Planning
We were married on 6th September 2001. During 2020, therefore, we began thinking about our 20th Anniversary in 2021, and how we might mark this special occasion. In the end, of course, covid meant we had to postpone this to September 2022. However, we decided 21 years could mark our wedding coming-of-age, so we went ahead and planned something special.
We wanted something Mediterranean that didn’t involve flying. Our 15th Anniversary in Mallorca had been wonderful, so given that our French is rather better than our Spanish we hit upon Corsica. Flying could be avoided by taking the overnight ferry from Marseille. Sorted!
The LNER has a great system where one can ask to be notified by email when tickets for the particular train you want first become available. This was invaluable, as, going first class, for each journey we needed a two-seater table so Pat could be guaranteed have a backwards-facing seat, and there was usually only one these for each train! It all worked out ok, although for the return journey we had to try three trains before getting the table we wanted. It turned out this was the day before the Great North Run, so clearly demand was high. Booked this far in advance, with Senior Railcards, the tickets were not too dear.
Finally, in order to avoid having to cancel our holiday through covid, we took every precaution to keep ourselves safe, including going into virtual isolation for the preceding month.
Wednesday 31st August 2022
Our taxi got us to Newcastle Central Station in good time to catch the 8:27, and we were off. And we found the LNER breakfast not bad at all.
We were in good time for the 14:31 Eurostar to Paris. Just as well, as the queues were unbelievable. The principal delay was due to French Passport control, where British passport holders were, thanks to Brexit, subject to as close a scrutiny as any other foreigner. Nevertheless, our first class seats were really nice, and we were soon in Paris.
Buying Metro tickets and catching the Metro at Gare du Nord was straightforward. Finding our way out at Chatelet Les Halles was anything but, as this large station is integrated with a huge shopping centre on multiple levels. Nevertheless we eventually dragged our suitcases up numerous escalators to reach ground level. Thankfully our hotel was only just up the road.
The Hotel le Relais des Halles proved to be even better than its reviews. Every criticism we’ve made of any hotel we’ve stayed in was already dealt with in this one. Expensive, true, but by Paris standards real vfm. On the hotelier’s recommendation we had a nice dinner just round the corner at La Fresque, where we sat outside, enjoying the Paris life going on around us. Paris, or certainly this part of it, is much more diverse than we remember from past visits. It was lively and friendly.
Thursday 1st September
After an excellent breakfast we decided to explore the 2ème Arrondissment, in particular its Arcades. Definitely worth the explore. We then made our way down through the Jardin des Tuileries to the Seine, and walked the right bank back to Les Halles. A leisurely lunch at Le Paname and it was time for a siesta prior to dinner.
We took the (hot and stuffy) Metro (yes, from the dreaded Les Halles again – easier without luggage!) to the dock by the Eiffel Tower, where we caught our boat for an evening cruise, with dinner, down the Seine. We’d booked a window seat, and the whole evening was magical! The views! The menu! The wine! (The meal included a glass of champagne each plus a bottle of red and one of white.) Sitting across the aisle were a couple of friendly Poles celebrating their 20th anniversary. They and the waitress struggled to communicate in Franglais until they discovered that she was also Polish.
Friday
After negotiating Les Halles once more (found a lift this time – but it was out of order, as was one of the escalators) we made our way to the TGV. We’d booked upstairs seats so as to enjoy the view but hadn’t realised that this meant lugging suitcases up a steep and narrow staircase. However, our TGV seats were comfortable and we got into Marseilles about lunchtime. We’d planned to leave our suitcases at the Left Luggage office and enjoy a wander round the town. Small problem: no left luggage facilities. Second problem: by this time, with all the lugging about, Colin’s case had developed a wonky wheel. So we took a taxi down to the dock where we lunched outdoors in the shade at a Norwegian café. Pat was enjoying her salad until she dropped her fork and upended the open, generously large container of salad dressing, causing the said dressing to fly up and all over her white blouse and trousers! Opening her suitcase, she extracted that evening’s outfit and repaired to the cafe’s toilet to sponge down and change. The white clothes were consigned to a carrier bag where they stayed until we got home. Pat is a walking advert for the power of Biotex.
It was far too early to check in for our ferry; the ferry company doors were locked but they had thoughtfully provided seats out in the baking sun. We did what everyone else was doing and sat in the shade on the steps. Eventually we could check in, and then board the bus that took us round the docks to our ferry.
We’d paid the small additional premium to have a cabin for four to ourselves, which gave us plenty of room. Going along for dinner, we accepted the limited choice but all the tables were taken. They gave us a paging device, which went off about 20 minutes later to say there was now a table for us.
Saturday
The breakfast on the ferry was fine, but it then took us ages to find the right lift to where foot passengers could disembark. The terminal building was deserted by the time we got there so we decided to walk to our hotel. Just round the bay but wearying with that wheel on Colin’s suitcase half detached.
Our room at Hôtel Le Goéland was, understandably, not ready, so we were invited to have coffee on the lawn between the hotel and the harbour while we waited. It was already quite warm, so we were glad to be shown to our room a short while later. It felt beautifully cool. The fact that the adjustable air conditioning was set at 24C shows how hot it was outside. Over the whole week the daytime temperature never dropped below 30C. Our ground-floor room was spacious, with a huge ensuite bathroom and a very private patio. Perfect!
