DOWNTIME: CORSICAN STYLE

After arriving in Ajaccio by ferry, our almost 2 hour bus ride had taken us southward to a small coastal town near Figari called Pianottoli, the last stop of our French journey. 

Here our days would not be filled with museums but downtime with warm days, sea air, blue skies,  the Aegean Sea and its beaches besides getting to spend time with Alain, Jim's friend from Marseille and Alain's  English speaking brother and sister-in-law and visiting bilingual young grandson who spoke French and Spanish. Both Alain and his brother have vacation homes within walking distance of each other.

After our lovely seafood home cooked lunch Alain drove us to a small secluded beach.  We  walked a small path towards the beach. En route we stopped at one of the old towers which sprinkle the coast line. Unfortunately it was closed due to stairway disrepair but we still had stunning vistas.

From our alcove swimming hole we could also watch the sailboats. 

After a refreshing dip in the sea, we stopped to meet Alain's charming family. His brother had been a headmaster for many years and his sister-in-law had taught English. We recapped our French travels with them. The days had flown by in retrospect. 

Late afternoon passed and as was customary we headed back to the hotel to rest a bit before dinner. Chez Felix. a Mediterranean restaurant, was within walking distance and Sally and Jim split a pizza and I enjoyed a lovely salad on a second floor covered terrace sitting among German and French tourists.

With our first Corsican day behind us, we fell asleep quickly that evening with beach plans for the following day where we would meet up with Alain's family and another adventure/2 to ensue...