We left Ulassai on Tuesday morning around 11a. The drive to Cala Ganone was mapped at around two hours.

The drive was another curvy and dramatic series of roads climbing up mountains through towns perched on steep grades. The last 40 minutes of the drive took us past Gola Su Gorropu — one of the deepest canyons in Europe. The driving would have been fun if we were the only ones on the road, but with a multitude of RVs, motorcycles, cyclists, and impatient drivers passing in precarious areas I found it kind of stressful and scary.

Upon arriving in Cala Gonone, we met up with the owner of our AirBnB, a lovely and accommodating woman as she handed off the keys and instructions to take care of the beautiful home. We got settled then went for lunch at Ristorante Pizzeria La Poltrona (named after the magnificent “armchair” rock formation facing the sea over Cala Gonone). The owner had climbing photos up in the bar area and so we tried to get some local beta on the best places to climb in the heat.

We were also supposed to go get my hand looked at in Dorgali at the clinic. We asked around and somehow figured out that it wouldn’t open until 8, and that the clinic was for tourists. It was a little confusing so we also tried to see if the local emergency medical office could answer questions. I had already seen three doctors and now that I was a week out from the initial injury I just needed to make sure it was healing properly and have the bandages changed.

Dorgali is a 15m drive back up the hill away from the coast and through a tunnel to a larger town with a beautiful view of the mountains to the west, we arrived earlier than 8pm so we headed to the pharmacy which closed at 8 to get extra bandages and burn cream.

At 8pm we approached the Garda Medica and what appeared to be a security person and a nurse opened the door. I had my greeting and explanation typed out in google translate and handed them my paperwork from the doctor in Sassari. The nurse was clearly stressed as she mumbled about us not speaking Italian, so we stumbled through with google translate. Eventually we learned her name was Marisa and Jess told her his daughter’s name is the same — we started to win her over and her demeanor softened as she dressed my hand. She said it was healing well and told me to return on Sunday morning at 10am to see the resident, Doctor Andrea. I thanked her profusely and expressed my gratitude for her patience via a Google translate screen. She smiled and told us to learn more Italian! Good advice, indeed.

After the appointment we stopped to take in the view to the west from Dorgali. The sun going down over the Supramonte mountain range was spectacular. We stopped at Pizzeria Chiosco Monte Longu — a pizzeria and bar with outdoor seating and a beautiful view of the ocean at the top of the road leading down into Cala Gonone. We shared a beer to take it all in and decompress from the day.