It was raining a little when we woke up – still the only boat in the cove. In fact it was a strange weather day altogether – calm seas, stormy skies and hazy visibility. No problem at all for us crossing to Corsica, just not quite the blue skies we would have liked – but still at least Skipper Nigel didn’t need to put on too much suncream;-)
The passage between Sardinia and Corsica was uneventful although once again we really had to be very careful of fishing pots. Around half past four we saw the stunning coastline and entry to Bonifacio.
We had reserved our mooring space online and paid a deposit but as we entered the channel I tried to radio – no answer, I tried to phone, I couldn’t get through – what a nightmare since we didn’t know where to go. The pilot book (the boating guide book with detailed information on ports) told us to take a spare berth but we tried to wait and kept trying get in touch with them. We were following a larger yacht down the channel and as we got closer to the town a marinero on a boat circled round us (creating a huge wake – not helpful) and tried to show us our space. Unfortunately he wasn’t very clear and seemed to show two – it was all very confusing then he just sped off to another boat. We had to bring Gemini J onto a berth ourselves alongside the much bigger French crewed yacht. They offered no assistance at all as I jumped off and secured the lines. It seems on reflection that we had totally confused everyone by coming in bow to (front of the boat at the dock). With a bit of insistence and gesticulating I got the French crew to help us secure the lines. We then almost collapsed as that had been by far our most stressful entry. We had the amazement/amusement of then watching other boats arrive. We call marinas without much space “sardine” marinas but this is definitely an “anchovy” marina!! When we recovered and adjusted to our surroundings we realised we really were in one of the most stunning marinas even if getting out of it might be as challenging as gettting in !
We enjoyed delicious cheese and ham toasties called Croque Monsieurs aboard in the evening, along with a glass of Orangina ! When in France it seems only right to bring back holiday memories of very happy times in Brittany and Normandy many years ago with family and friends. Having said that the following day we continued by stepping off the boat and straight into a creperie to eat “crepe complet” (a pancake filled with cheese, ham, tomato and egg) followed by a sweet treat …..
I wandered up to the old town of Bonifacio which is concealed behind the citadel wall. It is quite magical to head up the hill on foot then through the walls to come out in the old town – completely hidden from view like a secret hideaway (which I guess it was for many, many years). I heard the first American voices on this trip and realized I had hit the tourist trail ….. although it’s still really easy here to take a turn down a back street and find yourself alone.
The following day was our wedding anniversary and we’d hired a car to go off and do a bit of exploring. We went to the town of Port Veccio to do a bit of shopping/stocking up and hit the hypermarket. Then we headed to our lunch spot of Santa Ghjulia and Restaurant Moby Dick. You approach the restaurant and beach from the car park behind the building and it’s like walking into a tropical paradise. So beautiful and a wonderful open air restaurant to enjoy it from. I ate the most delicious prawn risotto and Skipper Nigel a steak, of course there was another delicious dessert, this time pavlova absolutely fabulous and a great way to spend the afternoon.
When we got back I went up the hill once again (to walk off that lunch) and waved down at Skipper Nigel who could see me high above the boat – that was fun !! It was one of those things where I looked deceptively far away – even though it was less than a twenty minute walk. There are stunning views everywhere here.
On Sunday we took the car into the mountains – driving along stunning pine lined roads and through forests. We stopped at a roadside “café” for a break, another amusing experience since we ordered what we thought would be a toasted sandwich, only to find it was a huge chunk of country style bread (extremely crusty (not at all good for our teeth)) stuffed with cold cheese and ham – but a Corsican beer and an Orangina washed it down and we were on the road again. We were lucky that our hire car had been upgraded mind you, I am not sure a Fiat 500 would have made it up the hill quite so easily 😉 We were rewarded on the way back with another fabulous lunch at a restaurant overlooking the bay of Port Veccio, more steak and chicken for me this time – wonderful.
In the evening we were surprised by musicians on the pontoon – requested by the host on the huge catamaran which is now opposite us. He proceeded to entertain everyone by joining in with a song – it was quite a unique experience. I haven’t mentioned the evenings here in the port yet – everything is lovely, people walking along the promenade, all the restaurants full to capacity. A great atmosphere, most people finishing their meals around 10pm and that’s when it starts – B52 bar (just at the end of the pontoon) a mini sound a light show – but from 10pm the volume starts to increase, and increase and increase….until it is literally the only thing you can hear in the entire port. So odd that just one establishment can take over everyone’s experience just like that ! and then at 2am – it’s all over, but don’t expect much sleep til then!!!we’re slightly comforted by the fact that if it was Spain it would go on until 6am. On Sunday night it finished an hour early – phew what a relief – we dropped off to sleep then at half past one “beep, beep,beep” an alarm woke us up – and it was on Gemini J !! How on earth does our smoke alarm choose to run out of battery the earliest night we’ve had since Thursday!!!!!! We are ready to move onwards, back to Sardinia for more adventures – hopefully to a calmer marina, it has been like a mini-break here in Corsica – a place we’d definitely like to return to someday!
The Adventures of Gemini J 