Sloshing through Corsica – a somewhat soggy trip with time in sunny Nice
Sep 28th, 2009 | 08:24 AM
#1
Original Poster
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 149
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Sloshing through Corsica – a somewhat soggy trip with time in sunny Nice
Despite the weather – it rained at least part of all but 2 days we were in Corsica, we had a great time and definitely want to return. It’s a very interesting place and in 10 days we barely scratched the surface of the northern half.
Background – DH and I are in our late 30s/early40s and while not extreme budget travelers, generally opt for less as opposed to more expensive hotels and restaurants. Our goal on this trip was to get at least an overview of the northern half of the island with the idea that we’d like to return for a more in depth look at the places we enjoyed. I understand most French and can express myself enough to get the point across. DH is a complete non-French speaker, although by the end of the trip he had picked up a lot. He is now determined to learn Corse before our next trip and bought many grammar and vocab books – mostly in French, which I guess will ensure that I learn some too while I translate them for him! Very few people in Corsica speak English, so it was very helpful that one of us could understand most things.
Highlights:
Nice – I loved the city even though we were only there for 2 afternoons. I definitely want to spend a week or more in city and surrounding area.
Corsica – the mountains (when we could see them), the water (both mineral and sea), the beaches, the food – not a place for vegetarians! myrtle aperitifs, the endless array of domesticated animals wandering around on the roads, our wonderful Peugeot 308 diesel which got 55+ mpg, stumbling on a polyphonic group practicing for Mass (or a recording session?) in a huge church in Bastia. They were amazing singers and it was wonderful to catch some of the polyphonic singing that the island is known for. We were always in the wrong town on the wrong day when it came to actually catching a concert. Next time we’ll certainly make an effort to attend one.
Aside from the lady at the car rental place in Calvi (she was downright rude), the people were friendly but not effusive. People were very helpful when we asked for directions and the like, but I didn’t get the feeling that a complete stranger would ever invite me in for a meal which has happened to me in Greece and Cyprus. The Corsicans are more reserved.
Not so high-lights:
Getting to our flight in Philly. The day we left my DH realized he’d managed to leave his suitcase at our house 2hrs north of Philly (don’t ask). He went to retrieve it, but on the way back down the NE Extension of the PA Turnpike he got caught in construction and was stuck on the highway for 3 hours. It turns out they’d been doing some rock blasting for a new bridge and used too much dynamite and had covered the road with debris. Needless to say we were in a panic since at 2pm he was still 2 hrs north of the city (our flight was at 6) with no end in sight. I called BA and was told it would cost $3K to rebook if we missed our flight. Long story short, it all worked out and we made our flight with time to spare, but it was not a good afternoon for my blood pressure.
Making our transfer at LHR – we are living proof that you can make a 1 hr connection at Terminal 5, but I’d highly advise against it. We looked like we were trying to reenact the OJ Simpson commercial as we elbowed our way through huge security lines shedding clothing and liquids as we went and then running madly for our gate. We made it and so did our bags (miraculously!) but it was not a pleasant experience and we lost one bottle of contact lens juice and a bottle opener to security in the process.
The weather – the rain put a damper so to speak on our plans to hike. Each of the days we’d set aside for hiking were rainy and because of our tight schedule we couldn’t switch things around. September only averages 5 days of rain and we caught them all and then some. Of course I’d specifically chosen to go at the beginning of September because I’d read that the rainy season starts toward the end. Oh well. No day was a complete wash-out, which was nice, but we ended up spending more time in the car than I’d anticipated.
Our itinerary - I made sure that we didn’t spend less than 2 nights at any one spot, but that wasn’t enough. I am now a firm believer in the “never less than 3 nights in one place” approach to travelling. If we go back, I’d probably do 5 nights in Ile Rousse and then 5 nights somewhere around Corte/Vallee d’Asco, with 3 nights in Ajaccio if we had time – that is, of course, if we don’t do the southern half.
Our hotel in Bastia – the Posta Vecchia. I’ve posted a review on TripAdvisor, but this hotel really sucked. It did have a great location near the Old Port, but our room was unacceptably tiny and dingy for what we paid (85 €/night).
On the whole the positives far outweighed the negatives and I would love to go back some time when it’s not raining.
The Trip:
Day 1 – PHL-LHR-NCE.
As described above, the travelling portions were a little tricky. We generally enjoy flying cattle class on BA and always order one of the special meals (Muslim seems to be the best). We watched The Hangover (very funny) and managed to sleep for a couple of hours. Arrival in Nice was uneventful and we picked up our bags without incident.
We were booked at the All Seasons Vieux Nice Port since it’s only a 10 min walk to the port and we had a ferry to catch at 8am the next day. I’d read online that you could take a bus to the port so that’s what we did. We caught a #23 right outside the arrivals hall for 1€ each and rode it for a few stops until we saw a stop that was also marked with a #9 and we transferred (for free). We rode the #9 all the way to the end (about 30 min) and then walked the 4 blocks to our hotel. When we arrived around noon the desk clerk told us that our room wouldn’t be ready until 2, so we changed into shorts (it was hot in Nice) and prepared to head out for lunch – at which point she told us the room was ready. We took our luggage up to the nice sized room – queen sized bed, flat screen tv, odd bathroom with a full length window from the shower into the room (which leaked into the carpet). The walls were the most amazing color of chartreuse I’d ever seen.
We then headed out to the port area and had a nice lunch at one of the many restaurants that line the port. DH had a seafood gratine and I had something that I don’t remember, but it was edible (chicken breast Roquefort I think). I did have the crème caramel for dessert, however! Cost was approx 35 €. We admired some of the amazing yachts in the harbour and then headed back to the hotel where we showered and crashed for a couple of hours before heading out to explore more the area around the port. The architecture in Nice is wonderful – very elegant wrought iron balconies and the apt bldgs are painted lovely colours.
We ended up having dinner at a Corsican place on the other side of the port and DH had fresh grilled sardines that he loved. I wasn’t that hungry so I had a plate of Corsican charcuterie (which was nowhere near as good as what we got later on the island). Throughout our entire trip we’d share a ½ l of the house red with our meals and with maybe one exception it was always very tasty and inexpensive (5-7€). We’re not great wine connoisseurs, so it didn’t make sense to us to spend a lot on wine. We also often did the prix fixe for lunch which in Corsica averaged 11-16 €. After that it was home to bed in preparation for our early departure the next morning.
