I first went to Corsica in 2002, on a trip from Ile Rousse down the coast through Calvi, Porto and to Ajaccio, then back up through the center via the Restonica gorges and Corte, and finally a tour along the Cap Corse to finish in Bastia. I fell in love with the island then — it reminds me of Oregon, in a Mediterranean climate. Wild, mountainous, with a rocky coastline, and people who want to protect its beauty.

Yesterday I returned for a day trip to Calvi, which also ended up including a trip to Calenzana for a wine tasting, and another trip to Ile Rousse! When I ordered my ticket on the phone, the woman had said I’d be in Calvi the whole time. It’s a good thing I double-checked at the ticket office about the time my “boat from Calvi” would be leaving, since there was no boat from Calvi, it was from Ile Rousse. Lesson learned: when you buy a ticket by phone, double-check at the physical (real-life) ticket office, no matter how certain you are of what you heard.

As always I’ve created a photoset of my Corsican trip. Calvi is a gorgeous town, and with our lovely weather yesterday, the colors came through wonderfully. I also tried something new this time, inspired by vistas like the one you see above: panoramas! Click on the “All sizes” icon above these to see larger sizes:
- Panorama of the Corsican coast in the morning sun
- Panorama of Calvi’s port
- Panorama of Calvi from beneath an olive tree
- Panorama of Ile Rousse
- Panorama of the Cap Corse

It was an enjoyable trip, but a bit much for one day. If I’d had more funds available, I’d have paid twice as much for the two-day trip, which includes a night in a Calvi hotel. (All excursions are described here.) Another possibility is the shorter trip, which is the cheapest available at 20 euros, where you only stay for 5 hours rather than 9, but is available on fewer dates than the others. With the longer trip I took, the rough part was being tired and hungry at 6pm, which is too early to eat dinner in a restaurant here, and too late to do anything else with the boat leaving at 7:15, plus we arrived in Nice at 11pm, adding even more to the fatigue factor. For a day trip, it would be better to lose a few “exhaustion hours” by returning earlier (and it would cost less).

I also have to recommend against the wine tasting option. I actually didn’t take it — between the boat departure location and this, I’m really puzzled about what I was told on the phone! I paid for the 49 euro excursion, which does not include the tasting, but I got it anyway. I’m glad not to have paid for it since the domaine’s wines were mediocre. The red “prestige” wine aged in oak vats was strong and yet without body; their fizzy muscat tasted like 7-Up mixed with grape juice; their orange wine was far too bitter even with a piece of honey nougat; only their Cap Corse was decent, but I’ve tasted so much better that I didn’t buy any. As my tastes in wine go, I love Côtes du Rhône and Patrimonio (a Corsican appellation) reds, Oregon pinot noirs, Mâcon and Patrimonio whites, good Cap Corse, limoncello (a lemon liqueur), and have had homemade fruit liqueurs so strong they numbed my throat — and which I enjoyed because they were good, with real body to them. These were table wines in comparison. Even then I wouldn’t serve the orange wine to anyone.

If you want to go to Corsica to taste wine, stay for several days, rent a car and drive through the Patrimonio region. I did this as part of my 2002 trip and it remains one of my favorite experiences. I’ll never forget one vineyard in particular, where I had dinner served with a different wine every time I finished a glass. Every one of those wines was delicious. I’m looking forward to returning to the island again, for a longer stay some day.

A year and a week ago (on 25 July 2008), Kanoko came into my life. His whiskers had been cut off by his abandoners, apparently a common tactic to further disorient cats. A year later, they’re now long and luxurious! Kanoko is a delight, very affectionate and creative, although he does love to play with (read: destroy) my plants and can be a bit too energetic when tackling his “big brother” Grey.

Grey is starting his fourth month with us, still a calm and very matter-of-fact cat. He loves nothing more than to be petted and cuddled, with a deep motorboat purr that starts as soon as he knows he’s going to get affection. He patiently allows Kanoko to pounce on his back and his tail, and gives a harmless but firm swat or two when he’s had enough. His favorite activity is stretching out on the terrace and napping in the filtered sunlight.

