Sardinian' s adventure
It seemed another world. While travelling on the train bound for Cagliari - which waited the arrival of our ferry from Genova - i was looking curiously the landscape running away fastly at the window, so different to my "continental" eyes. A bright sun was lightening the coach of the push-pull train, whil the D.445 was roaring climbing and rounding the curves of the hard main line. Small stops in nowhere was vanishing even in the memory of passengers used to do this line. Among sheeps, stones and nuraghe the train run, searching the final destination, Cagliari's station, with that useless catenary built up as a trick. A fast meal in the bar fronting the plinthed 744 and i was ready - with my knapsack and my photobag - to do the 3 kilometers until the insignificant FDS' station. It was done, after 12 hours of ferry, 7 of trains and many kilometers travelled, i was near to the end: an hotel at Seui that i booked a month before which should be the base until leaving, the next day, with a special train organized with so many sweat and.....money! A fast look at the time table on the wall and the fear caught me: without any advisory, simply adding a sheet on the glass of the table, the railway informs passengers that all trains beyond Mandas was suspended because too scarce traffic. So i was to an anticipate end of my trip, with the perspective of losing train, pictures and money!!! Just two options was remaining: taking a bus to a town at 70 kilometers from Seui, or phoning and asking help to my friend Amedeo - an engineer of FDS. I choose the second one and rapidly i exposed all my troubles, surely with a bit of hanger and delusion. Amedeo told me to go to Mandas with the last train of the day, then we could decide together what to do. So i was on the only coach of the train bound for Mandas - an ex circumvesuviana - headed by a beautifull LDe.600 loco. Roaring and smoking like a ship, it travels among yellow and brown hills, searching for an improbable track of 24 Kg/mln. Nice, beautifull: what a views, what a silence and flavors. But i was worried and stares of the other passengers - just a few to be honest - went away on me without my care. Once arrived at Mandas, i found Amedeo waiting for me. I already knew that i should drink a bit with him, but i could never image what kindness he was to give me. After some hours in his house, while darkness was coming up and after many glasses of beer, the moment came. As it was normal, he called his son-in-law and together they brought me for those 70 kilometers until the Seui's hotel. We came there around 11 p.m., just in time for a fast and genuine lunch, with typical mirto liquor offered by my two gentlemen (!!!). In the night i went to check the train. It was there, silent like a sleeping animal, under a starry sky that i never saw before. I was thinking to the next days...On the next morning, around 9.00 o'clock, railmen were at work to compose my train; the first day we should trip from Seui to Arbatax with a freight, a real antique. Wagons with flanged wheels and manual brakes - with brakemen working all the trip - and loggage cars with wood body. A beautifull LDe was at the traction. The second day my train was a passenger composition with just a coach from Arbatax to Mandas. The trip was something of indescribable. Natural flavors and hard landscapes wrap the little track losing itself in a desert. Once arrived at Arbatax in the late evening, we provided to prepare the train for the next day. Then we all went to look for a good restaurant. A man of a track gang brought me to an hotel in a near town, Tortoĺ, where he offered to me another usual mirto's glass. The morning before, by autostopping, i arrived at the station while my own passenger consist was ready to go, but in the same time a journalist of a local newspaper wanted an interwiev, demostrating how these people are interested in maintaining these railways opened to service, even if right now the revenue service is still shut down. After many photo-stops to take some spectacular pictures, we were coming to Villanovatulo - where an artificial lake make this branch really beautifull - when unpreview meteo situation caught us with a strong storm. Losted this photo opportunity, we came to Mandas two hours before previsions. Amedeo was waiting for me and i said hello to him and all railwaymen of my crew, bounding for Cagliari with the last train of the day. I was happy! Six rolls of spectacular images in my bag, many nice records and an incredible desire of coming back early in sardinian's ground. I remember the kindness of all ones helped me to have my desire turned to reality. Now, at my home, i look back to those slides and it takes me back down there, like i am ready right now to another trip in heaven on earth......and it takes just a few hours of ferry.