My trip to Europe was long overdue. It was something that I had not been able to get my hands around. But after thinking about it a lot, I finalized my first trip to Europe. However, I didn’t want to see just the touristy places. I wanted to get lost in a place where they don’t speak my language at all; I wanted to experience something new and totally non-relatable. Hence, I chose the island of Corsica, a French province between France and Italy. It would be the main vantage point for my 9-day adventure. It didn’t disappoint me at all. My final itinerary for the trip was Houston->Frankfurt -> Corsica -> Geneva->Houston. I booked my tickets, packed my bags and I was on my way to Europe.
Frankfurt:
Friendly advice – do not fly Lufthansa. I am not bad mouthing them only based on my personal experience. I did ask around and one common complaint was lack of legroom. I mean it’s nice that they have an Airbus A380 but they have customized it to an extent that you can’t find any legroom in economy class. Nevertheless, after 9 hours in that flight we touch down in Frankfurt. It was just an eight-hour layover and early in the morning so I decided to go to the city for some breakfast. The first thing I noticed as I reached the city center was how liberal European culture is. PDA (Public display of affection) was really common and not in a gross way. I went to Café Karin to have some breakfast. After that I strolled around the city center to get a glimpse of the German architecture and fashion. By the time I had my coffee it was time for my next flight to Bastia-Corsica.
Bastia:
It is the second most populated city on the island of Corsica and I was there only for a day. By the time I reached Bastia it was 6 PM and the first thing I did was to book my train ticket to Ajaccio for the next day. By the time I reached my Hotel, jetlag was kicking in but I was still able to get some really nice shots of my first European sunset. As I was battling with my jetlag I was kinda hungry but not famished. I went outside to see where could I find some munchies but it was 9 PM and most of things were closed. I was able to find a café but they didn’t speak any English. Luckily, I saw some doughnuts and I pointed towards them. So I had my doughnuts and went to sleep. The next day I got up really early to capture some sunrise shots. After breakfast I was on the streets. The city was really cute especially with the architecture. It seemed like the photographs we see from Cuba but much more neat. One odd thing was that almost no one could speak English except for people at our Hotel reception but I guess that’s what I wanted. All the cafes and restaurants in Bastia seemed to have the same exact menu and I am not joking. It was really weird except for some sushi places. Then at 3 30 PM it was time to get on the train to Ajaccio.
Ajaccio:
The train ride was nice most of the time and it took us 4 hours to reach Ajaccio. It was a new narrow-gauge train, which runs faster due to weight-tilt technology. Ajaccio is the most popular and populated city on the island. It is really common for various cruise lines from France and Italy to stop there. The place was over flowing with tourist. I went to a local Corsican cuisine restaurant for dinner but just my luck, waiter didn’t know any English and menu was in French. Big shout out to Google for translating it all and I was able to order an appetizer, which was not sufficient. Most of the dishes had cheese in them and I don’t eat cheese. So, I was starving and most things including restaurants were closed by 9 PM. Next day I strolled around the city and went to a Napoleon museum. Interestingly, Ajaccio is the birthplace of Napoleon and my hotel was just one block away from his birthplace, a major tourist attraction. One thing I like about cute French towns is the number of cafes they have. I really like the setup where I can sit and drink and see people go by. For dinner I went to a restaurant Da Mamma where finally I was able to eat something … squid with rice. Next day I had to leave a little bit early as I was going to Bonifacio.
Bonifacio:
After hiring the car I was on the road. The distance between Ajaccio and Bonifacio is 130 kms and it takes around 3 hours to cover that distance. I was in Bonifacio for 3 days and it was really wonderful. It is the southern most part of the island and most beautiful one too. The whole city had been converted from a castle, which gives the place a real classy/eerie feel. After checking into the Hotel Colomba, I was finally able to find a place where they had an English menu and I was able to order 3 slices of pizza (I was in tears). After getting properly fed I slept like a baby. Next morning I went to the most visited place in the town. It included climbing up and down 189 uneven steps known as the king’s stairway. By the time I was done with it I was exhausted but it was worth it. For lunch I went to the marina and had my lunch at the Kissing Pigs … hands down it was the best food on the island. Since the place is so touristy they even had a nightclub … the B52. That place was neat with a decent crowd and a view to die for (luxury yachts). Next day my whole body was sore as Bonifacio has lot of stairs and requires a lot of walking. I decided just to lie down at the beach for the whole afternoon. Next day I took a little detour before going to Geneva.
Nice and Monaco:
I amended my booking on the fly, as I wanted to do it all. I took a little detour, which led me to Nice. I decided to go to the beach for my 6 hours layover but as soon as I landed I looked it up and Monaco was just 30 mins away. What next? I was at the train station and on a train to Monaco. I just had 3 hours in Monte Carlo and again there were many steps to climb, as the whole city is on a hill but man, what panache. Monaco is where west (Vegas) meets east (Dubai). There are numerous ultra luxurious hotels and super high-end casinos plus cars to die for. I was only able to see the outside of the Monte Carlo casino and my prime highlight was standing on the Circuit de Monaco (F1 track). After my quick detour I was on the train back to Nice. Sadly my flight to Geneva was delayed by 2 hours and I was pissed for not looking it up on Google before coming to Nice. I could have spent more time in Monaco but still I was there and it’s so cool to say, “I went to Monaco for a lunch.”
Geneva:
It is the global hub for banking and is Europe’s headquarters of the United Nations. It is also the watch capital of the world. I was in Geneva only for a day and I was too exhausted to do anything. But still I was able to get a quick glimpse of the city. I was not over my exhaustion even after having a scrumptious brunch at the FloorTwo lounge in the Kempinski Hotel. After the brunch I went to the Patek Philippe museum, a watch museum that tells the story of Patek Phillippe & Swiss watchmaking from the 16th century to now. I was seriously impressed and anyone will be especially after seeing numerous watches worth more than a million each. Any trip to Switzerland can’t be complete if you don’t shop for chocolates and perfumes. Well that is exactly what I did after visiting the museum. You can entice yourself in some watch shopping if you have ample time and money. I went to my hotel for a quick break and for dinner, my table was reserved at an Indian restaurant, “Rasoi by Vineet”. Hands down it was the best meal of my trip. Next morning I had an early morning flight to Houston with stops in Brussels and Toronto. It was an exciting trip and I did learn a thing or two about traveling in Europe. Until next trip … cya.
