Ulrich Pracht calls his second garden—located over 1,000 kilometers south of his first one in Düsseldorf, on the island of Sardinia—his "mystery-shrouded green hell." Here, on the Costa Smeralda, he found a private sanctuary after the Hotel Cala di Volpe had served as the social hub of his summer vacations for over thirty years. The holiday villa—which Ulrich Pracht had originally viewed as a rental property on the recommendation of a local real estate agent (who had somewhat boldly predicted, "You will love this house—and you will buy it!")—would indeed become his new retreat. The villa is surrounded by a Mediterranean garden featuring rocks, winding paths, and grottoes. Ulrich Pracht discovered Sardinia and its "Gemstone Coast" quite by chance in the early 1970s. While scouting for new locations for his creative work, an advertising campaign for the Consortium Costa Smeralda in Der Spiegel magazine caught his eye: white sand, white horses, a stunning blonde, turquoise seas, and blue skies—all designed to entice readers to purchase holiday property there. Ulrich Pracht used the attached coupon to request further information. The material arrived by return mail, accompanied by an invitation to the Düsseldorf Hilton, where the Costa Smeralda was to be officially presented. "After a fine meal, we were shown a slide presentation," Ulrich Pracht recalls, vividly remembering the very evening on which this new love affair began. "Each image was more beautiful than the last. I was captivated—this was going to be my new location." At the conclusion of the presentation, interested parties were offered a special package: fly to Sardinia at a reduced rate, stay at the Hotel Cala di Volpe, and tour the holiday resort. "We were given a charming room in the tower, and as newlyweds, we felt absolutely euphoric." However, the Prachts declined the offer to be chauffeured around to view available plots of land. “Had we bought back then, the price would have been a bargain compared to today. But then we wouldn’t have spent thirty years at this hotel.” The Cala di Volpe would become the central hotspot in Ulrich Pracht’s life—a place that inspired him time and again. “My father—during those first ten years we traveled there—used to call it ‘Knaller di Volpe.’ And I would say: ‘Dad, it really is a blast!’ I was constantly discovering new perspectives in Sardinia, and for decades, I was one of the few photographers permitted to shoot fashion at the hotel.”