| If you are looking for a European tourist destination, | | | | According to popular belief this saint's intervention |
| consider the island of Sardinia, a region of southern | | | | stopped the plague. In gratitude every year thousands |
| Italy. Depending on your interests, this beautiful area | | | | of traditionally costumed marchers transport his statue |
| can be an ideal vacation spot. You can get classic | | | | from a church in old Cagliari to one in Nora and back. |
| Italian food, and wash it down with fine local wine. | | | | The end of the festivities is marked by a torchlight |
| Some parts of Sardinia remain undiscovered by | | | | parade. |
| tourists, while other sites are favorites of Italian and | | | | Sant'Antioco is an island off the coast of Sardinia. |
| international jet setters and are priced accordingly. This | | | | While quite small, it is the seventh largest island in the |
| article presents southern Sardinia. Companion articles | | | | Mediterranean. The island itself was settled way back |
| present northern Sardinia and central Sardinia. | | | | in the Fifth Millenium B.C. and the city of the same |
| We'll start our tour of southern Sardinia at its capital | | | | name, population twelve thousand, was settled in the |
| and largest city, Cagliari on the Golfo di Cagliari (Cagliari | | | | Eighth Century B.C. The Roman causeway is still |
| Gulf). Then we head southwest along the coast to | | | | standing but you'll probably get to the mainland and |
| Pula and nearby Nora and then continue on or close to | | | | back by a modern version. |
| the coast, first southwest and then northwest to | | | | Make sure to see the Zona Archeologica |
| Sant'Antioco and neighboring Calasetta. We next visit | | | | (Archeological Zone) with its view of mainland Sardinia |
| the island city of San Pietro. Finally we return to | | | | and an archeological museum. There's even a |
| mainland Sardinia and proceed north to finish our tour | | | | necropolis dating back to the days of Carthage. Then |
| at Costa Verde. | | | | stop by the little town of Calasetta, population under |
| Cagliari has a population of about one hundred sixty | | | | three thousand, first settled by Ligurians in 1770. I'm told |
| thousand or more than twice that when you count the | | | | the residents have kept their dialect that is as |
| suburbs. It has been inhabited since prehistoric times. | | | | incomprehensible to Sardinians as it is to you or me, |
| The city fought alongside the Savoyards against the | | | | unless you're from Genoa or its surroundings. Don't |
| French Revolution. When a reward for their loyalty | | | | worry about the language; enjoy the beaches and the |
| was not forthcoming, all Cagliari rose up against the | | | | port. |
| Savoyards and expelled them and their Piedmont allies. | | | | San Pietro was supposed to be settled by those |
| On the last weekend in April Cagliari celebrates this | | | | Ligurians who ended up in Calasetta. Before long they |
| insurgency in the Die de sa Sardigna (Sardinian Day). | | | | were enslaved. Upon their liberation many went to |
| Their independence was short-lived. | | | | Calasetta but some others returned to San Pietro's |
| The old city is called Castello (the Castle). It lies on a | | | | town of Carloforte, population about eight thousand, |
| hilltop and offers an excellent view of the Gulf of | | | | once a center for tuna fishing and now a tourist resort. |
| Cagliari also known as Angels Gulf. Most of the old | | | | Costa Verde is a great combination of wilderness and |
| white limestone city walls are intact. Look for two | | | | resort life. You can only get there by a lousy road. |
| Thirteenth Century white limestone towers, the Torre | | | | Take people's advice and avoid driving during the heat |
| di San Pancrazio (St. Pancras Tower) and the Torre | | | | of the day. But once you are there, Costa Verde is |
| dell'Elefante (Elephant Tower). D.H. Lawrence, who | | | | really unforgettable. Sand dunes, wild landscapes, and |
| wrote Sea and Sardinia, as well as Lady Chatterly's | | | | great beaches abound. |
| Lover compared Cagliari to a "white Jerusalem". | | | | What about food? In spite of its magnificent coastline, |
| Among the remains of the ancient city you will find the | | | | native Sardinians don't seem to go very much for fish |
