I guess I felt like updating my blog today. In the summer it becomes almost unbearable to stay in Lyon between the heat and the pollution, on the weekends you must get out of town. For this case we are a bit lucky, or you might even say spoiled, since Val’s father lives in the Alps. On the weekends you will tend to find us swimming or biking at Lake Annecy, walking in the mountains, or eating lunch in a small restaurant hidden in the middle of the mountains.
I have no idea how people find these restaurants. They must be passed down through word of mouth. There is no direct route to these restaurants and most of the time it involves unpaved roads. But on Saturday and Sunday don’t expect to walk in and find a seat. Without a reservation you are shit out of luck.
The restaurants typically are situated along a hiking trail so people can hike in, eat lunch, and then head back off into the mountains. The food is very traditional and most of it comes directly from the land around the restaurant. There is one set menu and if you don’t like it don’t comeback. To begin, they serve you a huge plate of chacuterie (cold cuts), no doubt coming from the farm raised pigs not far from where you are sitting. Next you eat lamb or sheep depending on the day which is usually served with some vegetables such as, cauliflower in a white cheese sauce. Then the green salad and a huge plate of selected cheeses arrive. And of course, don’t forget the dessert which is often fromage blanc (white cheese with sugar added) or a tarte. It is almost impossible not to over eat.
However, it is not only the food that lures you to these hidden jewels, it is the picturesque scenery. The terrace has a 360 view of mountains, cows, and lambs and in some restaurants there is even a lake included in the price. And no worries after you eat you can walk off all those calories on one of the many trails that disappear into the mountains. If you are a vegetarian you are screwed!
Monday, August 07, 2006
Traveling in Corsica
We just came back from Corsica a few weeks ago. For those of you who don’t know the island, it is located in the Mediterranean just below France. It was originally inhabited by the Italians and later taken over by the French. Today the Corsican language is basically variation of French with a strong Italian accent. Like the Basque, Corsica would like to separate from France. Personally, I have no idea how the island would survive without the aid of France. Tourism plays a major role in the Corsican economy which is extremely popular with Italian, French, and German tourists.
There are two ways to get around in Corsica. The first way is to own or rent a multi million dollar yacht and travel from town to town by water. Unfortunately, we don’t fall into this lifestyle category. The second was is to bring your car by ferry or rent a car. We choose to fly and rent a car. The island is about 120 miles long and takes about 5 hours to cross due to small 2 lanes roads which at some points are unpaved. During the winter you can actually ski on this island but the summers are hot and dry.
We started our journey in Bastia. Bastia is one of the biggest cities on the island. It is not very impressive so we only stayed the night and left in the morning. However, dinner in Bastia was rather interesting. We sat down to eat at a little restaurant and at the table behind us; a woman started throwing up everything she had just eaten. It was a perfect way to start the vacation. I decided not to order the shrimp.
From Bastia, we headed to Cap Corse, this side of the island is really desolate. You drive right along the cliffs over the water, similar to driving Highway 1 in California. The coast line is really beautiful. We arrived in St Florian that evening. It claims to have one of the most beautiful beaches along the Med. coast. The town was really alive. At night everyone was out in the streets eating ice cream and listening to live music.
The next day we headed to Calvi another small town that is alive during the evening. The port is beautiful. We stayed in Calvi for two days. In fact on a little tour just outside of town we found a little hidden beach where a woman and her son built a small restaurant. The woman was so nice she sat and had coffee with us for about an hour. We showed up early in the morning just to have a coffee and ended up staying all day on the beach.
That night we went to a restaurant in the mountains recommended by a guide. It was rather interesting. It was supposed to be a dinner slash theatre. We arrived and a man in his mid 70s gave us a couple of glasses of orange wine. The he took some cards from a couple next to us and tried to do a magic trick which he ultimately failed. After he had us sit down at the table and started to cut ham of the shank which he then proceeded to throw at you. You had to be quick with your plate or else you were screwed. He even would place a piece of ham on a plate and throw it to you. At first we thought this was funny but after about an hour it got really old. The man kept drinking and drinking while trying to perform stupid songs and throwing plates and food. By the end of the night we were watching an old drunken man throw plates out the window onto the street. That was basically the whole show. Needless to say we were not impressed and will not recommend it to others.