Day 2 – Nice to Calvi via ferry – Calvi to Speloncato via Peugeot
We were up early to catch our 8:30 ferry. Breakfast (included) was served from 6am on and was quite extensive compared to the rest of our trip – croissants, bread, yogurt, meat, cheese, juice, cereal. We walked down to the ferry and got on board with no problems (we used AFerry.to to book and had no problems). We were told to arrive by 7:30, but in future I’d try to arrive earlier in order to get a deck chair. There are cabins available for around 25€, but it didn’t seem worth it. We ended up sitting on a lifejacket container for the entire 5.5 hrs, which was fine but a little hard on our backsides. We were pleased to see that there was a luggage storage place (no real security but it was in a separate room with a locked door during the voyage) for our suitcases on the main deck and we kept our backpacks with us. The ferries are huge and have many decks and restaurants and bars. We wiled away the time reading and watching the passing boats/scenery. It’s not the most time efficient way to get to Corsica but it was relatively cheap (144€ rtn for 2 people) and pleasant.
We arrived in Calvi and found our way to the Europcar office. The woman there was the most unpleasant person we encountered on the island and on the whole trip. We declined insurance b/c we’d booked with Amex and were using their extensive add-on policy. This necessitated that DH sign 5 different forms stating that he’d declined the insurance and all the bad things that could happen. The woman told us that we had to bring the car back clean or else. She also told us that the office in Bastia wasn’t open at 7am when we’d planned to drop the car off (she was wrong) and was generally very disapproving. After about 45 min we finally got out of there and picked up our diesel, 4 door Peugeot 308. This was a great car and I wish we could get them in the US! It had pep and got amazing gas mileage. I drove since DH had developed painful shin splints from our sprint through LHR. We headed out of town immediately since we weren’t sure how far it was to our hotel and wanted to arrive in good light.
Driving in Corsica is an experience and not one for the faint of heart. The main (National) roads are fine, but after that it gets a little dicey. On our maps we came to realize that the yellow roads could mostly be counted upon to have 1.5-2 lanes and fairly decent pavement, but that the white roads were generally only 1-1.5 lanes wide and that the quality of the pavement varied considerably. Couple that with blind curves, sheer drop offs with no guard rails, large busses, very confident (read speedy) Corsican drivers and all the livestock wandering around on the roads– it was interesting to say the least. The nice thing was that people were very polite and as long as you pulled off to the right to allow the faster cars to pass, everyone was happy and waved/flashed their lights to signal appreciation.
We made it to Speloncato after about 45 min and arrived at the Hotel a Spelunca, the former home of Cardinal Savelli (aka the Corsican Dog). It’s a great building in a small village in the foothills with wonderful views down to the sea. Our room was a good size with a double bed and amazingly violet walls (there seems to be a theme here with the paint) and a lovely view. When we arrived other guests had somehow mistakenly ended up in our room (the doors aren’t locked when they’re empty). They’d gone somewhere so the very nice gentleman at the desk moved their stuff out and quickly cleaned our bathroom for us since they’d used it. We headed out to explore the town and met a German/British couple who were bicycling around the island for 3 weeks. We did see lots of cyclists (many much older than us) all over the place gamely peddling up and down the island’s mountainous roads, mostly without helmets. It seemed like an unpleasant and risky life choice to me, but they were determined. We had dinner in the only restaurant in the village directly across from the hotel. I tried a Cap Corse as an aperitif and decided that I didn’t need to do that again. It wasn’t horrible, just not my cup of tea. The prix fixe dinner included Corsican meat/bean soup, grilled pork chops and local cheese. Corsica produces many kinds of delicious cheese and it is always served with local fig jam. It is a delicious combination. I think the bill was around 36€ including wine.
Day 3 – beach, charcuterie, Piana, and a dinner worth searching for…
Background – DH and I are in our late 30s/early40s and while not extreme budget travelers, generally opt for less as opposed to more expensive hotels and restaurants. Our goal on this trip was to get at least an overview of the northern half of the island with the idea that we’d like to return for a more in depth look at the places we enjoyed. I understand most French and can express myself enough to get the point across. DH is a complete non-French speaker, although by the end of the trip he had picked up a lot. He is now determined to learn Corse before our next trip and bought many grammar and vocab books – mostly in French, which I guess will ensure that I learn some too while I translate them for him! Very few people in Corsica speak English, so it was very helpful that one of us could understand most things.
Highlights:
Nice – I loved the city even though we were only there for 2 afternoons. I definitely want to spend a week or more in city and surrounding area.
Corsica – the mountains (when we could see them), the water (both mineral and sea), the beaches, the food – not a place for vegetarians! myrtle aperitifs, the endless array of domesticated animals wandering around on the roads, our wonderful Peugeot 308 diesel which got 55+ mpg, stumbling on a polyphonic group practicing for Mass (or a recording session?) in a huge church in Bastia. They were amazing singers and it was wonderful to catch some of the polyphonic singing that the island is known for. We were always in the wrong town on the wrong day when it came to actually catching a concert. Next time we’ll certainly make an effort to attend one.
Aside from the lady at the car rental place in Calvi (she was downright rude), the people were friendly but not effusive. People were very helpful when we asked for directions and the like, but I didn’t get the feeling that a complete stranger would ever invite me in for a meal which has happened to me in Greece and Cyprus. The Corsicans are more reserved.
Not so high-lights:
Getting to our flight in Philly. The day we left my DH realized he’d managed to leave his suitcase at our house 2hrs north of Philly (don’t ask). He went to retrieve it, but on the way back down the NE Extension of the PA Turnpike he got caught in construction and was stuck on the highway for 3 hours. It turns out they’d been doing some rock blasting for a new bridge and used too much dynamite and had covered the road with debris. Needless to say we were in a panic since at 2pm he was still 2 hrs north of the city (our flight was at 6) with no end in sight. I called BA and was told it would cost $3K to rebook if we missed our flight. Long story short, it all worked out and we made our flight with time to spare, but it was not a good afternoon for my blood pressure.
Making our transfer at LHR – we are living proof that you can make a 1 hr connection at Terminal 5, but I’d highly advise against it. We looked like we were trying to reenact the OJ Simpson commercial as we elbowed our way through huge security lines shedding clothing and liquids as we went and then running madly for our gate. We made it and so did our bags (miraculously!) but it was not a pleasant experience and we lost one bottle of contact lens juice and a bottle opener to security in the process.