| Second Century Anfiteatro Romano (Roman | | | | and seafood. However, if you are on or near the |
| Amphitheatre), parts of which are fairly well preserved, | | | | coast you can get fish and seafood. Look for burrida, |
| an aqueduct, ancient cisterns, and the ruins of a small | | | | a Sardinian fish soup sometimes based on shark. |
| temple. Summers you can attend open-air concerts | | | | Other bounty from the sea includes swordfish, tuna, |
| and operas and concerts in the amphitheatre. The | | | | sardines, cuttlefish, clams, and mussels. An expensive |
| Museo Archeologico (Archeological Museum) located | | | | specialty is mosciame di tonno, salted, air-dried tuna. A |
| in a Fourteenth Century castle contains many artifacts | | | | more familiar and often expensive specialty is lobster, |
| coming from unique Sardinian stone structures called | | | | some of the best in Italy. |
| Nuraghe which are discussed in the companion article I | | | | Let's suggest a sample menu, one of many. Start with |
| Love Touring Italy - Central Sardinia. | | | | Impanadas (Baked Stuffed Pastry). Then try Lepudrida |
| The Duomo, Cattedrale di Santa Maria, (St. Mary's | | | | (Soupy Legumes and Meat with Ham). For dessert |
| Cathedral) was built in the Seventeenth Century but | | | | indulge yourself with Pabassinas (Pastry topped with |
| underwent major renovations in the 1930s. Other | | | | Raisin and Walnut Paste). Be sure to increase your |
| churches worth seeing include the Fifth Century | | | | dining pleasure by including local wines with your meal. |
| Basilica di San Saturnino (St. Saturnino Bascilica), the | | | | We'll conclude with a quick look at Sardinian wine. |
| Seventeenth Century Church of St. Lucifer, and the | | | | Sardinia ranks eighth among the 20 Italian regions in |
| Fourteenth Century Sanctuary of Our Lady of Bonaria. | | | | acreage devoted to wine grapes and twelfth in total |
| Many old Cagliari neighborhoods retain their charm. | | | | annual wine production. About 57% of its wine |
| Some 1930s buildings were built in Art Deco style, while | | | | production is red or rosé (not very much |
| others such as the Palazzo di Giustizia (Justice Court) | | | | rosé) leaving 43% for white wine. DOC stands |
| conform to a Fascist Neoclassist style. Cagliari also | | | | for Denominazione di Origine Controllata, which may be |
| claims one of the longest beaches in Italy, the Poetto | | | | translated as Denomination of Controlled Origin, |
| beach an amazing 8 miles (13 kilometers), once | | | | presumably a high-quality wine. The G in DOCG stands |
| famous for its white fine-grained sand and one of the | | | | for Garantita, but there is in fact no guarantee that |
| largest fish markets in all Italy, the Mercato di San | | | | such wines are truly superior. The region produces 19 |
| Benedetto (St. Benedetto Market). | | | | DOC wines and one DOCG wine, Vermentino di |
| Pula, population about seven thousand, is known for its | | | | Gallura. About 15% of Sardinian wine carries the DOC |
| lovely beaches, bays, and coves. Admire the flocks of | | | | or DOCG designation. |
| flamingos in the marshes. Just outside of Pula lies the | | | | Carignano del Sulcis DOC is produced in the |
| site of Nora, founded by Phoenicians and perhaps the | | | | southwestern tip of Sardinia from the red Carignano |
| oldest city in all Sardinia. The excavations, while not yet | | | | grape (known as Carignan in France) with a maximum |
| completed, have uncovered a wealth of ruins from the | | | | of 15% of other local red grapes. The rosé |
| days of Carthage and Rome. | | | | wine is dry and still or fizzy. The red wine may be dry |
| From the first to the fourth of May each year Nora | | | | or sweet. Monica di Cagliari DOC is one of a series of |
| and Cagliari are home to perhaps the greatest and | | | | similarly named wines featuring a grape such as |
| most colorful religious procession in the world, the | | | | Monica, Nuragus, etc. Monica di Cagliari is produced in a |
| Festa di Sant'Efisio, honoring a martyr beheaded by a | | | | large area of southern Sardinia from the local red |
| Roman soldier in 303 in Nora. In 1652 a plague was | | | | Monica grape in a variety of styles both dry and |
| rampant in Sardinia and half of Cagliari lay dead. | | | | sweet. |