Genova 'n all that

5-31-10
Spent 260Euros on 2 new Metzeler Tourance tires. That's not much more than I spend at home. It only took an hour to get them changed. Then took a much needed siesta, did laundry, worked on the blog, and had dinner. My first real off day all trip, I think. I rode less than 10 miles around town, I think. Far enough to get a parking ticket, though. It should cost 38E, but my landlady at the hotel says don't pay it. I don't know how it could catch up with me. The ticket has no mention of what jurisdiction the license plate is. It's about time, though. I've broken just about every driving law there is, with total impunity. ummm, maybe the less said about that, the better.

I did go to CinqueTerre. (Well, at least one of them.) AAAARGH! Tourist trap!!! Yeah, OK, they're quaint little villages perched on steep hillsides by the sea, but I've just spent a week among dozens of villages just as quaint, without the thousands of tourists per square meter. I couldn't take it and got out of there ASAP.

These are som pix of the southern town:

 

  

See this line of people walking along the cliff? That's a non-stop line of tourists going from town to town.

 

More pix of Corsica...

Luci:

 My first view of Sardinia (on the horizon to the right:)

 

 

 

 

 

The Ferry

5-29-10                            

 Last night I spent in the Camping Les Orangers outside Bastia, thinking I should be close to the ferry terminal.  Oh well. I forgot the departure was 1:15 instead of noon. I could have been anywhere, almost. There was a free concert in the plaza at Bastia, but I couldn’t go because they lock the gates early at the campground.  So, this morning, when I realized I had several hours to play, I headed for the Cap Corse. I did a couple of bits I hadn’t ridden before, and then beat it back to the ferry. There, I met one of the German guys I partied with in Porto. His Harley had broken down and he was putting around on one cylinder. Poor guy.  I hope I don’t get in the same boat. I need 2 new tires, bad. I’ll probably spend an extra day somewhere soon, getting them replaced.

The ferry trip was nothing special, except it’s amazing how many vehicles they can carry. Besides what seemed like a couple of hundred cars, there were also at least a hundred motorcycles. And every ferry to Corsica (several/day) carries that many bikes.  When I rolled off, I didn’t bother stopping in Livorno, but headed straight for the highway north. To avoid central Pisa, I got on the autostrada. That’s a bit different from the twisties of Corsica. Zipping along…mountains so high (~2000m), next to the sea. Cararra, of marble fame - that mountain has a _big_ bite out of it. A bunch of big stone-cutting factories.

I get to La Spezia and check into the Hotel Albergo Birrilo, as recommended by Lonely Planet. The clerk shows me his bike, “the mother of your bike.” It’s a 1981 R80GS, in excellent condition. Cool. Dinner at Die Pescatori (recommended by the hotel clerk.) It’s a takeout fish place by the docks. 50 people (well-dressed Italians) standing in line, it took ½ hour to get in the door. Excellent gnocchi w/crab & a shrimp salad that was delish. Walking back to the hotel, I heard live music. Tracking it down in a tiny piazetta(really just a wide spot in an alley,) I found a jazz quintet playing cool jazz. Good stuff. Looking up, I saw the usual balconies, with laundry hanging out to dry, including a bunch of nice lingerie. When the band stopped playing, I wandered off, only to find another stage with live music, this time with young musicians playing contemporary pop.  I don’t know if La Spezia is special, or big cities all are so hip in Italy. The people sure look stylish, and the walking streets were crowded with people, young and old.  I saw at least 20 or more places I’d like to dine at. I’d have spent more time cruising, but the hotel closes at midnight. That's 2 nights in a row that a curfew has curtailed my social life. Bummer.

Random notes

The port at Bonifacio:

5-28-10
Oh well, just another fabulous one lane twisty bit of road in a ridiculously beautiful landscape. I can’t be getting jaded, now, can I?

Lots of critters in the road today – cows, cats, dogs, pigs, goats, crows, mockingbirds(?), oh, and the massive cowpies in the road

The half dozen pig carcasses hung on the fence by the road like some bizarre ritual warning.

 The cascades yesterday and today – yesterday was inviting, a bit cold but worth a skinny dip. Today was radical, too scary to get close to because of my slippery boots.