The weather – the rain put a damper so to speak on our plans to hike. Each of the days we’d set aside for hiking were rainy and because of our tight schedule we couldn’t switch things around. September only averages 5 days of rain and we caught them all and then some. Of course I’d specifically chosen to go at the beginning of September because I’d read that the rainy season starts toward the end. Oh well. No day was a complete wash-out, which was nice, but we ended up spending more time in the car than I’d anticipated.
Our itinerary - I made sure that we didn’t spend less than 2 nights at any one spot, but that wasn’t enough. I am now a firm believer in the “never less than 3 nights in one place” approach to travelling. If we go back, I’d probably do 5 nights in Ile Rousse and then 5 nights somewhere around Corte/Vallee d’Asco, with 3 nights in Ajaccio if we had time – that is, of course, if we don’t do the southern half.
Our hotel in Bastia – the Posta Vecchia. I’ve posted a review on TripAdvisor, but this hotel really sucked. It did have a great location near the Old Port, but our room was unacceptably tiny and dingy for what we paid (85 €/night).
On the whole the positives far outweighed the negatives and I would love to go back some time when it’s not raining.
The Trip:
Day 1 – PHL-LHR-NCE.
As described above, the travelling portions were a little tricky. We generally enjoy flying cattle class on BA and always order one of the special meals (Muslim seems to be the best). We watched The Hangover (very funny) and managed to sleep for a couple of hours. Arrival in Nice was uneventful and we picked up our bags without incident.
We were booked at the All Seasons Vieux Nice Port since it’s only a 10 min walk to the port and we had a ferry to catch at 8am the next day. I’d read online that you could take a bus to the port so that’s what we did. We caught a #23 right outside the arrivals hall for 1€ each and rode it for a few stops until we saw a stop that was also marked with a #9 and we transferred (for free). We rode the #9 all the way to the end (about 30 min) and then walked the 4 blocks to our hotel. When we arrived around noon the desk clerk told us that our room wouldn’t be ready until 2, so we changed into shorts (it was hot in Nice) and prepared to head out for lunch – at which point she told us the room was ready. We took our luggage up to the nice sized room – queen sized bed, flat screen tv, odd bathroom with a full length window from the shower into the room (which leaked into the carpet). The walls were the most amazing color of chartreuse I’d ever seen.
We then headed out to the port area and had a nice lunch at one of the many restaurants that line the port. DH had a seafood gratine and I had something that I don’t remember, but it was edible (chicken breast Roquefort I think). I did have the crème caramel for dessert, however! Cost was approx 35 €. We admired some of the amazing yachts in the harbour and then headed back to the hotel where we showered and crashed for a couple of hours before heading out to explore more the area around the port. The architecture in Nice is wonderful – very elegant wrought iron balconies and the apt bldgs are painted lovely colours.
We ended up having dinner at a Corsican place on the other side of the port and DH had fresh grilled sardines that he loved. I wasn’t that hungry so I had a plate of Corsican charcuterie (which was nowhere near as good as what we got later on the island). Throughout our entire trip we’d share a ½ l of the house red with our meals and with maybe one exception it was always very tasty and inexpensive (5-7€). We’re not great wine connoisseurs, so it didn’t make sense to us to spend a lot on wine. We also often did the prix fixe for lunch which in Corsica averaged 11-16 €. After that it was home to bed in preparation for our early departure the next morning.
Day 2 – Nice to Calvi via ferry – Calvi to Speloncato via Peugeot
We were up early to catch our 8:30 ferry. Breakfast (included) was served from 6am on and was quite extensive compared to the rest of our trip – croissants, bread, yogurt, meat, cheese, juice, cereal. We walked down to the ferry and got on board with no problems (we used AFerry.to to book and had no problems). We were told to arrive by 7:30, but in future I’d try to arrive earlier in order to get a deck chair. There are cabins available for around 25€, but it didn’t seem worth it. We ended up sitting on a lifejacket container for the entire 5.5 hrs, which was fine but a little hard on our backsides. We were pleased to see that there was a luggage storage place (no real security but it was in a separate room with a locked door during the voyage) for our suitcases on the main deck and we kept our backpacks with us. The ferries are huge and have many decks and restaurants and bars. We wiled away the time reading and watching the passing boats/scenery. It’s not the most time efficient way to get to Corsica but it was relatively cheap (144€ rtn for 2 people) and pleasant.
We arrived in Calvi and found our way to the Europcar office. The woman there was the most unpleasant person we encountered on the island and on the whole trip. We declined insurance b/c we’d booked with Amex and were using their extensive add-on policy. This necessitated that DH sign 5 different forms stating that he’d declined the insurance and all the bad things that could happen. The woman told us that we had to bring the car back clean or else. She also told us that the office in Bastia wasn’t open at 7am when we’d planned to drop the car off (she was wrong) and was generally very disapproving. After about 45 min we finally got out of there and picked up our diesel, 4 door Peugeot 308. This was a great car and I wish we could get them in the US! It had pep and got amazing gas mileage. I drove since DH had developed painful shin splints from our sprint through LHR. We headed out of town immediately since we weren’t sure how far it was to our hotel and wanted to arrive in good light.
Driving in Corsica is an experience and not one for the faint of heart. The main (National) roads are fine, but after that it gets a little dicey. On our maps we came to realize that the yellow roads could mostly be counted upon to have 1.5-2 lanes and fairly decent pavement, but that the white roads were generally only 1-1.5 lanes wide and that the quality of the pavement varied considerably. Couple that with blind curves, sheer drop offs with no guard rails, large busses, very confident (read speedy) Corsican drivers and all the livestock wandering around on the roads– it was interesting to say the least. The nice thing was that people were very polite and as long as you pulled off to the right to allow the faster cars to pass, everyone was happy and waved/flashed their lights to signal appreciation.
