a range ofmini Dolomites.
The road south is a vast emptymotorway, allowing the Fiat
to really openup aswe follow the
Supramonte
all theway to
our hotel, SuGologone, near the townof Oliena.
Set on a remote hillside and fedby a natural spring deep
in themountains above, this charmingwhitewashedhotel
is set amongst shady pines, exotic cacti, olive groves and
vineyards. This is rustic luxury Sardinian-style: simple
creamdecor with colourful local textiles and exposed
beams characterise the cool comfortable rooms; paintings,
ceramics and sculpture by local artists fill the public spaces.
Secreted around the grounds several inviting nooks offer
a spot to sunbathe or readon a hammock, dottedwith
bright cushions and scentedby tumbling bougainvillea.
But best of all perhaps, is the food at SuGologone.We sit
down todinner on the pretty terrace overlooking the spring-
filled swimming pool and choose from specialities such as
porceddu
(roast suckling pig), grilled veal
,
artisanal breads
from the hotel’s bakery, ravioli with fennel and cream, and
friedpockets of dough stuffedwith sheep’s cheese served
with thyme honey; it is quite simply Sardinia on a plate.
Later in the dark, we join some fellow star-gazers on a
whitewashed roof terracewhere local expert Luca talks us
through the spectacular night sky, a scatter of stars above
themountains.We can’t even think about leaving.
FLYTO
OLBIA
TWICEWEEKLY
