Corsica Adventures

We called this trip the “Francathalon”, because we were pretty exhausted until we got to relax on the sailboat. Michèle and the boys kept us busy! As a bonus, we were so close to Sardinia, Italy that we stopped there to meet up with some new friends.

: Corsica is a mountain in the sea. A French territory, it’s about the size of Delaware, and a third of the size of Sardinia, the Italian island just south.

: Corsica has it’s own language – somewhere between French and Italian, although all three are spoken here. What we didn’t hear or see was English. Corsica is off the beaten path for American tourists.

: Napoléon Bonaparte, born in Corsica, was shrewd, ambitious and mercilessly bullied in school about his Corsican accent.

: Corsica is a rough and tumble place, with rumors of mafia connections. The black guy, a Moor with a bandana, is on their flag.

: An intersection sign shot with bullet holes? These are frequently used for target practice.

: The five of us were not the lightest packers. The puzzle pieces required only a shoehorn and some Vaseline.

: Bob and Bill attempting a wild boar selfie.

: Caving was our first adventure. Our headlamps were valuable during those three hours.

: From: “Where do we go from here?” To: “You gotta be kidding me! That way?”

: One of many tight squeezes.

: Tired, dirty and happy. We finally came up for air after that last belly crawl through the spiders. *cringe*

: River bouldering was our next adventure. Bill, Bob, Michèle, Mike and I donned wetsuits, helmets and hightop river shoes, as we hiked, swam and slid down the river.

: Water channels through the boulders, making a natural slip ‘n’ slide.

: Last one in is a rotten egg, Mike!

: Adventure #3 was hiking in the mountains. Taking a break at Parc Naturel Régional de Corse.

: Up at the top of the mountain, hearing the thunder rumble, and feeling lucky.

: Of course, Mike had to rock climb to the hole in the rock!

: Adventure #4 – sailing! The good ship Bizman was ours for 6 nights, because most of Corsica should be seen from the Mediterranean Sea.

: View from a hike at one of our ports of call. The Mediterranean Sea is beautifully clear here.

: French military exercises on a calm day.

: Kids menu: Chopped steak, chicken strips in cornflake crust or fish fillet. Along with fries or pasta and, of course, ice cream. All for 11.50 Euro or about $13USD.