Yesterday I took the train to Monaco and went to one of my old haunts: the offices I used to work in. They’re on Boulevard Princesse Charlotte, which is where the Tour de France passed yesterday for the Prologue. I sat on a curb bump at the Livestrong ads, since they made a nice solid background, as opposed to smaller and more colorful ads. This was my general view. All of my photos from the Prologue are in this set.

My vantage point did indeed make for some great photos. The one posted here is my favorite — the rider is Arnaud Coyot. I did, of course, also get Lance Armstrong, but he lowered his head. His fiche coureur (rider stats) put him in tenth place currently. Another favorite is this shot of rider Bernhard Eisel, who rounded the corner near the railway station while I was walking there to take a train back to Nice. Japan has two riders in this year’s Tour, and this photo of Fumiyuki Beppu is one I’m really happy with — you can tell how the solid yellow advertisement makes all the difference with these. Currently in eleventh place, Gustav Larsson has a great tattoo on his left calf.

In just a few minutes I’ll be leaving to watch the Tour on the Promenade des Anglais. I doubt I’ll get such good photos as yesterday’s, since the Promenade is flat, so riders will be going faster, and in groups rather than separately. But it’s certainly a neat experience to watch them!

I also went to the port yesterday, going on foot along the Promenade. Unbeknownst to me, there was a show of cars for the Jean Behra rally, so I was glad I had walked rather than taking the bus.

Nice’s port is lined by colorful buildings and all types of boats can be found there, from cruise ships to NGV (high-speed boats to Corsica) to ostentatious yachts licensed to ports such as Nassau, Cayman Islands and London, to a lineup of school sailboats to small wooden boats painted every color of the rainbow. The two in the closeup here are shown from further away in this picture. I also liked this lavender and bright turquoise boat, as well as the funnily-named M’en bati. In Nice there’s a saying, “m’en bati, sieu Nissart” — “I don’t give a flip, I’m Niçois”, joking with Nice’s strong sense of individuality. Nice was not part of France until 1860, and even that cession was — and still is — strongly debated. Although it’s extremely doubtful that Nice’s inhabitants would ever actually declare their independence, the idea is discussed, and to this nine-year resident’s ears, often seems more like an affirmation of their uniqueness than a true call for secession. (In that sense it is much like Pacific Northwesterners griping about similar issues — see the “Free Cascadia” icon in my sidebar!)

As I mentioned yesterday, I walked to the Russian Orthodox church not far from my place this morning to take some photographs. It was a beautiful day; the church was lovely. You can see all the photos I took of it here. I arrived just before 10am and had a wonderful surprise: the bells started ringing. But they didn’t just ring the time — they played an incredible piece of music that lasted for several minutes! I highly recommend visiting on a Sunday at 10am if you enjoy music, because it was among the most amazing experiences I’ve had. I took a mobile phone video of part of it, but it’s much less impressive than in reality. Do note, however, that you won’t be able to go inside the church on a Sunday morning since they have their services then.

On my way from the church to Nice’s port, I passed our famous hotel, the Negresco, and snapped this picture of it against one of our gorgeous deep blue skies:

A quick catch-up post: a month ago I had the chance to take a helicopter ride over the Bay of Cannes. We had fifteen minutes in a Robinson R44 (four-seater helicopter) and flew to the nearby Îles de Lérins. Six years ago I did something similar in a small plane, where we flew over the Estérel from Cannes airport. That time I got to fly, but not this time, though I did get some gorgeous photos.

One of the photos was of trains along the coast that looked like miniatures from above. Not long afterwards, I found the fun tiltshiftmaker.com and tweaked that photo to truly look like a miniature train scene! I did the same to a train over a stone bridge I shot in Tende two years ago, and to a photo of Nice’s port that I took last autumn. That last photo is the same one I use for the title header here — I love how it turned out.

