A fairy stoned village framed by forests and mountains, a nice lake, good food and old traditions. Where? You can find Gavoi in the middle of Barbagia, an inner region in Sardinia close to Gennargentu Mountains, not so far from the city of Nuoro.
Every year (before covid-19, but the village is starting to organize events again) in Gavoi you could go to “Cortes Apertas” in autumn, where people show old traditional crafts like bread and cheese cooking, or in summer the “Stories’ Island”, a literary festival. So, no surprise that this small village in Sardinia is part of the Italy’s Orange Flag Program, awarding small towns who have a precious heritage but also a good welcome to tourists. But let’s walk through its stoned alleys…
Gavoi – The centre
Walking through the centre you find colorful street-art, then you reach San Gavino Church, built between XV and XVI century, whose tall bell tower can be seen from a distance. Inside, interesting artwork from 1700 such as the baptismal font and the pulpit made in wood and finely decorated. If you continue going up, you reach the small beautiful Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.
Just on the main street – via Roma – there’s the Ethnographic Museum Porcu-Satta, where you can see traditional old Sardinian dresses, jewels, toys and musical instruments such as the traditional “tumbarinos” played during festival. The museum also recalls Gavoi’s pastoral tradition, still live today in the famous “Fiore Sardo” cheese, a smoked cheese who awarded DOP status.
Nearby
After a nice walk in the centre of the village there are plenty of things to do. You can choose culture, visiting the “Domus de Janas” in the Necropoli of Uniai, ancient Neolithic Tombs, so small that according to the legend they were fairies’ tombs, or you can go trekking on the Gusana Lake, an artifical lake very close to Gavoi. This area is popular for fishing or water sports like windsurf and canoeing, but also a nice spot just to enjoy the view relaxing on the shore before coming back home …
Che posto incantevole che mi hai fatto conoscere, da visitare a passo lento e con grande attenzione ai dettagli. Lo segno nella bucket list !
Quando sento parlare di festival letterari vado in brodo di giuggiole! Non avevo mai sentito parlare di questo borgo ma credo che vada assolutamente inserito in un itinerario on the road in Sardegna, regione tra l’altro che non ho mai visitato. Partire da qui sarebbe un buon inizio.
E’ un bel gioiellino… se poi ami perderti fuori dalle rotte turistiche mainstream, un giro nell’interno della Sardegna ti permette di scoprire una miniera di ricchezze naturalistiche, archeologiche e… gastronomiche (che non guasta ahah)