Day 38: Corsican mountain love

Today was not going to be a stuff up like yesterday!! I have a rockclimbing session booked in the town of Corte, about 2 hours inland of here, and got to the only bus that goes that way a good half an hour before it was scheduled to leave. And then one hour passed. And no bus driver arrived. So I went into the main station to discover that the bus is not running today!!!! Because today happens to be both the day of Mary's Assumption (apparently this island is really catholic...) and also Napoleons Birthday, and Ajaccio is his town of birth!!! So in this city only its a double public holiday which for some reason means my bus doesn't run. So so so upset!! The only other option is the slow train, but that left while I was waiting for the bus... And no more trains for a few hours, which would skew our meeting time by hours!! I was so shattered, looking like the two things I can here for would fail, and this one especially which had been so well organised!!! So I was crying and went back to my hotel, planning to call the climbing company to see if by any chance we could still climb if I arrived super super late. On the way up to the room I thought I'd just see if reception had any bright ideas. I asked them if there was any other way to get to Corte at all, they said no.... But then one of the staff caught up to me saying that a guest that overheard my distress at the counter is about to drive to Bastia (other wise of island, but e only road there goes through Corte) and can give me a lift!!!

So yay, plan back on. This means I will arrive only 1.5 hours later than planned rather than 3! And the drive was awesome. She was a really cool lady, with her little dog, travelling back home after being in Ajaccio for meeting (she works in real estate). We had a great chat about all things Kangaroo. The drive took about 2 hours and took us up from sea level to about 1500m (on the road, the surrounding mountains over 2500),  through some of the best looking mountains I've seen. Really rocky and stunning in the low cloud. Unfortunately no photos really, other than these ones from a bad viewpoint... But may e it gives a small impression??

Then we arrived in my destination Corte! This is on the otherwise of the mountain - still high and hilly, but no where ear as high as the pass.

There I met up with my guide Agnés, a gentle and lovely lady who owns the local adventure business which had recently also become a shop for relevant equipment that her husband runs. She also has canyoning tours and such run by other staff but for rock climbing - she's your lady!! So nice to see this kinda of stuff done by a woman - especially seeing as she started this business many years ago. So off we went wi her expertise and my enthusiasm to some rocks, hopefully in the shade...! (And as always preceded by long walks up hill)

I stupidly forgot to take my camera up the rock as we climbed, which is a pity because the views from the top were amazing!! But he's what I was looking at, only this time from 70m below...

For my first outdoor climb this was perfect - I felt really safe with Agnés so got to really challenge myself. First I did a few short climbs- for this to happen Angés has to lead climb up first (this means with no rope holding her from above, securing the rope into fixed bolts as she goes) to secure the rope for me to climb on afterwards (because I'm not good enough to lead yet!!). And then we did a multi pitch climb. This is a climb where the aim is to get quite high - usually to the top of something - and where the height is far too great to achieve it in one climb with the length of the rope. Instead you need to climb a certain (predetermined) distance (as Agnés did at the start), secure the rope to a bolt in the rock (this bolt is much more secure than the standard ones and reinforced so you are generally quite safe), then the second person comes up while the first belays from above in stead of below (obviously some rope skills involved). Then when the second person is at the same level as the first, they rejigg the rope and bolts so it can be the beginning of another climb higher up, and so on until you reach the top. Mind you, the place that you change pitches at is not necessarily a ledge of any kind, usually just a portion of the rock with slightly better food holds to use while you attach the gear. So in this case we did three pitches and climbing probably about 70m in total, to the top. From there one person rappels down and then the next, taking all gear with you, and rappelling again from each pitch station (otherwise the rope will run out!! - which ours did 4 metres short of the end so Agnés climbed down a tree haha). 

There were some really tricky bits in this climb - cracks and such, and when you're climbing you often cant see the other person, so its just you, the rock and all the time in the world (which is often takes for a hard section ... Not much you can do other than keep trying to get up even when there's seemingly no where to put your hands or feet!) 

Looks small from here but that's the wall we just climbed... From deep below that green tree at the base.

After getting back to town and giving a million thanks for the great climb and lesson, I strolled (and got lost a few times) to the train for the return trip. Passed some cute ruins on the way....

Back in Ajaccio that night to discover fireworks for the public holiday thing. I only caught the tail end as I was right in the middle of my pasta when they -oh so loudly- started.

Day 37: Diving difficulties

Today I had organised a bit of a stuff up. Had long ago organised to do a dive in Corsica, but didn't realise until a day or two ago, soon confirming, that the location of the dive school I had booked with was a little out of Ajaccio. Only a little, but completely inaccessible by public transport in the early morning as I required. So had to wake up early this morning to call every other dive school in Ajaccio to try and find a dive to join. Which turned into lots of walking around the city looking for places and trying to call people, and resulted in a lovely dive school calling a few others for me.... But all to no avail! Not a single availability that day :( quite shattered at that stage, for one of the only reasons I chose to go to Corsica is because it supposedly hosts the best diving anywhere near my travel path. As a compromise I went snorkelling. And to be honest it was pretty shit snorkelling! We are quite lucky here in Aus!! Anyway, had some time to lie on the beach and at least had some water time. This is the rib we went out on to our snorkelling hole miles away in one of those background hills.