We made it to Speloncato after about 45 min and arrived at the Hotel a Spelunca, the former home of Cardinal Savelli (aka the Corsican Dog). It’s a great building in a small village in the foothills with wonderful views down to the sea. Our room was a good size with a double bed and amazingly violet walls (there seems to be a theme here with the paint) and a lovely view. When we arrived other guests had somehow mistakenly ended up in our room (the doors aren’t locked when they’re empty). They’d gone somewhere so the very nice gentleman at the desk moved their stuff out and quickly cleaned our bathroom for us since they’d used it. We headed out to explore the town and met a German/British couple who were bicycling around the island for 3 weeks. We did see lots of cyclists (many much older than us) all over the place gamely peddling up and down the island’s mountainous roads, mostly without helmets. It seemed like an unpleasant and risky life choice to me, but they were determined. We had dinner in the only restaurant in the village directly across from the hotel. I tried a Cap Corse as an aperitif and decided that I didn’t need to do that again. It wasn’t horrible, just not my cup of tea. The prix fixe dinner included Corsican meat/bean soup, grilled pork chops and local cheese. Corsica produces many kinds of delicious cheese and it is always served with local fig jam. It is a delicious combination. I think the bill was around 36€ including wine.
Day 3 – beach, charcuterie, Piana, and a dinner worth searching for…
Sep 29th, 2009 | 12:14 PM
#2
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 24,040
Likes: 6
Even though all of the details are fascinating, I am still reeling from the idea of forgetting a suitcase at home. I have forgotten just about everything in the book on various trips, but never my baggage! So at least I know that it is possible as well/
Corsica has become the prime destination for French 'continental' tourists in the last few years, and I have not come across anybody who is not hooked on it.
I am therefore afraid that soon it will not be so nice.
Corsica has become the prime destination for French 'continental' tourists in the last few years, and I have not come across anybody who is not hooked on it.
I am therefore afraid that soon it will not be so nice.
Sep 30th, 2009 | 06:23 AM
#5
Original Poster
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 149
Likes: 0
Thanks for the comments - I was hoping that my fondness for details wasn't driving everyone nuts. I'll try to keep it somewhat succinct.
Currently Corsica is "protected" by the fact that as a part of France it falls under French environmental laws which have classed almost all of the island as environmentally sensitive and therefore greatly restricts development on the coast and in the mtns. There is some fear that if Corsica gains its independence its leaders will have to bow to commercial development pressures in order to make its economy viable (which apparently it really isn't currently). It's a tough situation.
Day 3 – beach, charcuterie, Piana, and a dinner worth searching for
Woke up to beautiful sunshine and decided to head down to Ile Rousse and the beach. Drove down some very twisty roads to the main road along the coast where we stopped at a roadside stand to buy “fresh” charcuterie, sheep’s milk cheese, bread and a cuke for lunch. We also bought some bottles of Corsica’s famed mineral water. Supposedly it has some of the purest water in Europe and it was very tasty. The fizzy water is quite low in salts, and so I liked it a lot more than Perrier or even soda/seltzer water. The still water (St. George) is very good as well. We drove through Ile Rousse, but didn’t have time to stop on our way to Bodri Beach. It’s a bit of a hike (5-10 min) from the paid lot down to the beach, but not too bad. One really nice thing along the north coast of the island is that there’s a train that runs between Calvi and St. Florent that stops at all the beaches. If I went to the island again I’d stay in Ile Rousse and use the train to explore parts of the north coast without a car. The beach was very nice – white sand and turquoise water. In the summer there’s a lifeguard and there’s also a small restaurant that we didn’t check out. We spent a lovely 2 hrs swimming and relaxing and having a picnic lunch.
The guide books had mentioned an artist/craft village nearby called Piana so we decided to take a look. Unfortunately, they neglected to mention that all the shops are closed on Sundays. We walked around for a bit and had a drink at the only café and then headed home since there wasn’t much to see with the village closed up tight. The stone houses were very pretty, however. For dinner we made reservations at the la ferme auberge l'Aghjale which is somewhere near Santa Reparata di Balagna. We got thoroughly lost trying to find it, but were successful in the end and the food was most definitely worth the driving in circles. They only offer a 27€ 5 course prix fixe for dinner, and specialize in Corsican dishes such as sanglier (wild boar), tripe, pasta shells stuffed with the local brocciu (sort of like ricotta, used extensively in Corsican cooking), tarte aux herbes and several other dishes. All of the other guests were French. You can stay at the farm as well, but we didn’t find out the prices.
Day 4 – a long drive to Cargese through the Calanques de Piana
We were up bright and early for our drive down to Cargese on the coast road through the Calanques and past the Scandola Nature Preserve. The day started sunny, but quickly became cloudy and intermittently rainy as we headed south from Calvi. The drive was gorgeous, especially the views of the Scandola peninsula which is an UNESCO world natural heritage site. All land access is prohibited, so the only way to see it up close is by boat from Calvi or Porto (on our list for another trip). The only problem with the drive was that it was very long and the road was very narrow and twisty and after 4+ hrs I was a little tired of playing the passing game, especially after we got closer to Porto and caught up with the bus traffic. There were several places where there wasn’t room for both a bus and any other traffic so we all had to stop and negotiate who would pass where. Add large numbers of pedestrians wandering around on the road in the calanques and I was happy when the drive was over. In retrospect I’d either do the drive from up the south (shorter distance to the pretty parts) or stop in Porto or Piana for the night so that we could spend more time enjoying the scenery and doing some hiking, as opposed to being forced to drive on through to make it to Cargese. The calanques are rock formations that have been eroded into different shapes. It is very beautiful, but I shudder to think what the roads are like in August.
Cargese is an interesting town in that it was settled in the 17th by Greek refugees and so has the island’s only active Greek Orthodox church. This church sits across a small ravine from the Roman Catholic church and they share a priest. We visited both churches and I particularly liked the frescos in the Greek one. In Cargese we stayed at the Hotel Continental which was a basic, clean 2 star for 52€ not including breakfast. The hotel is right on the main street and I suspect would be quite noisy in the summer when the restaurants below are full of people. There is a hotel called the Bel Mare on the Ajaccio side of town that looks like it would be very nice since the rooms are under the restaurant part and directly overlook the sea, not the road. We explored the town a bit, bought postcards (and found stamps to the US with no problems). The rain had stopped so we were able to enjoy a drink outside, although it was chilly. We ate dinner down the in port at U Rasaghiu. DH had the local spiny lobster which he said was delicious and since I don’t eat seafood I had a sanglier stew which was fine, but nothing special.
Day 5 – a brief stop in Ajaccio and then into the mountains.
Currently Corsica is "protected" by the fact that as a part of France it falls under French environmental laws which have classed almost all of the island as environmentally sensitive and therefore greatly restricts development on the coast and in the mtns. There is some fear that if Corsica gains its independence its leaders will have to bow to commercial development pressures in order to make its economy viable (which apparently it really isn't currently). It's a tough situation.
