About Jennifer Avventura

Canadian Freelance writer living in Sardinia, Italy. A serial immigrant who has lived in Australia, England, Cayman Islands and Jamaica. When she's not out running 6k you will find her sitting at the computer - writing her novel and searching for worldwide work.

Inside Sardinia: Lake Cucchinadorza

Posted on October 9 by Jennifer Avventura

Lake Cucchinadorza in the province of Nuoro, sits at the foot of the Gennargentu mountain range and offers stunning views of the three surrounding towns: Ollolai, Ovodda and Teti.

Nestled deep in the valley, Lake Cucchinadorza provides the nature-lover in you with a plethora of wildlife, hiking & horseback trails and a staggering panorama of the neighbouring towns.

Inside the heart of Sardinia – Toneri, Tonara (laavventura.wordpress.com)
I want to live in Sardinia – answering your questions (laavventura.wordpress.com)

© My Sardinian Life/Jennifer Avventura. All rights reserved 2010-2013. All pictures, unless otherwise stated, are property of My Sardinian Life. Do not use without written permission.

Tantalizing Torrone from Tonara

Posted on October 8 by Jennifer Avventura

Torrone from Tonara is Sardinia’s supreme sweet; made exclusively with local honey, egg whites and almonds. It is the first-rate nougat bar that the islanders reach for to satisfy their sweet tooth. Every corner of the island knows the best torrone comes from Tonara.

This past weekend I was fortunate enough to drive 200 kilometers to the heart of Sardinia. I roamed ancient streets and grazed on the abundant world-class torrone as locals busied themselves preparing the longest torrone in Sardinia, and they did it! 200 glorious meters stretched and curved along the streets of Tonara.

Traditionally torrone was hand mixed using a long wooden rod and taking up to three hours for the ingredients to harden. Today, machines have taken the place of hard labor but the result is still the same – a lasting sweetness that you can only find in Sardinia’s heart.

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Inside the heart of Sardinia – Toneri, Tonara

Posted on October 7 by Jennifer Avventura

Tonara by Jennifer Avventura My Sardinian Life I caught the bus early Saturday morning to meet up with a friend in Sassari. We filled the car with an expensive tank of gas and headed south down SS131 towards the elusive province of Barbagia in the heart of Sardinia. We headed to an ‘open-house’ in the ancient neighbourhood of Toneri, Tonara in the province of Nuoro.

It is here, in the heart of Sardinia, where you can immerse yourself in a world of historical flavours, ancient traditions, narrow alleyways and spectacular views of the surrounding mountains. It’s also here where they make the world-famous torrone but I’m saving that juicy, delicious bit for another post.

Welcome to Autunno in Barbagia

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Buongiorno from Birori, Sardinia

Posted on October 7 by Jennifer Avventura

Nuraghe Miuddu, Birori, Sardegna

Good morning from the heart of Sardinia.

This is my response to the weekly photo challenge: good morning

Travel Theme: Height

Posted on October 4 by Jennifer Avventura

The height of the mountain I’m standing on is 214m above sea level. I was high enough to capture the flight of this war plane. The terrain on the right is Corsica. I wonder what he was doing in the sky of Sardinia?

This is my response to the travel theme: height. Click the link to discover more high things around the world.

Snapshots: Strolling the Streets of Sassari

Posted on October 4 by Jennifer Avventura

Sassari is the second-largest city in Sardinia, and to us small town mountain dwellers who venture here on such brief occasions, it’s called the big city or the big smoke. I enjoy getting lost in the streets of Sassari, there are beautiful surprises around every corner from classical art to street art and must-see energetic festivals that will leave you gasping for more. Follow me, on yet, another photographic voyage of this striking city.

Strolling the Streets of Sassari

San Nicola by day

San Nicola by night

When I need to aimlessly wander ancient cobblestone streets, I come here to gaze at local art and sip an apertivo.

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Saturated in Sardinia

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Saturated in Sardinia

Some of the amazing edible bites along the way to Tinnari, my favourite place in the world.

© My Sardinian Life/Jennifer Avventura. All rights reserved 2010-2013. All pictures, unless otherwise stated, are property of My Sardinian Life. Do not use without written permission.

Does anyone know what type of fruit this is? I only know the name in dialect.