Next, we headed down through Ajaccio and Propriano. We ended up staying in a really small town in a hotel with a view of the sea. It was really nice. We bought a bottle of wine and some food at the local market and eat dinner on our terrace overlooking the water.
The next morning we headed to Bonifacio. In Bonifacio we took a boat tour out to a small island. The tour took us through caves and gave us a little history of the region. We spent a few hours on the island snorkelling and exploring.
The last town we visited was Porto Vechio where we did a little wine tasting and a lot of swimming. The town, like all of the towns has a small port and an old town. The old town is very much alive at night with views extending to Sardina and Italy.
The only thing that bothered me about Corsica was the heat. It is extremely hot, hitting over 100 degrees during the day. Needless to say we beat the heat by swimming on average 3 times a day. After our first night in Bastia in a hotel without A/C I decided we would either have A/C or a pool going forward. It was helpful. But in the end, we decided to camp for the last 3 nights. We had brought a tent and blankets and some really nice sleep pads. Camping ended up being the best way to beat the heat. Each campsite had a pool and full facilities. We set up our tent in the shade and at night it was similar to Sacramento, perfect for sleeping out doors.
There are two ways to get around in Corsica. The first way is to own or rent a multi million dollar yacht and travel from town to town by water. Unfortunately, we don’t fall into this lifestyle category. The second was is to bring your car by ferry or rent a car. We choose to fly and rent a car. The island is about 120 miles long and takes about 5 hours to cross due to small 2 lanes roads which at some points are unpaved. During the winter you can actually ski on this island but the summers are hot and dry.
We started our journey in Bastia. Bastia is one of the biggest cities on the island. It is not very impressive so we only stayed the night and left in the morning. However, dinner in Bastia was rather interesting. We sat down to eat at a little restaurant and at the table behind us; a woman started throwing up everything she had just eaten. It was a perfect way to start the vacation. I decided not to order the shrimp.
From Bastia, we headed to Cap Corse, this side of the island is really desolate. You drive right along the cliffs over the water, similar to driving Highway 1 in California. The coast line is really beautiful. We arrived in St Florian that evening. It claims to have one of the most beautiful beaches along the Med. coast. The town was really alive. At night everyone was out in the streets eating ice cream and listening to live music.
The next day we headed to Calvi another small town that is alive during the evening. The port is beautiful. We stayed in Calvi for two days. In fact on a little tour just outside of town we found a little hidden beach where a woman and her son built a small restaurant. The woman was so nice she sat and had coffee with us for about an hour. We showed up early in the morning just to have a coffee and ended up staying all day on the beach.
That night we went to a restaurant in the mountains recommended by a guide. It was rather interesting. It was supposed to be a dinner slash theatre. We arrived and a man in his mid 70s gave us a couple of glasses of orange wine. The he took some cards from a couple next to us and tried to do a magic trick which he ultimately failed. After he had us sit down at the table and started to cut ham of the shank which he then proceeded to throw at you. You had to be quick with your plate or else you were screwed. He even would place a piece of ham on a plate and throw it to you. At first we thought this was funny but after about an hour it got really old. The man kept drinking and drinking while trying to perform stupid songs and throwing plates and food. By the end of the night we were watching an old drunken man throw plates out the window onto the street. That was basically the whole show. Needless to say we were not impressed and will not recommend it to others.
Next, we headed down through Ajaccio and Propriano. We ended up staying in a really small town in a hotel with a view of the sea. It was really nice. We bought a bottle of wine and some food at the local market and eat dinner on our terrace overlooking the water.
The next morning we headed to Bonifacio. In Bonifacio we took a boat tour out to a small island. The tour took us through caves and gave us a little history of the region. We spent a few hours on the island snorkelling and exploring.
The last town we visited was Porto Vechio where we did a little wine tasting and a lot of swimming. The town, like all of the towns has a small port and an old town. The old town is very much alive at night with views extending to Sardina and Italy.
The only thing that bothered me about Corsica was the heat. It is extremely hot, hitting over 100 degrees during the day. Needless to say we beat the heat by swimming on average 3 times a day. After our first night in Bastia in a hotel without A/C I decided we would either have A/C or a pool going forward. It was helpful. But in the end, we decided to camp for the last 3 nights. We had brought a tent and blankets and some really nice sleep pads. Camping ended up being the best way to beat the heat. Each campsite had a pool and full facilities. We set up our tent in the shade and at night it was similar to Sacramento, perfect for sleeping out doors.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