The group of 8 or 9 kids at the bar, one with a guitar, singing Corsican songs. A great sound. Folkish, patriotic, possibly traditional. The kids were totally into the music and couldn’t care less about anyone around them. They belted out some a capella tunes that seemed just melodies, but LOUD.

It hailed yesterday. I thought about curtailing the ride, but it looked clearer up in the mountains, so up I went. Sure enough, it was much nicer up there. Riding these roads in good weather is scary enough. The roads are OK in the rain, but I can’t imagine riding them in the winter or in the dark when the weather is really bad.

Last night in the Las Vegas Hotel – 1 star means a real dump, but the ladies who run it (2 old women and probably the daughter) are really nice. The lobby(?) has a painting of Napoleon, a pinball machine, a fussball table, a trophy for some card game tournament, a bunch of children’s toys, and a bouquet of beautiful big roses. And it’s full of the crap that families acquire and seem to stash everywhere.

I thought European riders were supposed to be fast. Or, at least faster than Americans.  I’ve seen very few who were much faster than I. I know I’m not that fast, but I sure feel comfortable on those roads.

More Food...

5-27-10.
In Cortona, Italy, at the Temporo restaurant, I had shrimp gnocchi with artichokes that was superb. I had a yen for some fagioli, which was probably a little too white on top of the gnocchi, but it was good, too. Then a delicious crème desert with a delicate flavor, topped with a fabulous home-made limoncello which was a gift from the lady owner because I had to sit outside.
In Livorno, Lonely Planet recommended a local place called Cantina Senese. The waiter brought an English menu, then told me the specials. Screw the menu. I did a mussel&clam antipasto, then 3 little fish baked in a tomato sauce. Yum.
Barcaggio, Corsica – the waitress was overloaded with a ton of tourists all at once, but smiled through it. She graced me with a great bean salad, a fine wine and a Magnum choco bar.
Macinaggio – ripped off, sorta. Asked for the daily 15.5E special. They said I could have a mixed fish plate with a salad and potatoes on the side instead. They brought a big plate of fish, but no potatoes and charged me 28E for the fish. Very good fish, but a real bait-&-switch.
Porto – a GREAT meal at La Cyrnee! The 19E daily special started with a large tureen of fish soup. The waiter first brought an empty bowl and said “Your fish soup.” Huh? A little joke. Then he brought the tureen, which had toast slices, garlic pieces, and small bowls of grated cheese and mustard on the side. Dunno what the protocol is for that stuff, but the soup, which had no fish pieces and was a dark broth, was delicious. Then followed the entrée – a fillet of dourade (dorado?) with saffron rice and sautéed veggies(squash, eggplant, onion). Desert was an excellent tiramisu.
Zonza – another excellent meal. Auberge du Sanglier. I wasn’t all that hungry, but I should have ordered a few more courses, just because it was so good. I had the tagliatelle (w/shrimp) based on the recommendation of Leila, the black waitress in Levie at Le Café du Progress. (She was born in NYC, grew up in London, Switz., Nigeria, etc.) After the pasta, I had a chocolate fondant garnished with strawberries and kiwi fruit. Wow! And then they brought a nice liqueur that is a local Corsican specialty.

Oh yeah. The French definitely make better pastries than the Italians.

 La Cyrnee in Porto.

Leila.

Maybe a $1000 hooker could change my mind…

5-27-10.
But I don’t think sex is as much fun as what I’ve been having in the last 3 weeks. Seriously, something that makes you so happy is usually illegal. 

Corsica is amazing.  A Swiss rider called it savage, and I think that’s a good word. The landscape is awe-inspiring – it just makes your jaw drop in its raw wildness. Think of the rugged, snowy peaks of the Sierra Nevada, jutting straight out of the sea. Man seems to be surviving here, not controlling the landscape like most places he inhabits. Towns cling to hillsides like chitons on a reef. The coastal roads around the town of Porto make Hiway 1 by Big Sur look like a freeway. If you have a fear of heights, don’t bother coming.

