Cagliari

Cagliari is the city Sardinia actually lives in, while the rest of the island poses for photographs.

It spreads up a set of hills above a wide southern bay, a handsome, sun-bleached capital of pale stone and palm trees, crowned by the old walled quarter of Castello looking out over the sea. Below it run the arcaded streets of the Marina and the markets, and a short way east lies Poetto, eight kilometers of city beach where Cagliaritani spend their summers. This is a real working capital, with the island's main airport, its best hospitals, a university, and a year-round life that the famous resort coasts simply do not have once the season ends.