Sardinia

Sardinia | Sardegna

Sardinia was the blue I didn’t know I was waiting for. After the wild edges of Corsica, I arrived by ferry into Santa Teresa di Gallura and made my way to Palau, where another ferry carried me to La Maddalena, a little harbor town that became my home base for a few slow, sun-glazed days. Everything here shimmered in shades of turquoise: the sea, the shutters, the skies. I moseyed from café to café, drank icy Aperol, tried Ichnusa, ate pasta, and watched the light dance on the water like it had nowhere else to be. One day stretched into a dreamy nine-hour boat ride around the archipelago. Spargi, Budelli, Santa Maria, and Caprera were so dazzling it felt like I’d stepped into a painting. From there, the trip wound south through Olbia and into the island’s countryside by train and bus, passing goats and groves along the way before reaching Cagliari.

Cagliari had a different rhythm: bold, bright, and full of life. The whole city held its breath during a Euro Cup game, and I ended my trip with a perfect little picnic in bed, fruit, cheese, and good bread, before an early morning flight to Florence. The journey to the airport involved yet another train (strike chaos included), but Sardinia had worked its magic by then. This wasn’t just a travel chapter; it was a full reset. It was quiet, light-soaked, and exactly the softness I didn’t know I needed.