After the Centre Val de Loire Region, let's move completely to the South of France, to Corsica.
Corsica is an island off the Mediterranean Sea, near Sardinia and Sicily, which is often presented as "a mountain in the sea", but also and above all as an "Island of Beauty". Two expressions that pay tribute to the thousand and one faces of this magnificent region.
Corsica is an island off the Mediterranean Sea, near Sardinia and Sicily, which is often presented as "a mountain in the sea", but also and above all as an "Island of Beauty". Two expressions that pay tribute to the thousand and one faces of this magnificent region.
Because of its
insularity, Corsica has always maintained, and will always maintain, a good
relationship with the Sea. While the two main cities of the island, Ajaccio and
Bastia, are two very busy ports, there are also, all around Corsica, plenty of
beaches, among the most beautiful in Europe.
Thus, at the southern tip of
Corsica, Bonifacio offers impressive cliffs. Going up to Ajaccio, we cross the
seaside along the “Route des Sanguinaires” (“the Blodthursty road”) to dive
towards the gulf. Then there are the rocky landscapes of the Gulf of Porto, the
magnificent creeks of Piana, which show a perfect union between stone and sea.
In the south east of the
island, Porto Vecchio hides two jewels of white sand: the beaches of
Palombaggia and Santa Ghjiulia. After one more curve of a curvy stretch of road,
one can distinguish the famous Rocapina lion.
But it is the small villages
hidden in the mountains that give Corsica a more radiant face. It is here that
one breathes the scents of the “maquis” (le Maquis designate the vegetation one
finds under Mediterranean climate), the myrtle, the immortelle. This is also
where one heare the murmur of the torrents that flow. Wandering in those villages, one may hear
Corsica language, one will sing to the sound of guitars, and one will taste the
cheeses and especially the charcuterie (cold meat) of local producers.
Among these
small villages, Cozzano, in the center of the island, in the Haut Taravo
valley, is the one I love most. You can taste the best cold meats in the world
at my cousin Dumè's, of course with all objectivity! Its sausages, its “lonzu”,
its “coppa” or its “prizuttu” are famous all the way to Asia!
There is still so much
to tell about this land steeped in history .... These are the faces carved in
stone on the prehistoric site of Filitosa. These are the Genoese towers,
guardian witnesses of the ancient Italian domination. It is the “Diu Vi Salvi
Regina”, the island's hymn which also symbolizes the faith still very present
with its traditions and places of pilgrimage. These are the Aiguilles de
Bavella, the Ospédale forest, the hiking trails .... And so much more ...
So to discover them, as they say home,
in Corsica: "Forsa a presto ! " (Perhaps soon !)
Céline
Céline