Tomorrow I’ll be going to the Russian Orthodox cathedral, which isn’t far from my place, and then to Nice’s port to better shoot some small boats whose colors caught my eye last week (I only had my mobile phone at the time).

Phew! After working out a solution to the privacy issue, and with enough time to be able to post once (maybe twice) a week, I’m back to writing here.

This is Grey a month after his arrival — he’s much healthier, happier and more playful. I’ve also finished cleaning the original terracotta tiles (tomettes) in my living room, and will write about that in another post.

The new cat is here, and already with Kanoko — I was given no choice in the matter, the three women who brought him let him out in my living room before I could say anything. It’s going well though, they’ve both got their ears perked forward when they watch each other, even when they hiss and growl. Grey needs antibiotics; I had to use a towel to hold him steady for his pill and he’s chosen that towel to nap on. One of the ladies brought Feliway, so perhaps that’s one reason they’re both at ease.

As I mentioned yesterday, Grey got pretty badly beaten up. I learned more of his story today: he’s originally from Le Cannet (just north of Cannes), and people there knew him and his owner. They saw his owner, a woman, put him out on the streets, and asked her what she was doing — “I don’t want him any more, I’m moving” was the answer. When he was found this Monday, he had a 42°C (108°F) fever and was at risk of death from blood poisoning. He was brought to the vet by a lady who rescues cats, checked for any and all diseases etc., and is fine apart from his infections (being treated with the antibiotics).

Grey is very thin and bony, and his fur is rough due to being on the streets for a while. Le Cannet residents said it’s been about a month or two, rather than the week we first thought. Despite having been abandoned and on the streets, Grey is indeed very gentle and affectionate. He’s already let me brush him and showed me his stomach for petting, and has a lovely deep purr. He’s shown no aggression whatsoever other than the occasional hiss at Kanoko, but even those are rare. I’m looking forward to seeing his transformation as he regains his health!

(As for his name, “Grey” may very well stick with him since he is indeed a striking grey, even his eyes. I had a list of other possible names, Grey not being among them! None of the others fit, though. Update: I’m going to stick with Grey, using “Earl Grey” as his full name. Not terribly original, but most French people recognize it better than just “Grey”!)

I’m back to write about adopting a second cat, since I learned quite a lot about animal adoption agencies other than regular refuges (animal shelters) in France. Two weeks ago I asked a few friends and colleagues whether they had or knew of any kittens available, and also asked my kind neighbor, “Francine” (name changed for privacy), the same lady who gave me Kanoko. By “kitten” I meant aged 3 months to one year, hoping for a cat near Kanoko’s age to be a companion for him. Kanoko is well-behaved and careful with his claws, but unlike Malo (my previous cat), who had been able to go outside and find other friends for playful cat tussles, Kanoko can’t. Francine checked with a friend who works for an adoption agency that rescues cats found on city streets and puts them with foster families until adoptive families can be found. I had no idea such associations existed before. If something like this would interest you, ask around since it works best by word of mouth. It’s cheaper than going to a refuge as well, since donations are “optional” (you should donate), and smaller amounts (40-100 euros) are fine. Refuges here ask for anywhere from 400 to 800 euros for a cat. (When donating, do be sure to take into account whether they’ve had to vaccinate, operate, etc.! Vaccinations for a cat cost about 50 euros, males are about 60-80 to operate, and females are 100-150.)

The association lady set an appointment to visit my apartment and meet Kanoko, since she wanted to be sure my place was cat-friendly and that any cat she found would be a good match for Kanoko’s personality. Without me saying a word about Kanoko, she noticed he is indeed very affectionate, gentle and intelligent, so she assured me she wouldn’t set me up with a hyperactive or aggressive cat. There was a black, seven-month-old female kitten available for Saturday, so I agreed.