Day 3 – beach, charcuterie, Piana, and a dinner worth searching for
Woke up to beautiful sunshine and decided to head down to Ile Rousse and the beach. Drove down some very twisty roads to the main road along the coast where we stopped at a roadside stand to buy “fresh” charcuterie, sheep’s milk cheese, bread and a cuke for lunch. We also bought some bottles of Corsica’s famed mineral water. Supposedly it has some of the purest water in Europe and it was very tasty. The fizzy water is quite low in salts, and so I liked it a lot more than Perrier or even soda/seltzer water. The still water (St. George) is very good as well. We drove through Ile Rousse, but didn’t have time to stop on our way to Bodri Beach. It’s a bit of a hike (5-10 min) from the paid lot down to the beach, but not too bad. One really nice thing along the north coast of the island is that there’s a train that runs between Calvi and St. Florent that stops at all the beaches. If I went to the island again I’d stay in Ile Rousse and use the train to explore parts of the north coast without a car. The beach was very nice – white sand and turquoise water. In the summer there’s a lifeguard and there’s also a small restaurant that we didn’t check out. We spent a lovely 2 hrs swimming and relaxing and having a picnic lunch.
The guide books had mentioned an artist/craft village nearby called Piana so we decided to take a look. Unfortunately, they neglected to mention that all the shops are closed on Sundays. We walked around for a bit and had a drink at the only café and then headed home since there wasn’t much to see with the village closed up tight. The stone houses were very pretty, however. For dinner we made reservations at the la ferme auberge l'Aghjale which is somewhere near Santa Reparata di Balagna. We got thoroughly lost trying to find it, but were successful in the end and the food was most definitely worth the driving in circles. They only offer a 27€ 5 course prix fixe for dinner, and specialize in Corsican dishes such as sanglier (wild boar), tripe, pasta shells stuffed with the local brocciu (sort of like ricotta, used extensively in Corsican cooking), tarte aux herbes and several other dishes. All of the other guests were French. You can stay at the farm as well, but we didn’t find out the prices.
Day 4 – a long drive to Cargese through the Calanques de Piana
We were up bright and early for our drive down to Cargese on the coast road through the Calanques and past the Scandola Nature Preserve. The day started sunny, but quickly became cloudy and intermittently rainy as we headed south from Calvi. The drive was gorgeous, especially the views of the Scandola peninsula which is an UNESCO world natural heritage site. All land access is prohibited, so the only way to see it up close is by boat from Calvi or Porto (on our list for another trip). The only problem with the drive was that it was very long and the road was very narrow and twisty and after 4+ hrs I was a little tired of playing the passing game, especially after we got closer to Porto and caught up with the bus traffic. There were several places where there wasn’t room for both a bus and any other traffic so we all had to stop and negotiate who would pass where. Add large numbers of pedestrians wandering around on the road in the calanques and I was happy when the drive was over. In retrospect I’d either do the drive from up the south (shorter distance to the pretty parts) or stop in Porto or Piana for the night so that we could spend more time enjoying the scenery and doing some hiking, as opposed to being forced to drive on through to make it to Cargese. The calanques are rock formations that have been eroded into different shapes. It is very beautiful, but I shudder to think what the roads are like in August.
Cargese is an interesting town in that it was settled in the 17th by Greek refugees and so has the island’s only active Greek Orthodox church. This church sits across a small ravine from the Roman Catholic church and they share a priest. We visited both churches and I particularly liked the frescos in the Greek one. In Cargese we stayed at the Hotel Continental which was a basic, clean 2 star for 52€ not including breakfast. The hotel is right on the main street and I suspect would be quite noisy in the summer when the restaurants below are full of people. There is a hotel called the Bel Mare on the Ajaccio side of town that looks like it would be very nice since the rooms are under the restaurant part and directly overlook the sea, not the road. We explored the town a bit, bought postcards (and found stamps to the US with no problems). The rain had stopped so we were able to enjoy a drink outside, although it was chilly. We ate dinner down the in port at U Rasaghiu. DH had the local spiny lobster which he said was delicious and since I don’t eat seafood I had a sanglier stew which was fine, but nothing special.
Day 5 – a brief stop in Ajaccio and then into the mountains.
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Oct 26th, 2009 | 11:26 AM
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Day 5 – a brief stop in Ajaccio and then into the mountains.
We were up fairly early and went out to buy breakfast and snack food at the boulangerie and the supermarket. We found that the breakfasts in Corsica were overpriced (5-7€) for what you got – a couple of pieces of bread and a croissant plus coffee. The supermarket had a great selection of locally produced charcuterie and cheese so we stocked up, along with bottles of the delicious mineral water.
Fortified, we drove down to the beach, Plage Pero below our hotel. It is a long sandy beach and looks like it would be very nice to swim at. Unfortunately, it was a little chilly for us, so we turned around and headed south towards Ajaccio. The drive along the coast was very pretty with lots of turquoise water. One of our guidebooks said that the traffic in Ajaccio is terrible, and I would definitely agree. It took 20 min to crawl into the center of town. We were able to find parking in a large garage under the very large Place General de Gaulle. We then hurried to the daily farmer’s market that was just about to close at 1pm. We wandered around drooling over the charcuterie and cheese and cursing USDA for not allowing us to bring any of the meat home. We bought some more snacks and then headed off to find lunch. We ended up going to a small café/bar on the Rue Bonaparte across from the very swish Hotel Palazzu u Domu. We split a Panini and a Nicoise salad and a ½ pichet of house red. I think it cost about 25€. We found Napoleon’s boyhood home nearby and took pics out front but didn’t go in because of time constraints. We did, however, take time so that DH could buy several books on learning Corse. Again, because of our tight schedule we were not able to explore the city in any meaningful way. I would definitely like to spend at least a full day there wandering around.
We then headed out of town (much faster than heading in) and into the mountains. It took about 1.5 hrs to reach the hamlet of Guitera les Bains where we would spend 2 nights at the Gîte d’Etape Chez Paul-Antoine. This is a hostel primarily for people who are hiking the Mare e Mare Sud trail. We chose this hostel because the owner (P-A) makes his own charcuterie (did I mention that DH is obsessed with charcuterie?). There are 2 rooms with 4 bunks and both nights we had room mates. We chose the ½ board which was a good thing b/c there really was nowhere to eat nearby. One thing that really struck us about the mountain villages in Corsica is how few shops there are. There is the occasional café, but I guess most people make the trek an hour or so to the coast when they need supplies.