Travel Theme: Relaxing in Sardinia

Posted on September 27 by Jennifer Avventura

Taking in the relaxing view of my favourite beach in Sardinia, Italy.

Tinnari

Tinnari

This is my response to the weekly travel theme run by Ailsa at Where’s my backpack? Why not join in the fun? Click the above link to see more relaxing worldwide photos!

How do you like to relax?

Fried Egg Jellyfish

Posted on September 25 by Jennifer Avventura

Living in the Mediterranean certainly has its ups and it also has its downs. After six weeks of not setting foot in the warm waters of the Asinara Bay we finally made the trek down to Tinnari for a refreshing swim.

I was just about to leap into the water when I noticed this floating very close to shore:

Tinnari by Jennifer Avventura My Sardinian Life 2013 (10)

The Cotylorhiza tuberculata is a species of jellyfish found in the Mediterranean and goes by the hilarious name of Fried Egg Jellyfish.

I wasn’t about to take a flying leap into the inviting waters after I saw this jellyfish! However, this type of jellyfish sting has little to no effect on human beings. I didn’t know that then and even now with this knowledge I would never dive into waters with these jellyfish swimming around. I mean, just look at those purple tentacles.

Tinnari by Jennifer Avventura My Sardinian Life 2013 (11)

Swimming wasn’t an option, so I took a little walk along the shoreline enjoying the warm September sun when I spotted this:

Tinnari by Jennifer Avventura My Sardinian Life 2013 (13)

And there were a lot! I’m not too sure what species this type of jellyfish is, it could be: Rhizostoma pulmo or a rhopilema. The above photo is the best of the hundred I took. I did watch it for sometime and noted that it resembled a porcini mushroom.

Even though I didn’t get the much-needed swim in, it was still a beautiful day!

Do you know what type of jellyfish is in the above photo?

A Mediterranean Medusa

4 fabulous blogs I love right now

Posted on September 23 by Jennifer Avventura

I should be out running or taking a nice September afternoon walk or preparing fresh, local ingredients for a traditional Italian tomato sauce, or even attempting to write my book. Instead, I’m inside being delightfully pulled in by the following four fabulous blogs and I just can’t get enough!

Each blog is jam-packed with hilarious tales of life, cooking, learning languages and eating! So, it’s no wonder I haven’t accomplished much since I finished working at the beginning of the month. I’ve continuously come back to each blog excited to discover something new and I haven’t been disappointed. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

4 fabulous blogs by Jennifer Avventura My Sardinian Life

Lady Of The Cakes – Vignettes from a multi-lingual, multi-cake-eating freelance existence. LOTC and I are similar in many ways: I too am not sure what to say when people ask me “where are you from?” Is where we are from our birth place, the place we spent most our adult life or the place we call home, now? Plus the fact we both seem to fail at doing the required things and all the rest we do in the wrong order. LOTC is beautifully witty, full of sarcasm and worth a read.
Maple Leaf Mamma – Where feminist motherhood meets expat life in Italy. Firstly, her blog name is HOT and creative, it makes me wish I had been more original naming my blog. Michelle is full-on funny with posts like: Bilingual toddler speak (complete with cute video) and her latest post: On deceptive appearances and silver linings which made me reflect on my own ups and downs living in another country, all the while, others outside the realm of expat-hood seem to think I have it all.
Bites for Babies – Spicing up baby’s meals one recipe at a time. Written by a Canadian who spends her summers in Sardinia with her family! Instant like! She also whips up amazing dishes for her children that would make any adult jump for delicious joy. Lisa has virtually taught me how to make polenta, after a dreadful attempt to ‘wow’ my husband with my polenta making skills. I am forever grateful.
BarbedWords in Italy – Living and writing in Italy. And quiet a bit of cooking… How can someone move to Italy and not enjoy the food, or speak the language? Well, this Brit did it and shares all the fabulous exploits in this entertaining blog. I love the post: Top Ten Tips on how not to write a novel, find an agent, get published and become rich and famous because so many of the points I can agree with. In 1997 I moved to Australia with the idea of writing my book and sixteen years later, with countless I’m-moving-to-XYZ-to write-my-book statements, I find myself living in a mountainous town in Sardinia, Italy still trying to write my book.