Where should we go? This is the first question one faces when planning a vacation. There are so many places in the world to visit which made choosing a cruise a difficult task. She would pick a date and read me a list of various port stops. When she mentioned Sardinia in one of the itineraries I told her to stop, we have found the perfect cruise, I wanted to go to Sardinia.
The desire to go to Sardinia came from hours spent pinning beautiful travel destinations on Pinterest. I had pinned many pictures of Sardinia showing beautiful clear water. So clear that it the boats looked like they were floating on air. I wanted to see this water for myself. We booked our trip and visions of the clear water danced in my mind. I dreamed, I drooled, I read everything about Sardinia. I was beyond excited !
Unfortunately, I forgot to check the location of these beaches. My daughter looked over all of the our excursion options and told me that we would not be able to go the beach that I had seen on Pinterest, It was on the other side of the island and was not an option. Besides, my daughter was looking forward to seeing the ancient ruins of Nora.
So we ended up choosing an excursion called Nora – A walk through ancient times. It ended up being a beautiful day that we both thoroughly enjoyed.
The city was founded by Phoenician seafarers around IX-VIII century B.C. Little evidence remains of this ancient period in Nora’a history, however an important testimony is “la Stele di Nora” (The Star of Nora), on which there is an inscription which bears the name of Sardinia. Nora’s Punic history, to a large extent, also remains a mystery, although the materials used in the construction of tombs suggest that it was a rich merchant settlement.
Visitors can also admire the beautiful mosaics of the Central Thermal Baths, as well as at the Small Baths, the latter almost certainly belonging to a private domus.
In the early period of Roman domination, which began in 238 B.C., Nora was probably the seat of the Governorship. During the Roman era it was proclaimed a municipium and enjoyed a period of prosperity, which reached its peak in the II and III century A.D.
Archaeological excavation has revealed buildings from various periods, but the most important ruins are those from the Roman era. The remains of the thermal baths are located just inside the entrance to the site. The baths are partially submerged by water, but the colorful white, yellow and black mosaics which cover the floor can still be seen.
The building known as the Roman Temple offers visitors the chance to admire beautiful floor mosaics from the end of the II and the beginning of the III century A.D. The other sacred buildings to be admired are: Alto Luogo di Tanit, the Temple-Sanctuary of Eshmun-Esculapio and the so-called Canaanite sanctuary, all of which were built on existing chapels, from the Phoenician-Punic era.
The landscape reminded me of Ireland.
Thoughts about Ruins of Nora
This was a great excursion, but if I had to do it again, I would choose a different place. The scenery was beautiful and the location was beautiful. I loved the history of the area but this pales in comparison to Pompeii.
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