Returning to Ajaccio that night to find a Napoleon-esc parade in the Main Street. I'm not much of one for parades.... Home after a really tiring day with some takeaway :)

Day 36: Nice to Ajaccio

I found Nice a tricky place to get the information that I needed. Took a while, but eventually found the bus I was after - ''twas the plan to visit a heap of hilltop medieval villages today. But as it turned out my bus took 2 hours instead of 45mins to the first stop, and after than I waited over an hour for a bus that didn't show (which was to take me to the next village... The one I really wanted to see),  so chose to forfeit and head back to Nice after just the one. Which is fine really, you don't know what you miss out on when you don't see it! And I was tired anyway!

So here are some shots from St. Paul de Vence. A bit touristy but I didn't mind, 'twas nice and I was in a daydreaming mood, so did just that! :)

Checked out the shops in Nice then ready and off to the airport to fly to Corsica!

Day 35: Camogli to Nice

Off on the train again today to Nice. And a stupid train day it was. First I got on my early connection, no dramas. Then to a central town - Genoa - where my next train was delayed for 30 mins... Wouldn't have been a big drama, but my next host had asked me to tell her if my train would be late, yet I had no way of contacting her. Eventually I figured out a pay phone and I think left her a voicemail? Hope she gets it! Then the next train was ridiculously packed. So I spend the next few hours in the area of a carriage near the door with a family from Broadford! Grandma, mum and 3 young kids! They were classic and was fun to chat to some country Aussie folk. We figured out that we'd missed out connection train (they wanted the same next one as me to Nice), and to make the one after we'll have to run like crazy men at the station... That is me with my backpack, but them with a pram, 2 extra kids and about 6 bags/suitcases!! So I became an extra family member for the mad rush (not to mention us having to get all of that out of the way at every stop for people to exit on the current train!). So we got to the transit station (oh yeah and they still needed to buy train tickets) and unlike the usually really reliable notice board system, there was no train to Nice listed on the board. So while the rest of them seriously struggled through the masses and masses of people to get the luggage off the platform, I ran like mad to find the train (and luckily did). Then we had to muscle through the people, get the damn pram up there and onto the train. Have no idea how we got everyone and the baby and the luggage on. But we did. It was so so so packed that I was in the gangway of one carriage with the two young girls (8, 10 and ridiculously strong and independent - they had better control of the suitcases than I did) and the other three were in the next gangway, all of us hoping that we get off at the same stop and that we don't loose them!! Found out later that the mum would hang her head out at every stop just to make sure we didn't get off without them! And then we arrived in Nice. And the doors opened on the opposite side than they had been all trip.... That is, on the side that we had blockaded with out bags!! And everyone wanted to get off!! So took a while to remove the bag plug, then we got off, with everyone else and all the luggage. Somehow! (A group of Canadian athletes may have helped alot). Amazing! So there I farewelled the fellow Victorians and headed off into the city to find my place...

Which was lovely, but I was tired. And hungry.

Found a Jarrah dog!

Day 34: La Spezia to Camogli/Santa Margherita Ligure

Further up (west) the Ligurian coast today to a little town called Camogli, where I was staying in a yoga room on a massage table! The owner was an American lady who had lived there for 18 years, and was really helpful. After settling in, I headed into the nearby main town Santa Margherita for some scuba diving!!

This is where we were diving. It was a really fun dive! So far I have only taken the 'plonge' in winter waters in Aus, so was really nice to do in warm waters, totally amped my confidence diving that's for sure! Only wearing one wetsuit and not shivering for dear life mad rot surprisingly more comfortable to breathe and relax under water haha. Love it!

And a nice dinner I town with some of the divers!

Sorbet, true Italian style - I.e. flavoured ice with an alcoholic spirit mixed in, to 'help digestion'. Kinda like an alcoholic slushy, this one was apple flavoured sorbet with I think a banana liqueur or something... Weird but actually nice :)

Day 33: Florence to La Spezia/Cinque Terre

Today I took the train to La Spezia, on the Italian coast. From there it was off to the Cinque Terre - five gorgeous cliff top/seaside old villages, with a long walk connecting them all (or train or boat). Very touristy, and the one place I heard many Aussie accents, but really gorgeous!... Even with the stony beaches!! Started at this one, Monterosso, the farthest from La Spezia...

Then started on the hike to the next village, lots of up hill but really fun, took about 90mins and met some nice people along the way :)

And a view of Vernazza, the next one!

Yeah ignore the white stomach!! Was way way too hot to keep clothes on!

Cute entrance into the village...

Went for a swim down on this beach 

Then The plan was to train the next leg, then walk the last 2, but discovered that those last two were not accessible due to a landslide last year!... So opted for the ferry instead... Which is lucky cos it was much later than I realised!

From here we can see the next few villages...

Back to LaSpezia for some super fresh seafood, followed by a giant gelato. I realised that thus far I'd only ever ordered the smallest size icecream, with one flavour.... So decided to amp it up!!....