Spring rains and ramblings

The weather continues to be a mix of rain and sun but our exploring continued undampened. After another enjoyable breakfast with our host Cathy, we set out for the middle of the chestnut growing region, la Castagniccia, about an hours drive south and inland. There's a fair of local crafts there every Easter in a pretty village called Piedicroce. We learned a lot about the chestnut forest and the "chestnut economy" that lasted in Corsica for hundreds of years. The protein from chestnuts was traditionally much more important than that from wheat. Today, the chestnut forests and orchards are in poor conditions from neglect and from the effect of pigs foraging around them which spreads a fungus that kills the trees.

At the fair we met a Corsican photographer, Antoine Perigot. Cathy lent us his most recent book "Opera Umana" or "Traces of Humans" the night before and we liked it so much Cathy arranged for a friend to pick it up for us at a local bookstore. We certainly didn't expect to meet the photographer at the fair!

We spent much of the day driving from village to village admiring the views and ancient teetering stone houses. We also visited a spring at Orezza where naturally carbonated water bubbles up in a fountain. Known since Roman times, les eaux d'Orezza are exploited today as a major source of bottled water.

At the end of a long day of driving we discovered that most restaurants are closed on Easter Sunday. Searching for supper we ended up in the picturesque town of San Florent on the southwest of Cap Corse. It turned out to be clear there and we were able to catch the last light of the day on the waterfront after sharing a pizza in a beautifully restored restaurant.

This morning at breakfast we got talking about old houses and our host Jean-Marc told us about his mother's house a few doors away that he is renovating for her. he gave us a tour of the partly restored stone house. The house is thought to be typical of the older houses in the village which date from the 1500s. It has a characteristic arched entry way to the ground floor where animals used to be kept. Jean-Marc showed us how the old stone walls are finished on the inside with a vapor barrier and concrete sheet. On the bottom floor the walls are nearly a metre thick. New walls are cinder block on the inside and a single thickness of stone on the exterior, that looks exactly like the original. One wall had to be replaced as the original was unsound. Another wall was black with soot and Jean-Marc explained that it was from the fires used to roast chestnuts for centuries. An architect designed the renovations and a company with a lot of experience in renovating local stone houses is doing the work. It will be a gorgeous little house when completed.

Today, Easter Monday, we spent the morning walking a trail between two nearby villages and a famous Romanesque church at San Michelle built in the 1100s. The theme of the trail was "stone and water" and there were many superb stone huts, houses, churches and fountains along the way. Although most stores were closed for Easter, we stopped at a bakery and bought a traditional Easter loaf which is a sweet bread baked with a whole egg in it. We at it in our car as a sort of picnic in the rain.

We are looking forward to having Cathy's supper at Casella tonight!