Our roommates the first night were 2 very nice Swiss German ladies. One was on her 25th trip to Corsica and the other her 2nd. We gave them a lift down to the mineral hot springs. The springs are down off of the main road just below the gas station (which didn’t sell anything other than gasoline). The water is very hot (40°C + according to someone) and bubbles up into a large concrete tub that the villagers used to use for washing clothes. Now it’s just used by tourists to soak in the mineral water. We all had a nice soak, although DH couldn’t get in all the way b/c of the heat. There’s a stream below that some people clambered down to in order to cool off.
Dinner was presented family style for the 8 of us staying at the hostel and few other people. It was a delicious homemade meal with the typical 3 courses (tarte aux herbes, sanglier and cheese or sweet). You could also order pichets of wine and various aperitifs and liqueurs. Things got quite jolly with several rounds of shots being drunk by the assembled group to sample the Corsican liquors. The cost to stay at the gîte was 38€/pp night for half board.
Day 6 – a soggy drive around the mountains
It had poured rain the night before, but the day dawned dry. We had a basic breakfast of bread and jam and coffee/tea. The breakfasts in Corsica tended to be very basic – just bread and jam, no croissants, meat or cheese or yogurt. The dry weather didn’t last long, however, and by 11 am the heavy clouds and showers had rolled in again. It didn’t pour all day, but it didn’t make us want to start out on an extensive hike without good maps. Instead we explored the area around Guitera by car and drove through several pretty villages and took almost every road available. We stopped for a late lunch in Zicavo where we apparently annoyed the owner by sharing a plate of stuffed veggies and frites instead of ordering two separate plates. The restaurant was very full with motor cyclists and the entire local gendarme force who were having a great time. We then took a long drive up towards les Bergeries de Bassetta which is a gite for the GR20. One can also use it as a shortcut to reach the climb to Mt Incudine. I would definitely consider doing that on a return visit. The drive reminded me of back country drives we like to take in the Adirondacks. The hiking trails snaked everywhere throughout the valleys and mountains. They seem to be very well marked with orange blazes which were evident throughout the villages. Many of the other villages also contained gîtes for all the hikers on all of the trails.
We had new roommates, this time a very nice couple from Belgium. Dinner tonight was more subdued as a result of fewer people and more language barriers. There was one other couple from Majorca and they spoke almost no English and little French. Initially I couldn’t figure what language they were speaking until someone asked them where they were from. I’d never heard Majorcan before. Dinner included the home made charcuterie which was very good, a fresh green salad (our first of the trip), a lamb stew, which was a little bony for my taste but otherwise tasty, and a delicious potato gratin.
Day 7 – Corte and Sant’Andrea di Boziu
We were up fairly early and went out to buy breakfast and snack food at the boulangerie and the supermarket. We found that the breakfasts in Corsica were overpriced (5-7€) for what you got – a couple of pieces of bread and a croissant plus coffee. The supermarket had a great selection of locally produced charcuterie and cheese so we stocked up, along with bottles of the delicious mineral water.
Fortified, we drove down to the beach, Plage Pero below our hotel. It is a long sandy beach and looks like it would be very nice to swim at. Unfortunately, it was a little chilly for us, so we turned around and headed south towards Ajaccio. The drive along the coast was very pretty with lots of turquoise water. One of our guidebooks said that the traffic in Ajaccio is terrible, and I would definitely agree. It took 20 min to crawl into the center of town. We were able to find parking in a large garage under the very large Place General de Gaulle. We then hurried to the daily farmer’s market that was just about to close at 1pm. We wandered around drooling over the charcuterie and cheese and cursing USDA for not allowing us to bring any of the meat home. We bought some more snacks and then headed off to find lunch. We ended up going to a small café/bar on the Rue Bonaparte across from the very swish Hotel Palazzu u Domu. We split a Panini and a Nicoise salad and a ½ pichet of house red. I think it cost about 25€. We found Napoleon’s boyhood home nearby and took pics out front but didn’t go in because of time constraints. We did, however, take time so that DH could buy several books on learning Corse. Again, because of our tight schedule we were not able to explore the city in any meaningful way. I would definitely like to spend at least a full day there wandering around.
We then headed out of town (much faster than heading in) and into the mountains. It took about 1.5 hrs to reach the hamlet of Guitera les Bains where we would spend 2 nights at the Gîte d’Etape Chez Paul-Antoine. This is a hostel primarily for people who are hiking the Mare e Mare Sud trail. We chose this hostel because the owner (P-A) makes his own charcuterie (did I mention that DH is obsessed with charcuterie?). There are 2 rooms with 4 bunks and both nights we had room mates. We chose the ½ board which was a good thing b/c there really was nowhere to eat nearby. One thing that really struck us about the mountain villages in Corsica is how few shops there are. There is the occasional café, but I guess most people make the trek an hour or so to the coast when they need supplies.
Our roommates the first night were 2 very nice Swiss German ladies. One was on her 25th trip to Corsica and the other her 2nd. We gave them a lift down to the mineral hot springs. The springs are down off of the main road just below the gas station (which didn’t sell anything other than gasoline). The water is very hot (40°C + according to someone) and bubbles up into a large concrete tub that the villagers used to use for washing clothes. Now it’s just used by tourists to soak in the mineral water. We all had a nice soak, although DH couldn’t get in all the way b/c of the heat. There’s a stream below that some people clambered down to in order to cool off.
Dinner was presented family style for the 8 of us staying at the hostel and few other people. It was a delicious homemade meal with the typical 3 courses (tarte aux herbes, sanglier and cheese or sweet). You could also order pichets of wine and various aperitifs and liqueurs. Things got quite jolly with several rounds of shots being drunk by the assembled group to sample the Corsican liquors. The cost to stay at the gîte was 38€/pp night for half board.
