The Blue and the Winds of the Sea of ​​Golfo Aranci 0 Comments

Looking at the sea from the terrace of the Gabbiano Azzurro Hotel & Suites, you may witness the magic of not having in front of you the same sight given from the blue colour of the sea. At times it seems to be on a cruise sailing through different shades of blue water and the reason why is only due to the wind, as, where it blows from, concerns the sea colour. 

I would propose a diversion by matching the sea colours with the winds, helped though by Kandinskij, the artist who listened to colours and painted them. In this regard he said that, musically, light blue resembles a flute: like the sea blue shade when Ponente wind blows. Dark blue is similar to a cello, like the sea colour when Tramontana blows, and, if becoming increasingly darker, to the wonderful sounds of the double bass, like the sea shade with Grecale. In its deep, solemn form, the sound of blue is comparable to the low tones of the organ, like the sea’s deep tone of ​​ Mistral in winter. When blue takes on yellow tones, to Kandinskij yellow releases the trumpet sound, I would combine it with the colour of the sea when Scirocco blows, but also Ostro, due to the sandy dust they are carrying along.

Knowing the winds and their directions allows you to better understand your Sardinian holiday in all seasons. There is an amusing system to remember them all. The winds from the main directions are: the Tramontana from the north, Levante from the east, Ostro or Auster from the south, Ponente blows from the west. The winds from intermediate directions are those referred to in the initials by this little word Gre-Sci-Li-Ma bearing the first letters of the winds’ names indicated clockwise on the wind rose: Greco (NE) - Scirocco (SE) - Libeccio (SW) - Maestro or Mistral (NW). The winds are therefore a total of eight:

1. Tramontana (North) is a cold wind named after the Latin "trans montes", meaning wind blowing through the Alps in the North.

2. Grecale (North-East) named after Greece, from which it is blowing. It is one of the strongest winds blowing on the north-eastern part of the island. Cold and dry in winter, blowing a light breeze in summer.

3. Levante, in Sardinia, is less frequent. It blows from East to West, cool and humid bringing fog and rain.

4. Scirocco (South-East) is a warm wind named after Syria. It causes gusts of intense heat in summer associated with rain and is often "sandy" due to desert dust he carries. It usually lasts at least 3 days.

5. Ostro (South). From the Latin “Auster”, meaning austral wind. It is warm bringing rain, temporarily raising humidity and temperatures.

6. Libeccio (South-West). Taking its name from the Arabic “lebég” (rain-bringing wind). In summer it is a breeze bringing African sand.

7. Ponente (West). Its antithetical manner to Levante. During the summer season along the Tyrrhenian coasts its breeze is hitting the entire western strip from the Strait of Bonifacio to the Cagliari Gulf.

8. Mistral (North-West), is the dominant wind in Sardinia, the "master" wind, or the prince of all winds. It is a cold current blowing from the coasts of Provence reached by Arctic currents.

“Most of the world is blue, the sky above us, the sea that borders our lands; blue is reliability, belonging and loyalty”. (Lisa Guerrini)

Written by Daniela Toti