|
|
|
 |
Travel Guides
The S&A travel guides are typically authored by one or more schools located at the destination in question. If you are interested in using the complete guide or parts thereof for your web site, brochure or similar please contact the individual school for permission.
|
|
 |
 |
|
Cagliari
 Cagliari is the entry point to Sardinia. Beside its crystal-clear water and one of the most beautiful and longest beaches in the Mediterranean, Cagliari offers an unspoiled natural environment consisting of lagoons, birds’ sanctuaries and wildlife reserves which are unique in Europe.
It is situated in the middle of the wide Gulf of Angels spreading on the southern slope of Sardinia, from Capo Pula to Capo Carbonara. The medieval town was composed by a village placed on a hill: only the towers and bastions remain there. Sea quarters spread towards the harbour.
At the beginning of its history Cagliari was a Carthaginian colony flourished then under the Roman rule. Destroyed by the Saracens, it raised again under the Republic of Pisa.
In 1326 it was conquered by the Catalans, who during their domination gave it the features of a Spanish town.
In 1718 Sardinia was annexed to the Reign of Savoy and since then on Cagliari followed the destiny of the island.
In 1862, when Cagliari was no longer a stronghold, its fortifications were destroyed and the development of the modern town began.
|
|
|
|
|
Climate
 Cagliari has a Mediterranean Climate, with hot and dry summers and very mild winter. Its climate is comparable to the South-Californian one, but it is often refreshed by north-westerly winds. It is close to other beautiful sea-side locations, such as Maddalena Beach, Chia or Villasimius, still relatively unspoilt by tourism and is also close to mountain parks, such as Monte Arcosu or Maidopis, with large forests and wildlife (Sardinian deers, wild boars, etc.).
|
|
|
|
Sports & Activities
Cagliari is home to the football team Cagliari Calcio, winner of the Italian league championship in 1970, with the team led by one of the greatest Italian strikers of all times, Gigi Riva. Cagliari is an ideal location for water sports such as surfing, kite surfing, windsurfing and sailing due to strong and reliable favorable winds. Hiking is also popular. |
|
|
|
|
Public Transport
• International Airport Cagliari Elmas “Mario Mameli”
• Passengers and commercial port, cruise terminal
• Highway to Sassari - Porto Torres (SS131/E35) and Olbia (SS131 Diramazione Centrale Nuorese)
• Train station, connected to Iglesias and Carbonia, Olbia and Golfo Aranci and to Sassari and Porto Torres through Ozieri-Chilivani joint
• Metro, from piazza Repubblica to Monserrato; by 2009 it will reach the university campus and the Policlinico Hospital. Then it will connect all the suburbs.
• Bus and tram transport into the city and suburbs operated by C.t.m. Spa.
• Coach transport for all regional destination operated by ARST/FdS/FMS
|
|
|
|
|
Food & Wine
Cagliari has some peculiar gastronomic traditions. Many dishes are based on the wide variety of fish and sea food available, for example, burrida. Although it is possible to trace influences from Spanish cuisine, Cagliaritanian food has a distinctive and unique character. Very good wines are also part of Cagliaritanians' dinners: excellent wines are in fact produced in the nearby vineyards of the Campidano plain.
 Cagliari has numerous eating establishments offering traditional ardinian meals. A Sardinian dish is almost always a great culinary experience, and the cuisine differs significantly from that of mainland Italy. Particularly popular dishes include: wild boar ham; “burrida” (fish marinated in a walnut and garlic sauce, “sa fregula” (grain sized pasta served in fish broth); "panadas" (pies filled with vegetables and eels), and "sanguinaccio" (pork-blood sausage sweetened with sugar and raisins). Other traditional Sardinian dishes include marinated baby lamb and roast suckling pig. |
|
|
|
|
Culture
Life in Cagliari has been vividly depicted by Sergio Atzeni , who set many of his novels and short stories, such as Bakunin's Son, in ancient and modern Cagliari.
