Traveling in the Mediterranean sometimes feels like an endless quest to find the brightest turquoise waters. We’ve come close in Tunisia and Malta. But here along the northern coast of Sardinia we hit the jackpot.

From Rome we flew back to Sardinia for three more days here in the north before we take a short boat journey to Corsica. We spent yesterday on the boat Mattia all around the stunning islands and bright blue waters of the Maddalena Archipelago. It really was heaven.

When we first arrived in the mainland town of Palau, where we are staying, we checked out the many stalls where people tout their boat tours. They all sounded pretty much the same, including visits to the same beaches and very similar sounding time slots, lunches, activities. And all sounded like we’d be slightly packed into a fairly impersonal experience.

We really wished we could somehow pay more for a smaller and higher quality experience. The more we travel, the more we despise most ‘group encounters’ of almost any kind, and the more we just try to avoid them.

We decided to ask at the hotel desk whether they knew of some better option, and they suggested we talk to Franco, who does especially nice small group tours on his boat Mattia. So I set out and found Franco and set up a tour for the next day. And wow, does our hotel get points for this recommendation!

Franco is originally from Monopoli, a town in Apulia that we biked through last fall, and he is really passionate about the natural beauty here in Sardinia. He so relished telling our little group all about the area, the geology that made it happen, and even the celebrities who occupy the spectacular villas. And on top of that he cooked up an incredibly tasty lunch with nice Sardinian white wine.

Our friendly little group included two young Parisian women living in Barcelona and a Swiss/German couple and their two young kids. I’m pretty sure we all found the journey incredibly special.

Our fourth stop in Sardinia brought us to Alghero in the northwest corner of the island. Over the last 12 days we’ve traveled the length of the west coast, and the scenery got more spectacular with each leg of the journey. Up here in the northwest lush green mountains cascade into a beautiful blue sea with lots of sandy beaches in between.

Alghero was another near perfect combination of things we love: a charming medieval city center, great food and wine, and beautiful beaches just a short bike ride away. We rented some really nice bikes here and spent one day exploring the coast (and beaches) to the north and another day exploring to the south.

Food is incredible here — many classics from the Italian table plus quite a few distinctive Sardinian dishes. When the Spanish controlled Sardinia lots of Catalans settled here in Alghero, earning it the nickname Barcelonetta, or Little Barcelona. There is still a big Catalan influence on the cuisine and culture.

I’ve certainly eaten more dogfish here than I recall ever having anywhere before (perhaps never?). My favorite Sardinian antipasto consists of dogfish, octopus, or some other fish served all’algherese — cut into chunks and smothered with a fantastic cold and tangy sauce made from sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, and olive oil.

Tomorrow morning we take a brief respite from Sardinia to visit with our friend Dara in Rome. Then we’ll fly back to northeast Sardinia to continue our journey toward Corsica.