The landscape – there are beautiful stands of pine up high, and some roads are lined with dense ferns. The tree line is only around 4700’, but it seems alpine. The highest peak is around 8800’.  At lower elevations, there are dense forests that from a distance look like low chaparral, but can be anywhere from knee-high to 20’. Wildflowers are incredible. Brilliant reds, yellows, whites and violets everywhere. Lavender is rampant. And where there is no vegetation, there is only rock. But not just any rock – stark, majestic, jagged granite in vivid pinks, reds, green and white.

The critters – There’s a bird that keeps waking me up. Its call sounds like “We’re all going extinct!”  Another bird sounds like a smoke alarm warning beep.  I was sitting on a beach and 2 cows waded through shallow water right up to me as if I should have some treat for them. I’ve had to stop for goats in the middle of the road, and pigs know if they hold up traffic, tourists will feed them.  I tell ya, it’s an amazing place.

The silence.  I’ve found places here quieter than almost anywhere. There is no surf, so at the beach, you can hear each and every little pop and burble when water moves around a rock. The wind seems almost apologetic with tiny lisps. A solitary bird can sound cacophonous with a single warble.

Damn pigs want to be in every picture!

A Tech Note

5-26-10.
I finally got around to connecting my computer to the bike’s power. There is a cable from the bike’s accessory plug to a cigarette lighter plug. Then a converter from that to a 110 plug. Then a computer charger. Then a converter from that to my computer. A bit kludgy, but it works. What I can’t get to work is charging the helmet cam while I’m riding. It’s just a USB cable from the computer, but the cable seems to fall out of the cam easily. I’m not sure that’s the problem, though. Even when the bike is stopped with the engine running and the computer charging, the “charging” light doesn’t always show.  It would sure help if I can solve that problem, because battery life is the big holdup to making more videos.

The other tech problem… I’m not sure there is _any_ WiFi on the island of Corsica. I haven’t found it.

OK, I'm pretty shitfaced, but I feel pretty good too. I've outlasted all but three germans out of 8 in a bout of drinking. I ran into them while trying to find a campsite near Porto, Corsica. This has been an incewdible day, considering. It's been the worst day, by far, of the trip, but also one of the best. To get the bad out of the way - last night, I got ripped off for the first time. A bait and switch over dinner. I asked for the 15.50 dinner and they suggested I could get the mixed fish instead, with a side salad and fried potatoes. OK, but that cost me almost double the 15.50, and I never got the potatoes.
That was last night. I got over the dinner issue. It was a good meal, after all, in spite of all the fish bones I had to pick through. This morning, though, AAARGH! I lost one glove offf the back of the bike, went back to find it, then lost both gloves later, and went back and found them. I swore I wouldn't let my alzheimers lose anything else, but then I left my good camera lens on top of the sidecase when I rode off. It was everal miles later wqhen I realised it. I rode back and found the lens in pieces on the ground. @%#$*U%^^ (insert major profanity here. And continue for a while.)
But the ride has been incredible. Corsica is amazing. Wild, rugged, untamed country. It erupts from the sea, mountains lurching skyward. People cling to the landscape, precariously tied to cliffsides. Roads can't get any narrower, nor any more precipitous. So I wound my way to Porto, with a stop for coffee and pastry served by Elvina, then a chocolate crepe and a glass of wine at some little town.

At Porto, I had a great dinner. Fish soup (served in a tureen, with croutons, garlic, cheese, and mustard on the side. Huh? What's the procedure there?) That was followed by an entree of yellow rice and steamed veggies (eggplant, squash, etc,) and fillet of dorado (I think that's what doraude is,) and tiramisu for desert. When I say great, I mean it was incredibly delicious. Start to finish, every bite, andthe two glasses of local white wine were just right, too.

Just as the waiter delivered the bill, the sun started setting. An awesome sunset. No green flash, but very close. Then it was off to find a campsite and here I am, with a bunch of German Harley riders on vacation.
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hmmm. This is really a challenge. I'm typing this on a french keyboard in Ajaccio. The keys are completely different. The period is an uppercase, the a and q keys are switched, etc. And it costs 2 bucks every 15 minutes. I can't do it. It takes me 3 or 4 tries to type every word. Ah well, catch up wid ya later.

The Germans, the morning after:

Elvina:

Where I broke my lens:

A few shots of Corsica: