Mosquitoes and Lightening - A different kind of airshow!

Sardinia is an exciting place to go, crystal clear warm sea, friendly people and easy access (Under 3 hours from Stansted Airport, London about £60 return on Ryanair) and lovely winter golf.

We are lucky enough to have some German friends with family there and an open invitation to visit.

As part of Italy, Sardinia has benefited from much EU development funding; familiar blue and white EU development signs appear everywhere.

These development sites are not without their amusement value. Yes, there are super new roads everywhere but there are also scented paved disabled gardens marooned miles from any road or path, new wind turbines that don’t turn because of a coal contract with China and a super golf course with no access road.

We visited the newly sown Is Arenas Golf and Country Club in 2001 and had to touch the turf to establish it’s authenticity. Although completely unused and immaculately maintained it awaited clubhouse, access road and course furniture.

This time, accompanied by our non-golfing friends, Heinz and Imtrude, the 3km access road was extremely rough but a little better and the course was in play. We had had some vicious storms and the wind was still gusting over force 8. However the course, carved from a forest of mature Corsican pine, sheltered golfers completely from the wind.

There was still no clubhouse but assistant secretary Giulia Contu made us very welcome in the little wooden office and, with no prompting, waived my 60 Euros green fee when she spotted that I was the signatory on our handicap certificates ! The fee was not high for the standard of course but a little steep for a course with no clubhouse and in a community where a super quality restaurant pizza costs 2 Euros. I understand membership subscription for residents is very reasonable though.

She warned us of lightening and asked to leave the course if the siren sounded and handed us two cards and 4 mosquito sprays from crates piled high behind her.

I dismissed this as a quaint courtesy but she was quite alarmed when I slipped the can in my bag unused. In broken English Giulia insisted that we “spray thoroughly”.

Although I have worked in mosquito areas before I have never seen such mosquitoes. Following the rain the grass was full of them, as you walked clouds rose from your feet and attacked. We quickly realised our cursory initial spray was insufficient. We thoroughly sprayed each other on every part but later regretted not spraying under our socks down our necks and up our sleeves. I counted 60 bites on Gaye’s neck alone and about 2 million under that little ankle band of my socks. They lasted a further two weeks!

The bites were one thing but the buzzing another. Provided you kept moving they didn’t settle so we played very quickly, Less than a second over each putt – it really was impossible to take any time so great was the din.

Despite this we scored surprisingly well. Our German friends, despite having helped us survey Epping ten years before had no experience of golf. I’m sure,they now have the idea that golf is pretty straightforward:- You rush up to the ball whack it a couple of times and it goes in the hole!

The 6000-metre course was breathtakingly beautiful with views of the Mediterranean and clever contours through the forest.

There are many pretty lakes, majestic trees and flowering shrubs; even in the winter.

Sadly we did not get to play the spectacular 18th par 3.( A coach party from North of Coventry that pushed in at the 10th didn’t call us through: you can’t get away from work can you?) And the lightning and siren came as we left the 17th. I’m pretty sure I would have had a two there anyway!

The whole complex (www.isarenas.it) is near the beach and will shortly include hotel, apartments and a clubhouse. Mosquitoes or not I would love to play there again.