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| On the tarmac in Figari |
Our flight from Paris Orly to Figari is scheduled to leave at 08:30. This means arriving at the airport by 07:30 which means leaving home by 06:30 which means waking up by 05:30. As usual the packing was done late the night before which means very few hours of sleep.
We get a taxi to the airport, which zips through the empty streets of Paris and on south to Orly. Bags are checked in and we make our way to the departure lounge where we wait. And wait. And wait. Flight delayed due to the plane having not been cleaned (?!). Eventually we board the plane and get settled in for the 1 hour 40 minute flight. About the same as flying to Cork.
We pass over the volcanic "Puy de Dôme" in central France, and catch a glimpse of the snowy Alps in the distance. Then Corsica comes into view. It's very mountainous, much more than I expected. As we get closer and it becomes clear that we are starting our approach for landing, we still can't see any airport. In fact we can't see any piece of ground flat enough to put an airport on! Finally we see a (very) small, (very) short looking strip of tarmac off to the left. Nah, that couldn't be it?
The plane banks sharply, doing a 90 degree turn, quickly losing altitude and heading directly between the two mountain ranges. "Please fasten your seatbelts." No problem! The plane lands, thrust reversers howling, and then a violent slam on the brakes. Welcome to Corsica!
We walk across the tarmac to the tiny airport terminal and wait for the bags to arrive. I'm looking around trying to identify the person from Cotema who will pick us up and take us to the boat. Hmm, several people hanging around, looking like potential drivers, but nobody with a "Cotema" sign or anything. I get my phone and call the office. A guy a few feet away from us answers and comes over straight away. This is Raphael, who looks after the charters and with whom I have had many email conversations. Always interesting to meet people in the flesh.
We get our bags and he takes us to his car, and introduces us to Xavier. Xavier is a skipper with Cotema, and Raphael is dropping him off in Porto Vecchio on the way to Solenzara. It seem that there is one of their charter boats there that got stuck due to bad weather. It was supposed to return to Solenzara yesterday but the sea was too rough!
Raphael entertains us with interesting stories along the way, including how the pilots who fly to Figari need a special qualification due to the shortness of the runway. But he makes a poor judgement call at one point and tells us about a charterer who left port in bad weather against his recommendation and subsequently wrecked the boat...
The countryside looks fabulous, lush green with lots of trees, reddish rocky outcrops, and we can even see snow on the tips of the highest mountains. Nearing Solenzara the road follows the coast and we catch glimpses of sandy coves and emerald-blue water. The roads are incredibly windy, and poor Laura is starting to suffer. Eileen gets a sick-bag ready. "Only three corners left" says Raphael, obviously worried about puke in his car. "Has she been on a boat before?" asks Xavier, obviously worried about puke in his boat!
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| Solenzara marina |
We look around the boat and unpack a few things. We spotted two restaurants on the edge of the marina, and it's nearly lunch time so we decide to go and get some groceries and then eat at one of those restaurants.
We walk through the town and find the grocery store. We fill a trolly with water, yoghurts, milk, wine, cheese, coffee, pasta, etc. All the usual stuff, but selecting local Corsican varieties when possible. Wild boar salami, maquis honey, strawberry tree jam, canistrelli fig and nut cookies, Saint Jean coffee from Bastia. We'll come to regret the brocciu goat cheese in a few days when it really ripens. Raphael said that we could ask the grocer to deliver to the boat, so we do. Very handy.
The fact that we are starving by now (we haven't eaten since 05:30 this morning) makes it really easy to chose a restaurant. We pick the first one. It's quite posh in a designer-trendy, Italian kind of way. In fact Corsica has a very Italian feel to it, and it seems strange at first that everybody is speaking French. The menu is a mix of French and Italian food which adds to the confusion.
We finish lunch and head back to the boat to meet Raphael. He goes through the inventory with us, showing us where everything is and what it's for. He thinks it's too windy to go out today, but the forecast is for improvement during the day tomorrow. We agree to try tomorrow afternoon. He says he is not sure if it will be him or another skipper. Slight disappointment, but then again we are so tired that it is probably no harm for us to relax and rest a bit before heading off.
In the evening we walk up to the main street and pick a pizza restaurant. They have a huge outdoor terrace, but it's too chilly for eating out. There is a big brick wood-burning pizza oven near the entrance, and a big queue for take-away. A good sign. On the menu there are the usual Italian pizza varieties, and a Corsican pizza with figatelli. I ask the lady what's figatelli? Traditional Corsican sausage made with liver. She warns me that it has a strong taste and not everyone likes it. I give it a try and it's actually quite good. Laura custom orders a Hawaiian pizza, which was not on their menu. She assures me that it was quite good too. Eileen has a Tuscan pizza, but can only eat half so the rest goes into a doggy bag. Is this too much detail?
Back on the boat, there is a lot of motion due to the wind and waves. It's also quite cold, so it's a good thing we brought sleeping bags. We're not used to the motion of the boat or to the many different noises in a marina on a windy night, so sleeping is a real challenge. But why is there a cow bawling? Moooh. Moooooh.
Log entry for Saturday 16/04/2011
We walk through the town and find the grocery store. We fill a trolly with water, yoghurts, milk, wine, cheese, coffee, pasta, etc. All the usual stuff, but selecting local Corsican varieties when possible. Wild boar salami, maquis honey, strawberry tree jam, canistrelli fig and nut cookies, Saint Jean coffee from Bastia. We'll come to regret the brocciu goat cheese in a few days when it really ripens. Raphael said that we could ask the grocer to deliver to the boat, so we do. Very handy.
The fact that we are starving by now (we haven't eaten since 05:30 this morning) makes it really easy to chose a restaurant. We pick the first one. It's quite posh in a designer-trendy, Italian kind of way. In fact Corsica has a very Italian feel to it, and it seems strange at first that everybody is speaking French. The menu is a mix of French and Italian food which adds to the confusion.
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| Corsican courtesy flag |
In the evening we walk up to the main street and pick a pizza restaurant. They have a huge outdoor terrace, but it's too chilly for eating out. There is a big brick wood-burning pizza oven near the entrance, and a big queue for take-away. A good sign. On the menu there are the usual Italian pizza varieties, and a Corsican pizza with figatelli. I ask the lady what's figatelli? Traditional Corsican sausage made with liver. She warns me that it has a strong taste and not everyone likes it. I give it a try and it's actually quite good. Laura custom orders a Hawaiian pizza, which was not on their menu. She assures me that it was quite good too. Eileen has a Tuscan pizza, but can only eat half so the rest goes into a doggy bag. Is this too much detail?
Back on the boat, there is a lot of motion due to the wind and waves. It's also quite cold, so it's a good thing we brought sleeping bags. We're not used to the motion of the boat or to the many different noises in a marina on a windy night, so sleeping is a real challenge. But why is there a cow bawling? Moooh. Moooooh.
Log entry for Saturday 16/04/2011
Fuel: 4/4
Batteries: 1 (engine) = 13.8; 2 (domestic) = 13.6
Water: Tank 1: 4/4; Tank 2: 4/4
From: Solenzara; Log 32Towards: IN PORT
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