Ogliastra, a land of enchanting beauty, is located along the eastern side of Sardinia. The territory, sandwiched between the peaks of the Gennargentu and the Tyrrhenian Sea, is considered among the most striking on the island. Referred to as the amphitheater on the sea, Ogliastra includes several natural monuments, pristine beaches recognized as among the most beautiful in the world, and itineraries for trekking, mountain biking and climbing.
It is a medieval town on the central-eastern coast of Sardinia, one kilometer from the beautiful Ogliastra sea and five from the port of Tortolì-Arbatax.
It rises between two rivers, in the center of an 'amphitheater' formed by the massif of Mount Oro. Lotzorai is an agricultural and tourist center in the northeastern part of Ogliastra, populated by more than two thousand inhabitants. The urban structure is typical of towns with a rural economy: large houses with large courtyards. The narrow streets of the historic center are repeatedly intertwined with picturesque scenery. Around the town, vegetable crops, citrus groves, olive groves and vineyards, while along the seven kilometers of coastline there are many accommodation and catering facilities, welcoming sea and nature lovers and from free climbing, trekking and cycling enthusiasts. The coast starts from the tourist hamlet of Tancau and passes through the beaches of Pollu, Lido delle Rose, Iscrixedda, and Isula Manna. In front of the town beach, about a mile east of the coast, is the islet of Ogliastra. Actually, it is a small archipelago of three islets of pink granite and red porphyry, typical of the Ogliastra sea. The largest islet is covered with vegetation and inhabited by cormorants, herring gulls and Corsicans. Once a legendary shelter during navigation, today it is a destination for excursions. You can visit it by canoe or paddleboat on calmer days or by boat starting from Arbatax or Santa Maria Navarrese. On the summit, at about 50 meters, is hoisted the statue of the Madonna of Ogliastra, the work of the sculptor Pinuccio Sciola, which has become a stopover for the faithful: at the end of July the feast of Our Lady Queen of Peace is celebrated there with a procession aboard boats. Behind the coastline outcrops ponds and lagoons: the Pramaera River Park, Pollu Pond and the Paùle di Iscrixedda, Lotzorai's southern border with Tortolì.
The original village is medieval: it belonged to the curatoria of Ogliastra, in the giudicato of Càlari. To those times dates the Medusa castle, on top of a hill at the entrance to the village, built perhaps in the 13th century on the remains of a Phoenician-Punic construction. The fortress conceals obscure origins and mysteries, while it is certain that the area was frequented since prehistoric times: evidence of this is the necropolis with about twenty domus de Janas of Funde 'e Monti, dug into the rock (2700-1800 BC). Also of interest are the domus excavated in the granite of su Tancau-sa Murta, the pre-Nuragic finds in the forest of su Padentinu, and, above all, the nuraghe Orzudeni. The most important building of worship is in the center of the village: the parish church of St. Helen, celebrated at the end of August.
Ogliastra
Address: via Mameli 22, 08048
Phone: 0782 600900
Site:
http://www.provinciaogliastra.gov.it/provincia/Location inserted by
Luigi de Marchi