Cagliari is the capital of Sardinia, but we only pass through this time, with our focus on beaches and unfriendly mountain towns. With around 150,000 people and 430,000 in the metropolitan area, Cagliari is a major city and doesn't match our theme for the trip.
We whiz through the edge of Cagliari to the airport (remember, we're still driving in Sardinia), check in, and head into the departure area to see what we can find. The bar by the gates has an incredible assortment of appetizers on display, but we aren't hungry and only stop to appreciate it and take a few pictures.
Snacks for sale at the bar in the departure area
And, then we wait
We cause a little discussion at immigration on our way out as we had entered Italy in Pisa and, when we took the ferry to Sardinia, we just walked in. The agent searches our passports for an entry stamp into Sardinia (we think, "keep us, yes, we can stay!"), but finally one of them finds the Pisa entry, shows it to the others, and we are good to go (darn).
It's a cold, rainy day in London and, rather than take the tube into the city and wander around in the rain for an hour or two, we elect to have dinner at our hotel, the Renaissance London Heathrow. We have a great view of a main runway from our room and from the lounge, where we go for initial appetizers and a glass (or two) of wine. We then dine in the bar and are truly pleased: sliders for Laura and Jennifer and fish and chips (with tartar sauce and mushy peas) for me. I get the largest fish piece that I've ever seen served as fish & chips and devour it all.
Bar food: sliders, fish & chips
Closeup on the fish & chips
In the morning, we hop on the local bus, which is free within the Heathrow terminal area, and head over to our flight back home. Buses Number 105, 111, 140, 285, and 555 all stop outside the hotel and head straight into the Heathrow Central Bus Terminal, from where it is only a short walk to either the tube into London or HeathrowTerminals 2 and 3.
Well, Toto, we're not in Italy any more!
We'll have some new adventures before we return to Italy next year, but, in the meantime, we share and remember our great times, meals, and discoveries!