Day 6 – a soggy drive around the mountains
It had poured rain the night before, but the day dawned dry. We had a basic breakfast of bread and jam and coffee/tea. The breakfasts in Corsica tended to be very basic – just bread and jam, no croissants, meat or cheese or yogurt. The dry weather didn’t last long, however, and by 11 am the heavy clouds and showers had rolled in again. It didn’t pour all day, but it didn’t make us want to start out on an extensive hike without good maps. Instead we explored the area around Guitera by car and drove through several pretty villages and took almost every road available. We stopped for a late lunch in Zicavo where we apparently annoyed the owner by sharing a plate of stuffed veggies and frites instead of ordering two separate plates. The restaurant was very full with motor cyclists and the entire local gendarme force who were having a great time. We then took a long drive up towards les Bergeries de Bassetta which is a gite for the GR20. One can also use it as a shortcut to reach the climb to Mt Incudine. I would definitely consider doing that on a return visit. The drive reminded me of back country drives we like to take in the Adirondacks. The hiking trails snaked everywhere throughout the valleys and mountains. They seem to be very well marked with orange blazes which were evident throughout the villages. Many of the other villages also contained gîtes for all the hikers on all of the trails.
We had new roommates, this time a very nice couple from Belgium. Dinner tonight was more subdued as a result of fewer people and more language barriers. There was one other couple from Majorca and they spoke almost no English and little French. Initially I couldn’t figure what language they were speaking until someone asked them where they were from. I’d never heard Majorcan before. Dinner included the home made charcuterie which was very good, a fresh green salad (our first of the trip), a lamb stew, which was a little bony for my taste but otherwise tasty, and a delicious potato gratin.
Day 7 – Corte and Sant’Andrea di Boziu
Jan 12th, 2010 | 10:06 AM
#13
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Joined: Oct 2008
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sorry for the delay! I'll try to finish it up soon.
Day 7 – Corte and Sant’Andrea di Boziu
Finally a sunny day! We ate breakfast and left for the drive north to Corte. The ride was beautiful – up and down and all around many pine-covered mountains. We did see evidence of the forest fires that frequently occur on the island. We arrived in Corte after a couple of hours and had wonderful parking karma and found a spot right away. Traffic was definitely heavy in Corte compared to the mountains, but nothing like Ajaccio. There were also lots of tourists in town including many group tours of French retirees. We wandered around a bit in search of somewhere to eat and settled on u Museo restaurant which is just below the walls of the citadel. It was recommended in both our guide books and I thought it was good, but not amazing. The setting was very nice – outdoors on a shady terrace. We each had the prix fixe Corsican lunch for 13€ each. I had a tarte aux herbes and cannelloni stuffed with brocciu cheese and DH had something to start (I can’t remember) and fava beans cooked with charcuterie and tomatoes.
After lunch we headed up to the citadel and went to the Musée de la Corse. It’s in a very spiffy building but doesn’t contain all that much. There was a very interesting exhibit about Napoleon’s life which included all sorts of cool original documentation such as elaborate family trees, city plans of Ajaccio, paintings of Napoleon and his closest allies, and one of his bicorne hats. The only problem with the exhibit was that the lighting was very dim, likely to protect the fragile documents, but it made looking at things somewhat difficult. The remainder of the museum houses the ethnographic collection of a priest who donated everything to the state. We would’ve stayed longer but there was a large tour group that took up most of the museum and made it difficult to see things. Before heading back down to the town we hiked up to the top of the citadel and admired the views of the surrounding countryside.
We stopped in at the University of Corte’s Department of Archaeology which is located just inside the citadel’s walls. They have a small museum there highlighting sites they’ve worked on. Since DH and I are both archaeologists we wanted to stop in. We found 2 women working in the back and introduced ourselves much to their puzzlement (likely as a result of my rusty French). They were very nice and gave us several heavy archaeological reports to lug home with us. We then wandered back down to the main drag – Rue Paoli and I ducked into an internet café (one of only 2 we saw the whole time) while DH relaxed. Before our next trip to Europe we will most definitely buy a netbook. WiFi was available everywhere in Corsica, but internet cafes were not. We were able to use the hotel computer at a few places, but they seem to be set up for you to bring your own.
We then drove up to our B&B for the next 2 nights, the Casa Capellini in Poggio which is a hamlet of about 10 houses 30 min or so northeast of Corte (http://www.hiking-corsica-vallecime....-breakfast.php). The road to the B&B was typically narrow and twisty. The Casa Capellini is in a large villa with wonderful views down the valley. It is run by Genevieve and her husband, neither of whom speaks much English. Since the hotel is so remote we opted for the half board which was served family style in the dining room. None of the other guests spoke English either of the nights we were there, but everyone was very friendly. Dinner was cooked by Genevieve and was typically Corse and very good. We were given the family room on the lower level which was very spacious and even had a king sized bed – as well as the largest spider I’d ever seen (not in the bed, luckily). I have a longer review in TA.
Day 7 – Corte and Sant’Andrea di Boziu
Finally a sunny day! We ate breakfast and left for the drive north to Corte. The ride was beautiful – up and down and all around many pine-covered mountains. We did see evidence of the forest fires that frequently occur on the island. We arrived in Corte after a couple of hours and had wonderful parking karma and found a spot right away. Traffic was definitely heavy in Corte compared to the mountains, but nothing like Ajaccio. There were also lots of tourists in town including many group tours of French retirees. We wandered around a bit in search of somewhere to eat and settled on u Museo restaurant which is just below the walls of the citadel. It was recommended in both our guide books and I thought it was good, but not amazing. The setting was very nice – outdoors on a shady terrace. We each had the prix fixe Corsican lunch for 13€ each. I had a tarte aux herbes and cannelloni stuffed with brocciu cheese and DH had something to start (I can’t remember) and fava beans cooked with charcuterie and tomatoes.
After lunch we headed up to the citadel and went to the Musée de la Corse. It’s in a very spiffy building but doesn’t contain all that much. There was a very interesting exhibit about Napoleon’s life which included all sorts of cool original documentation such as elaborate family trees, city plans of Ajaccio, paintings of Napoleon and his closest allies, and one of his bicorne hats. The only problem with the exhibit was that the lighting was very dim, likely to protect the fragile documents, but it made looking at things somewhat difficult. The remainder of the museum houses the ethnographic collection of a priest who donated everything to the state. We would’ve stayed longer but there was a large tour group that took up most of the museum and made it difficult to see things. Before heading back down to the town we hiked up to the top of the citadel and admired the views of the surrounding countryside.
