Nine companions, two Puntos and one island.. Corsica 2005

TRENTO-BASTIA

01:51 – we leave from Trento with our legendary Puntos, faithful travel companions. 08:30 – arrival in Livorno where we board one of the

ALLE SPIAGGE DI SOLENZARA, FAVONE E CANNELLA

8:30 AM – the alarm goes off early for us since we intend to look for a nice beach!! Mazzu and Tobi spring into action to find breakfast: fortunately we discover that every morning at this hour the brioche-man arrives at the campsite with warm croissants!! Absolute pastry bliss for us!! 10:44 AM – we set off and arrive at Solenzara, a not very well-known spot, where we end up basically by chance following the signs for the beach. It's not far from Ghisonaccia and the beach has a curious peculiarity: it's actually located right at the mouth of a river (or maybe a stream) whose name I don't remember. So you can clearly see the difference between the water (both gorgeous, obviously) of the river pouring in and that of the sea.. truly a place worth visiting! (see photo) Ilaria says it looks like a place out of "Lord of the Flies", let's trust her..

4:16 PM – the idea is to push inland but then maybe we realize it's too late; on the way back we notice a cove but we can't find the road to reach it, so we lazily flop down on the beaches of Favone and Cannella..

VISITA A BONIFACIO E POI ALLA BAIA DI SANTA AMANZA

6:30 AM – alarm very very early to reach the town of Bonifacio in decent time. Actually expectations aren't great but we're hugely mistaken because the town absolutely deserves a visit!!! Perched inside its ancient walls, Bonifacio holds a whole maze of little streets full of small shops and typical eateries. Noteworthy is the spectacularity of the bouches (see photo) and the breathtaking view you get by walking practically in front of Bonifacio along an almost dirt road marked only as a panoramic viewpoint: the place is super windy but completely sheer above the sea and surrounded by meadows. A must-see!! (see photo) 1:30 PM we move to the Bay of Santa Amanza (see photo), truly a breathtaking place, but the somewhat windy day doesn't help..we don't hold out long despite some of us having the unhealthy idea of going for a swim.

Along the road we let ourselves drift into some reflections: so far we haven't come across a single cemetery but only car dealerships and roundabouts!!

AL COLLE DELLA BAVELLA

10:30 AM – today we grant ourselves a gentler wake-up..nothing much, breakfast and then we head off inland. 3:02 PM – we're finally in the mountains; the drive was a bit long but always worthy of photos and enchanted gazes. After a look at the panoramic viewpoint (see photo), thanks to directions from Franzo who had been there years before, we reach a stream that is spectacular (see photo)! Naturally the dive from the rocks is a must (for the others at least..) plus a little climb up the stream..Ilaria, thrilled, compares us to little adventurers even though she complains about the ice-cold water! 7:23 PM – back at the campsite and preparing sangria to take to the beach..then a midnight swim!!..moon, sand, sea and the pack around the fire..perfect!!

ALLA PALOMBAGGIA

11:14 AM – the alarm didn't actually go off today!! Today we take it easy because we're headed to Palombaggia, one of the most renowned beaches in Corsica, not far from our base camp (see photo). There's clearly nothing to dispute about the beach, maybe just the crowds..the water is truly crystal-clear anyway (see photo).

GIORNATA IGNOTA

..unknown in the sense that the page of the logbook kept during those ten days that talked about the 25th flew away while Laura was writing the conclusions on the ferry!! We visited a very characteristic little village inland whose name I've naturally forgotten..I know, it's shameful! but I'll include two photos from the day anyway..

A CORTE E NELLA VALLE DELLA RESTONICA

8:00 AM – Franzo wakes us very early because our destination is quite far today: the center of the island! 10:10 AM – arrival in the town of Corte, distinctive for its center clinging to a rocky spur (see photo). 12:23 PM – we move slightly away from Corte to reach the entrance of the well-known Restonica valley (famous especially among those who know about mountaineering); worth noting that they don't let in more than a certain number of cars and that a toll must be paid (I don't remember how much but certainly not high). Anyway, a destination worth visiting for the uniqueness of its mountains and for the stream running through it where swimming would be possible if the water weren't so freezing!! (see photo)

ALLA SPIAGGIA DI ROCCAPINA

7:30 AM – early wake-up to reach the beach of Roccapina which the guidebook describes as distinctive for the lion-like shape of the rocks surrounding the bay..we're intrigued! Actually, once we arrive, it seems hard to really make out this lion (see photo)..but that matters relatively little since the beach turns out to be very beautiful (see photo)!

ALLA "SPIAGGIA BELLA DI MAZZU"

9:30 AM – as the last actual day of vacation we grant ourselves some healthy idleness at the beach to which we can't manage to give a name (in the sense that from the map and the signs it wasn't clear..) and so it was called Mazzu's beautiful beach, since from the second day he wanted to go there..I know the directions I'm giving aren't the best, I only remember it was on the road we traveled several times to go to Palombaggia and the other beaches. But among the beaches we saw this was maybe the one that deserved the least (always remaining very beautiful, obviously!!) (see photo)

BASTIA-TRENTO

11:24 AM – we sadly leave U Casone and its friendly owner to head toward Bastia and board the Moby Vincent. 2:32 PM – the sad boarding..so much melancholy in leaving the island! 9:39 PM – we arrive tired and smelly, but terribly satisfied!!

CONCLUSIONS

I highly recommend a trip to Corsica for various reasons, the main ones being the beauty of the largely unspoiled landscapes, the variety of those landscapes (from sea to mountain, from barren to lush, from cities to little villages), and the speed and convenience of getting around (both thanks to the island's small size and to the straight Route 66-style roads).

The only problems we ran into were caused by a restaurant that served us terrible dishes (some of us even got sick), whose name I unfortunately don't remember though!! Among the places we visited I warmly recommend Bonifacio, the Col de Bavella, Solenzara and the interior, in short, almost everything!! Ours was a vacation very much in the spirit of idleness and relaxation even though we didn't skip our outings, but above all in the spirit of spontaneity, of doing things on a whim, something possible only if you have a car available. Transporting the car by ferry isn't expensive if you watch out for promotions around May (we paid 1 euro for the transport!!).