corsica

“Live the full life of the mind, exhilarated by new ideas, intoxicated by the romance of the unusual.” -Ernest Hemingway

A few hours on a ferry took us to the island of Corsica. Given the opportunity Ezra and I would sing Corsica’s praises for hours. It’s beautiful and has incredibly varied landscape. Such a treat to drive from mountains to the gorgeous beaches. During the week Ezra worked and I started chipping away at some online classes to keep up my Shiatsu certification. Mix all that in with walks and an hour or two at the beach.

We arrived into Bastia in the evening and wandered her old streets and around the harbor. We tried some local wine and otherwise enjoyed this character-filled town before heading out west along the coast.

We had a long weekend that was pure joy cruising around and taking it all in. Something about Corsica prompted great conversation and ideas and we starting putting together pieces of what we want in our lives. At times our wants seem mutually exclusive but maybe it was all the fresh air that inspired some cohesion. But why share these ideas now, it’s more fun to see them as they unfold.
 Lavender and wild fennel!

Cute little town of Calvi became our home for a few days.

There were all sorts of great liqueurs including Myrtle.Just in case you consume too much Myrte it is quite handy that the elevator mat informs you of the day.

The prehistoric site of Filitosa was a pleasant surprise. We went with no expectations and had a wonderful few hours enjoying the countryside and wandering around the menhirs (standing stones). Being here prompted more great conversation.

Wine may not grow on trees, but their corks sure do.

Lastly we stayed in Bonifacio. Another beautiful harbor town that was partly built atop dramatic white cliffs. We took a walk up to the citadel at sunset which was otherworldly in its beauty. Alas, we did not bring a camera so I will just try to keep close that memory of the warm wind whipping wildly around as the sun set through the foggy air. I will remember being atop the white cliffs and thinking of the Cliffs of Insanity. Name that movie.

This is why I love travel and am feeling renewed for it. It stimulates realizations and great conversations. We share ideas instead of always getting stuck on the same topics. It brings us closer and I was realizing how much I’d realized these past few months.

south of france

“The way to know life is to love many things.” -Van Gogh

We returned to Paris so Ezra could meet with his replacement at work and help transition him into the role. Since they couldn’t meet in the UK, Paris was the obvious destination. So we left Greece and not wanting to have to purchase another ticket back, we decided we’d hop on the train and head south.

I did a daytrip to see Versaille. After taking the wrong train and buying the wrong ticket (which resulted in a hefty fine – just my luck!) I made it to the infamous palace. It was beautiful but I was feeling a bit exhausted by the time I finally arrived. Getting pushed around by so many tour groups was not my idea of fun and so I just went through quickly and left.

The hall of mirrors was pretty spectacular!

We hopped off the train in Aix-En-Provence where we wandered around town and rented a car to cruise through Provance. I fell in love and we were there at such a fortuitous time. Red poppies dotted the landscape as well as many other wildflowers. Spring is my favorite time of year. Everything smells so fresh and it holds so much promise. The countryside was shifting from a dull brown to verdant green and life seemed to teem in every corner. Can you tell I was excited to be in Provence in Spring?

We stopped at Pont du Gard which is an old Roman aqueduct and enjoyed the view over the river.

Poppies!

My new favorite candy – where have you been all my life?

Next we spent a couple day in Nice enjoying views of the French Riviera and drove along the “James Bond” coastal road up to a cute little town called Eze. We were going to head to Monaco for the day but were short on time and instead returned to Nice and did what everyone does when they’re in France – went to a Chinese restaurant. We did follow it up with a more traditional stroll through the flower market.

       

The French’s version of a non-stop restuarant. God I love the French!

 

 

a paris apartment

“Home is where the heart is.”

We have rented a lot of AirBnB apartments and have had mostly excellent experiences. However, my parents and I had one that is worth mentioning. The whole experience was a comedy of errors. It was Ezra’s idea to just copy the thread of emails back-and-forth as is. As a side note, we love France and the French. Any jokes are just that – a joke!

Ez – You are not going to believe the experience I had today with this apartment. My parents and I have been dying over it. I will just list them for you:

1. No internet that appears to work.
2. Random half drunk water bottles all thru the apartment.
3. Baby formula all through the apartment.
4. Nothing is plugged in.
5. The toilet has no light fixture, at all. Nor a window. It is like being in a dark closet.
6. She wrote me and said she forgot to tell me there was no light. The fixture is in the bathroom. The ladder is in the closet. She was going to put it in at 1:30 when she was going to meet me. So I guess BC I didn’t get in at 1:30 we don’t get a light. Or I guess I’m suppose to put it in BC she told where the ladder is?
7 . I got major ‘tude because I wanted to check in before 6:30 pm. Even though the check in was at 6, which is ridiculous anyway.
8. I had to go across town and meet her to get the keys. Worst. Directions. Ever. Took me over an hour and my parents had to wait in a cafe with all their luggage.
9. The (I presume) apt manager questioned us when we came in and didn’t appear to like nor know what was going on.
10. The refrigerator and freezer is full of their food. Including a used toothbrush.
11. The full kitchen is really just a sink and microwave. The two heating plaques are really just one hot plate…. on the floor.
12. The microwave was not plugged in, because there was no plug in where it was. We had to move and set it up.
13. The hot plate was in front of boxes that held the stove – that was not set up.
14. There is a TV, it has no service to it.
15. I shut the bedroom door and got locked in because the door knob fell off. There was tape over the hole. We’re guessing so it doesn’t lock because the door doesn’t work. Regardless the tape didn’t hold and I was locked in the room for quite awhile.
16. I’m sleeping in the bedroom BC my parents don’t feel comfortable. While the description states the whole apt has curtains there are none in the bedroom. The huge window faces a busy street with office buildings.
17. There are curtains in the living room but they only cover the top 3/4 of the window.
18. There are dirty sandals and slippers lying about.
19. There are huge IKEA type boxes all over the apartment and cleaning supplies everywhere.
20. Weird teddybears and other kids toys lying about.
21. She mentioned she was going to skip her lunch break to meet me so I could check in, and that I better write her a good review. I replied that I wrote her 10 days ago to arranged a time and would have canceled if I’d known sooner that this would be a problem. She didn’t apologized, said she had work commitments and was doing me a favor and that I knew she was making herself available at 1:30 for me (our train was late). She was not polite in her responses. I guess that is also when she was going to put a light in the bathroom? Considering she was so strapped with work, this makes sense.

There are a few more gems I’m forgetting but this is what comes to mind at the moment. Needless to say my parents and I have been laughing (mostly) at how ridiculous this in. We will drink wine in Granada together and craft a scathing review. I think she deserves it.

Hope you are having a lovely night in Granada. The internet may be slow but at least you don’t have a dirty toothbrush in your refrigerator.  Xoxo

Love,
Angie

hilarious. only because it’s not me. you should just post a blog entry with the above exactly as is, i was dying. and that’s why i hate the french. 

love you,

ez

A couple more things…

1. I woke this morning to a jackhammer outside my window and hammering in the apt above.
2. The water in the whole apartment stopped working. Mid-shower. Oh, she forgot to tell us the water was being turned off.
3. She wrote back and said the internet should work and also, yes the information about the ladder was for me to put the fixture in. Apparently its easy…

did she tell you how to work the jackhammer as well? maybe you’ll need to use it to get the water working. maybe you’ll need to clean the whole place too before you leave and fix the door. and the shades. you should double-check.

 

ez