We stopped in at the University of Corte’s Department of Archaeology which is located just inside the citadel’s walls. They have a small museum there highlighting sites they’ve worked on. Since DH and I are both archaeologists we wanted to stop in. We found 2 women working in the back and introduced ourselves much to their puzzlement (likely as a result of my rusty French). They were very nice and gave us several heavy archaeological reports to lug home with us. We then wandered back down to the main drag – Rue Paoli and I ducked into an internet café (one of only 2 we saw the whole time) while DH relaxed. Before our next trip to Europe we will most definitely buy a netbook. WiFi was available everywhere in Corsica, but internet cafes were not. We were able to use the hotel computer at a few places, but they seem to be set up for you to bring your own.
We then drove up to our B&B for the next 2 nights, the Casa Capellini in Poggio which is a hamlet of about 10 houses 30 min or so northeast of Corte (http://www.hiking-corsica-vallecime....-breakfast.php). The road to the B&B was typically narrow and twisty. The Casa Capellini is in a large villa with wonderful views down the valley. It is run by Genevieve and her husband, neither of whom speaks much English. Since the hotel is so remote we opted for the half board which was served family style in the dining room. None of the other guests spoke English either of the nights we were there, but everyone was very friendly. Dinner was cooked by Genevieve and was typically Corse and very good. We were given the family room on the lower level which was very spacious and even had a king sized bed – as well as the largest spider I’d ever seen (not in the bed, luckily). I have a longer review in TA.
Jan 12th, 2010 | 10:44 AM
#14
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Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 149
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Day 8 – more rain and lots of driving: Le Niolo and the Restonica Valley
We woke to mixed clouds and sun but watched as the sun quickly was replaced by heavy duty rain clouds. Breakfast was basic – bread and jam and coffee/tea. We set off to explore the Niolo valley which is one of the remote interior valleys through which runs the Golo River. Of course, first we had to stop at the supermarket in Corte to stock up on provisions which included more charcuterie and cheese and bread and fruit. The drive up into the Niolo through the very narrow Golo gorge was quite impressive – basically just rocks and cliffs and the river very far below. On the way back we stopped frequently to look for rock shelters – some likely modern and some possibly thousands of years old. The weather did not improve and only got worse the further we drove. In theory the views of the surrounding mountains are quite impressive once you exit the gorge into the valley proper. We, unfortunately, cannot comment to that given the dense cloud cover. We drove all the way to the Col de Vergio, past one of Corsica’s ski slopes, and ate a rather damp and dispirited lunch in the car in the dense fog and rain. The woods were pretty and we did see a fox as well as the ubiquitous cattle and pigs. Given the weather we did not venture to hike to le Lac du Niolo which is featured in many pictures of Corsica.
We drove back the way we came and by the time we reached Corte the skies had cleared and it was a beautiful day. I had read that the Restonica Valley, southwest of Corte, was supposed to be beautiful and since the weather had improved we decided to make a quick trip before sunset. We hadn’t reckoned on the fact that we were driving directly into the sun in and out of shade on the 1.5 lane road and it was really tough going for DH because of the visibility problems. The valley is beautiful and the Restonica River is a lovely shade of blue-green. It is a very popular place to come and swim in the summer and I can certainly understand why. Eventually, we made it up to the end of the valley and parked with many other people in a large lot. Here the views of the mountains were spectacular, as were the views back down the valley towards Corte. There was a traditional dry laid stone shepherd’s hut at one end of the parking lot and inside the shepherd was making fresh cheese for the throngs of hungry tourists. We had a taste and bought a wheel which we then proceeded to cart around with us for the remainder of our trip. We even got this cheese through the Ag check at PHL and it’s now in our fridge, somewhat worse for wear, waiting for an appropriate occasion for us to eat it (I’m not holding my breath that it is still edible at this point). On the drive back down we stopped at a very nice looking hotel (I’ve forgotten the name) right on the banks of the river where we enjoyed an aperitif before driving back up to the Casa Capellini. I would definitely consider staying along the Restonica, especially in the summer when you could swim.
Day 9 – the Haut’Asco and a disappointment in Bastia
We woke to mixed clouds and sun but watched as the sun quickly was replaced by heavy duty rain clouds. Breakfast was basic – bread and jam and coffee/tea. We set off to explore the Niolo valley which is one of the remote interior valleys through which runs the Golo River. Of course, first we had to stop at the supermarket in Corte to stock up on provisions which included more charcuterie and cheese and bread and fruit. The drive up into the Niolo through the very narrow Golo gorge was quite impressive – basically just rocks and cliffs and the river very far below. On the way back we stopped frequently to look for rock shelters – some likely modern and some possibly thousands of years old. The weather did not improve and only got worse the further we drove. In theory the views of the surrounding mountains are quite impressive once you exit the gorge into the valley proper. We, unfortunately, cannot comment to that given the dense cloud cover. We drove all the way to the Col de Vergio, past one of Corsica’s ski slopes, and ate a rather damp and dispirited lunch in the car in the dense fog and rain. The woods were pretty and we did see a fox as well as the ubiquitous cattle and pigs. Given the weather we did not venture to hike to le Lac du Niolo which is featured in many pictures of Corsica.
We drove back the way we came and by the time we reached Corte the skies had cleared and it was a beautiful day. I had read that the Restonica Valley, southwest of Corte, was supposed to be beautiful and since the weather had improved we decided to make a quick trip before sunset. We hadn’t reckoned on the fact that we were driving directly into the sun in and out of shade on the 1.5 lane road and it was really tough going for DH because of the visibility problems. The valley is beautiful and the Restonica River is a lovely shade of blue-green. It is a very popular place to come and swim in the summer and I can certainly understand why. Eventually, we made it up to the end of the valley and parked with many other people in a large lot. Here the views of the mountains were spectacular, as were the views back down the valley towards Corte. There was a traditional dry laid stone shepherd’s hut at one end of the parking lot and inside the shepherd was making fresh cheese for the throngs of hungry tourists. We had a taste and bought a wheel which we then proceeded to cart around with us for the remainder of our trip. We even got this cheese through the Ag check at PHL and it’s now in our fridge, somewhat worse for wear, waiting for an appropriate occasion for us to eat it (I’m not holding my breath that it is still edible at this point). On the drive back down we stopped at a very nice looking hotel (I’ve forgotten the name) right on the banks of the river where we enjoyed an aperitif before driving back up to the Casa Capellini. I would definitely consider staying along the Restonica, especially in the summer when you could swim.
Day 9 – the Haut’Asco and a disappointment in Bastia
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