We left Barcelona on the Norwegian Epic. If you know my aunt and uncle well, you’d expect they’d take me on a cruise because it’s the best way to see so many cities in a short time. I thought cruising was for an older crowd, but I saw passengers from all walks of life aboard the Epic: families from China and India, young couples from Canada, Russian singles, groups of friends from the U.S., and the occasional single senior citizen.

The ship embarked on its journey towards Cagliari around sunset and had a party on deck with drinks, a dinner buffet, live music, and these awesome frozen yogurt machines! I know. I’m pretty tacky when it comes to ice cream or frozen yogurt. I caved.

We arrived in Cagliari early in the morning. Once the captain of the ship announced that we were clear to disembark, we packed our scarves (just in case) and cameras. Right off the ship, tour buses swarmed the exit and tour guides pressured us into taking their one-hour tours of the city’s most popular sights for $10 per person. It wasn’t exactly the trap that I thought it’d be. We headed towards Poetto, the famous beach where the tourists go during the day and the locals party at night. The tour guide pointed out some pink flamingos that inhabit the swamp area across the beach.

We rode through Castello, or the Old Town, of Cagliari. The island served as a military base for Italy and Spain, its name literally means “Castle,” and now serves as a point of commerce for Italy.

We passed through the Pulpito di Guglielmo nella Cattedrale di Cagliari, an interesting cathedral shaped like an octopus. Our bus tour ended in a plaza below Castello, where there were lots of shops, eateries, bakeries, and street vendors.

We noticed the touristy part of the city is aged compared to the clean cut streets beyond the university zone. We got lost trying to find our way back to the ship, but found their business district is very modernized compared to Castello and the plaza below.

Our last stop was at a touristy pizzeria near the port. It wasn’t the best pizza, but the melanzane was decent. More to come!