A church in Cagliari gives its name to Buenos Aires. The Spaniard who founded Buenos Aires visited the church of Bonaria (fair winds) and asked for help from the Mary of Bonaria, to whom the church is dedicated. The church faces the sea and was allegedly built where a sailor landed after the Mary of Bonaria appeared in the midst of a tempest and saved the sailor and his ship from sinking.
|
|
|
|
|
Nightlife
Cagliari is a tourist city, and especially in summer a lot of clubs and pubs are goals for youth and tourists, pubs and night-clubs are concentrated in the Corso Vittorio Emanuele, a central street in Marina district, near to the port and Castello district, as for clubs they are mostly on the Poetto beach, or in Viale Marconi. Very famous are clubs outside the city, just like "Tsunami" in Santa Margherita di Pula, and "Peyote" in Villasimius.
|
|
|
|
|
Sightseeing
 The old part of the city (called Castello, the castle) lies on top of a hill, with a wonderful view of the Gulf of Cagliari (also known as Angels Gulf). Most of its city walls are intact, and feature the two 13th century white lime-stone towers, St. Pancras Tower and the Elephant Tower. The local white lime-stone was also used to build the walls of the city and many buildings. D.H. Lawerce , in his lively memoir of a voyage to Sardinia, Sea and Sardinia undertaken in January 1921, described the effect of the warm Mediterranean sun-light on the white lime-stone city and compared Cagliari to a "white Jerusalem".
The Cathedral
The Cathedral was restored in the 1930s turning the former Baroque façade into a Medieval Pisan style façade, more akin to the original appearance of the church. The bell tower is original. The interior has a nave and two aisles, with a pulpit (1159-1162) sculpted for the Cathedral of Pisa but later donated to Cagliari. The crypt houses the remains of martyrs found in the Basilica of San Saturno (see below). Near the Cathedral is the palace of the Provincial Government (which used to be the island's governor's palace before 1900). In Castello is also the Sardinian Archaeological Museum the biggest and most important regarding the prehistoric Nuragic Civilisation of Sardinia. Finally, Castello hosts many craftsmen workshops in its tightened and scenic lanes.
Basilica di San Saturnino
The Basilica di San Saturnino is one of the most important Palaeo-Christian monuments in Sardinia. Dedicated to the martyr killed under Diocletian's reign, Saturninus of Cagliari (patron saint of the city), it was built in the 5th century. Of the original building the central part remains and the dome, to which two arms (one with a nave and two aisles) was added. A Palaeo-Christian crypt is also under the church of San Lucifero (1660), dedicated to Saint Lucifer, a bishop of the city. This has a Baroque façade with ancient columns and sculpted parts, some of which found in the nearby necropolis.
The Chiesa della Purissima is a church from the 16th century.
The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Bonaria was built by the Aragonese in 1324-1329 during the siege to the Castle in which the Pisan had taken shelter. It has a small Gothic portal in the façade and in the interior houses a wooden statue of the Madonna, which was thrown off by a Spanish ship and landed at the feet of the Bonaria hill. The cloister of the convent is home to the Marinery Museum.
Our Lady of Bonaria
The other early districts of the town (Marina, Stampace and Villanova) retain much of their original appeal and still seem to function as distinct villages within the town.
Considerable other remains of the ancient city are still visible at Cagliari, the most striking of which are those of the Roman Amphitheatre, carved into a block of rock (the typical lime-stone on which Cagliari is built), and of an aqueduct; the latter a most important acquisition to the city, where fresh water is scarce. There exist also ancient cisterns of vast extent: the ruins of a small circular temple, and numerous sepulchers on a hill outside the modern town, which appears to have formed the necropolis of the ancient city. The Amphitheatre still stages open-air operas and concerts during the summer.
The districts built in the 1930s spot some nice examples of Art Deco architecture and some controversial examples of Fascist neoclassicism, such as the Justice Court (Palazzo di Giustizia) in the Republic Square. The Justice Court is close to the biggest town park, Monte Urpinu, with its pine trees and artificial lakes. The park includes a vast area of a hill. The Orto Botanico dell'Università di Cagliari, the city's botanical garden, is also of interest.
Cagliari has one of the longest beaches in an Italian town. The Poetto Beach stretches for 13 km and was famous for its white fine-grained sand. A recent controversial intervention to save the beach from erosion has slightly altered the original texture of the sand. |
|
|
|
|
Published: 4th June 2008
Last updated: 4th June 2008
Presented together with:
|
|
|
|