However, it turned out that the black kitten’s foster family had a small girl, who had fallen in love with the kitten and didn’t want to be separated from it! The adoption lady said that there was a female calico kitten she could give me on Sunday, though. “Great, I love calico cats!” I said. Sunday she phoned to say that it had been given to someone else, but no worries, there was a black and white male she’d try and have that afternoon. Sure enough, it happened again; the black and white kitten was given to another person by a different member of the adoption agency.

The lady handling my case was so unnerved with the other agency members that she had Francine phone me to explain: like many adoption shelters and associations (in many countries), some members gave cats to the first willing person to come along, without checking up on them or notifying other members trying to place cats. Francine’s friend was, clearly, of the sort who prefers to go forward carefully, so that each cat is placed with trustworthy people who are the best fit for its personality. Francine said her friend would phone veterinarians the next morning to check for adoptable cats and call me once she had any leads.

Monday morning she phoned to say that she had indeed found a cat who needed a home, and that he was very sweet. There was a small catch — he was five years old. Now, if you know much at all about animal adoptions, you know that adult animals can be nearly impossible to place, and once abandoned, often spend the remainder of their lives in shelters, if not worse, when in reality they can be great pets since they’re out of their rambunctious stage and are happy to have a real home. So, knowing he was a gentle cat, I agreed. This was when I was very happy to have a face-to-face relationship with the person in question, since it made all the difference: had I not trusted the adoption lady’s judgment, I would have feared the older male be more aggressive and take over Kanoko’s place.

The adoption lady continued the poor cat’s story: last week he’d been put out on the street by his previous owner, “since she was moving” (quoting her excuse). He’d been fixed and had spent his life as a single apartment cat, so he had no idea how to defend himself against other street cats, and promptly got beaten up by them. Since he’d also been vaccinated and ID’d, when he was found by an agency member who rushed him to the vet, they were able to contact the previous owner and get the cat’s back story. The previous owner confirmed she was abandoning him, and hung up. (I’m pretty sure her heartlessness goes without saying.)

Apparently he’s a beautiful semi-longhair, light blue (grey) tabby who charmed the vet and his rescuer with his gentleness, despite being in rough shape. (Cats are not usually gentle when injured.) He’s been under observation since Monday, and will come to join Kanoko and me tomorrow (Wednesday) morning. I’ll have to give him antibiotics for the first week he’s with us. He probably has a known name already, since he was registered, so I’m waiting to see what it is before deciding whether to rename him or not. It could go either way, since if he already has an identity that fits, it would be good to keep it, I think, but then again, the poor dear was abandoned cruelly by the person who gave him his name… it might be nice to have a new name to commemorate his “rebirth” into a new life. We’ll see tomorrow — I’ll also post photos here!

Colleagues and I often joke about English expressions and French ones that sound nearly identical in pronunciation. This weekend I came across this Chevy ad on my way to the supermarket and mentioned it on Monday at the office. “Yes we can” was promptly turned into “tu suis Cannes” (roughly pronounced “too swee can”). Literally translated, “you follow Cannes”, but the actual meaning is “follow [road] signs to Cannes”.

Neighbor update!
Today Francine, the kind neighbor, updated me about Gertrude’s visit before the judge last Monday. I nearly jumped out of my chair with joy when I read these two sentences (“elle/she” refers to Gertrude):
“Elle a été insolente auprès du délégué du procureur, donc il n’y aura pas de médiation mais un procès. Elle est amendable de 450 euros par infraction devant un juge si elle continue dans son comportement envers l’ensemble des résidents.”
Translation: “She was insolent with the attorney general’s representative, so there won’t be mediation, but a trial. A judge can fine her 450 euros per infraction if she continues her behavior with all of the residents.”

Gertrude’s mental health must be slipping indeed if she was so thoughtless as to insult a public attorney. Although I can’t say I’m surprised considering her profanity towards others, a mild version of which I caught on film, I can’t say I expected it either. So much the better, this way things will go more smoothly.