Corsica: Bastia

We got off the ferry in Bastia around 7 am, dropped off our luggage and found some breakfast. Our first impression was of a hot and hilly town with a tropical appearance. Many colourful old buildings added to the charm of the town.

Bastia, situated in the north east of Corsica, is a city of 43,000 people, second largest to the capital Ajaccio. It is only 90 km from Italy and it is visible on clear days. Bastia is a port city, the biggest on the island, with a new (ferries and industry), the old port (pleasure

craft and fishing boats) and the marina.

Bastia is the busiest French port on the Mediterranean Sea (over 2 million passengers) and the second busiest in France; Calais moves around 15 million passengers per year.

John was very impressed with both ports and the marina and we spent many hours examining every boat, in great detail. We also performed observational research of boat and ship movement by

sitting at vantage points, known as bars, in and around each harbour. The last straw really was when John decided to check out the boats from water level and stripped down to underwear to swim in the harbour.

We also did some legitimate tourist activities including a visit to the Governor’s Citadel and Palace which was built in the 14th century by the Genoese. It has had many roles over the centuries but is now a museum. It looks over the old port.

There are restaurants everywhere so we tried to help the local economy by supporting as many establishments as possible. The almond pastries were delicious. We'd heard the wines were a bit rough but were pleasantly surprised when we experienced them.

Corsica is on the “must see again if have time” list. We would like to other cities such as Ajaccio, Porto-Vecchio and Bonifacio as well as more of the stunning coastline and beaches.

Next: August 2017