Final images - Blogabond

Up early so that we could be at the Airport in good time to hand the car back and deal with any suggestions that unaccounted dings had been added. In the event, we had a smooth run to the airport and the handin was uneventful – the recipient for Europcar had a look round, did his quick checks and said – impeccable. This is not quite how I would have described the car but it was good enough for me and I suppose in Corsican terms probably no more than accurate.

Leaving the Hotel Empereur was easy too – Monsieur le Patron was a delightful individual and had always made us feel welcome. Madame la Patronne was a slightly different animal – a female, gallic, Basil Fawlty. She appeared to rule the hotel with a rod of iron – everywhere was spotless, clinically so; there were notices in the room setting out the rules – food in the room is forbidden, 'absolument' and transgression meant immediate ejection! On the other hand, there were nice touches like a pack of notes on local things to do and sights to see. At the evening meal, she strutted amongst diners, taking and delivering orders with a brusque efficiency and economy that minimised the efficiency and maximised the economy – I had the temerity of asking for a couple of glasses for our wine that she had forgotten to give us; no apology, just a tutted delivery. On the morning of our first breakfast, we were a bit late down at 9:30 but well before the 10:00 deadline but she was clearly not amused. It was one of the hotels that actually offered cereal for breakfast but they clearly didn't expect anyone to eat it; there were no bowls. Asking her for a couple of bowls for the cereal was not a good idea, her initial clear displeasure with the approach was quickly followed by a huge Gallic shrug of indifference. (Perhaps she is descended from Marie Antoinette?) But she did bring cold milk, perhaps in an attempt to rub in that we should have been there earlier to get bowls so we resorted to eating out of cups! Her demeanour always suggested that keeping her Hotel nice for guests would be easy were it not for the idiots that kept checking in.

When we got back for our last evening, the parking area outside the hotel had one car already in place, next to the hotel, so we parked next to it. We got a call from reception a little later to move it to the side opposite the hotel. There was no explanation but we assumed it was to do with access. The next morning we discovered why there had been a bit of a panic; Madame parked her car along the wall next to the hotel!!

We had an almost brand new and very comfortable A321 for our flight out of Bastia, giving us lovely views over the city, the hills behind across Cap Corse to the sea on the other side and St Florent. The flight was possibly only 1/3rd full but with empty rows 2 rows in front and behind, we had a full row of 3 people! Having crossed the mountains over the Cap Corse, the starboard wing dipped and we just caught our last glimpse of the mountains of Corsica before heading out over the sea to France, cloud cover increasing all the way. Our trip across Paris was uneventful and our flight to Birmingham on a Bae 146 was a tight squeeze, being absolutely packed to the gunwales; still at least we didn't rattle!

We had a wonderful holiday in a beautiful country with very hospitable folk; thank you Bernard – without you, we would be unlikely to have discovered this little gem and thank you Daniele for your very useful itinerary.

written by

rickandsuejohnson on April 3, 2008 from Bastia, France

from the travel blog: The island of birth for 'Le petit caporal' and the roots of Bernard Nobili

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