CORSICA // Corte & Central Corsica

After thoroughly enjoying out time on the coast, we headed inland towards Corte for the remainder of our trip. While Corte isn't a typical stop for many tourists visiting Corsica, it was one of our favorite part of the visit and the perfect change from the touristy, beach town vibes that populate the coast. We took our time driving the mountain roads and enjoying the scenery, which transitioned from red rocks to steep mountain cliffs and lots and lots of greenery. We stopped an hour outside of Porto to hike to Gorges de Spelunca, which was one of my favorite places on the island. After a short, relatively easy hike throughout a narrow valley, we came upon crystal clear pools of water surrounded by warm, smooth rocks that were perfect for lounging. We spent the morning rotating from sunbathing to taking tips in the pools and exploring up and down the canyon. We went up the valley a bit and had the entire area to ourselves, and we both agreed that swimming holes are now our new favorite way to spend an afternoon. 

CORSICA // The Western Coast

After spending a week packing up our life in Holland, we were READY for our Corisca adventure. We had a super early flight - as in 6:30am departure early - which was an adventure in itself trying to get to the airport that early (buses and trains and lots of walking). But we made it on time, and after passing out on the plane we woke up just as we were beginning our descent. I immediately looked out the window expecting to see something to get my bearings and all I saw was a cruise ship perfectly framed by the tiny airplane window cruising along through the bright blue Mediterranean. We were in the Mediterranean, that was for sure.

Corsica // Video

As the end of our year in Europe came closer, we knew we wanted to try to squeeze in a few more trips to places on our bucket list. Austria was a given based on the amount of hikes, gorgeous views, and 1 hour flight from southern Holland. We also knew that we NEEDED to see the sun soon or we were going to become vampires, so we wanted to plan our final adventure for somewhere warm, full of beaches, hikes, and lots of adventures. Kayak Explore had become our trusted advisor for finding cheap flights during flexible dates, and Corsica kept popping up whenever we started to search for flights to places. We didn't really know anything about it (seriously, we didn't really even know it was a place), but a nice couple we met in Chamonix had recommended going there at the beginning of our stay, so when we saw 50 euro round trip tickets that fit our dates perfectly, we said WHY NOT. We planned the trip for July 1st - 5th, with a few days back in Delft to say a final goodbye to our favorite town before heading back to America. So when the end of June finally came, we packed up our little apartment, said goodbye to our life in Holland, and hopped on a plane to sunny Corsica. We had no idea what to expect, but it turned out to be one of our absolutely favorite trips of the entire year and our new favorite happy place on earth. We'll post more about details and what we did, but for now, I hope this video portrays how amazing this beautiful country is.