Later we strolled into town and enjoyed lunch at a harbour-side restaurant. It had a novel air-conditioning system that periodically sprayed a cloud of fine mist over the room, diners and all. A little disconcerting at first but effective. We called in to the local Europcar to arrange car hire for the Monday and Tuesday, but otherwise found it too hot walk very far so saved the town centre for another day. We dined on the lawn at the hotel, watching the sun set over the water and the sheet lightning flashing across the sky. The setting was beautiful but the food expensive and with limited choice.
Sunday
Pat woke up feeling rotten. We’d bought a few LFTs with us. Pat tested positive, Colin negative. What a brilliant start to our time in Corsica! Colin had a word with reception, and it was agreed that room service would stay away for the week, with us exchanging or renewing anything we needed at reception as and when.
Foodwise, for the remaining four days Colin would bring Pat a breakfast tray from the dining room and we’d eat takeaway dinners in our room in the evening. The staff were all very accommodating, and got used to the nightly bottle of wine (€28 for a half-litre bottle!) that Colin bought at the bar each evening as foodage (or whatever the food equivalent of corkage is!).
During the day, while Pat mostly slept, Colin walked up to the old town for a look round and to suss out places with take-away food.
Dinner that evening was pizza from a place just down the road. Very nice, but Colin, watching the pizzas being made, was disappointed to see that a couple of rollers were being used to stretch the dough!
Monday
Colin picked up our hire car first thing – a very nice Megane. Our plan had been to drive to Bonifacio, then in the afternoon visit a beach, before dining in Pianottoli-Caldarello where there was a concert of Polyphonie Corse.
Pat was feeling just well enough to travel in an air-condtioned car, but clearly a crowded concert was out of the question. Heading for Bonifacio, we encountered long queues to get into the town, suggesting little prospect of parking, so we gave it a miss and headed for a beach. We spent a pleasant hour or two there, having a drink at the beach bar, and then headed back towards Porto-Vecchio, via a large Spar to pick up some dinner.
Tuesday
Today we could actually follow our plan, which was to head into the mountains to find some typical scenery and local villages – in our case, the Alta Rocca, known, amongst other things, for having been the centre of the Resistance during the war. We headed for the Col de Bavella, aiming to get a good view of Les Aiguilles de Bavella, but the car park was packed full, as were the approach roads on both sides, so we gave up. We later discovered this was a particular holiday week in Corsica!
We stopped off in Zonza for a bite to eat, then decided on an alternative route back to our hotel, via Lévie and Carbini. Our appetite for mountainous villages was sated, and once back in Porto-Vecchio we called in at the Spar for more provisions for dinner.
Wednesday
After returning the car we took a walk up the hill to the centre of old Porto-Vecchio with its windy, cobbled streets. Pat had enough energy for a slow walk and enjoyed being out and about on foot. No souvenir shopping for us!
Pizza for dinner again.
Thursday
Thursday morning we both took LFTs. Pat was still positive, now joined by Colin. There was no option but to take that evening’s ferry so we simply resolved to keep to ourselves as much as possible. We spent most of the day on the hotel terrace and lawn, where we ate a last hotel lunch.
The hotel ordered us a taxi to the port, and we duly boarded our ferry. We pretty much kept to our cabin, although a masked Colin ventured out to get some food. Otherwise a peaceful night.
Friday
Colin fetched some breakfast from the buffet, and then it was time to disembark. A shuttle took us back to the main port area, and we duly took a taxi back up to the railway station. Although there were signs warning that all trains for the day were full – panic! – a very obliging member of staff helped us negotiate the ticket machine and it supplied us with tickets to Paris.
This time we took the opportunity for a look at Marseille. The view over the city from the railway station is rightly famous. Taking turns at sitting with the cases we explored the area a little and took photographs of the station and its environs.
Arriving back in Paris, we took the metro to Les Halles, and this time we made straight for the lift Pat had clocked earlier, which took us straight up to ground level. We were staying in Le Relais again, just a short walk away. The hotel was quite happy with us having tested positive, as long as we wore masks while in public areas.
We went for a pre-prandial stroll round the local streets we’d not yet visited, and in due course found a table outside but under shelter where we had a pleasant final dinner. We enjoyed Paris, or at least that part of it, finding everyone very friendly and the place full of atmosphere.
Saturday
We decided to treat ourselves to a taxi to the station, and found the Eurostar terminal considerably less crowded than St Pancras, although we still had to go through pretty much the same hoops to get to our train.
We had several hours to wait in London, by virtue of the earlier trains being booked up, so we took it in turns to explore the Kings Cross locality.
It had been some time since either of us had been in King’s Cross and what progress has been made! Walking between KX and St Pancras and onward we found a whole new development, beautifully executed with interesting architecture and wonderful planting. The whole place has a peaceful feel. We walked all the way through to the Regent’s Canal. Another time, unencumbered by cases (and Covid) we’ll continue to the cafes across the water.
And so to home. Not quite the trip we’d envisioned but lovely, just the same. We did most of the things we wanted to, and if Colin was disappointed to be robbed of his restaurant dinners, he was gallant enough not to say so. (Thanks, Pat – just think of the money we saved!)
A gallery of our trip can be found here.