Not a welcoming place for French tourists. The barbed wire fences, cows on the road, graffiti on road signs, tricky roadways, and overpriced day trips that all make the journey in Corsica an exhausting experience. As an American visiting Corsica for the first time in spring , it was hard to believe that this island is actually a part of France. There are many crumbled buildings. First thing, they pressure you to go on a boat ride to Bastia for euros.
Then, they push you to eat at the local restaurants that you may not like their menus. Then, they took down our credit card information the last day we stayed β and logged it in a notebook!
An older couple who visited the same Bed and Breakfast with my husband and I told us the South and North of France are polar opposites in personality, culture, and people. I think part of the problem starts with its history. There were many foreign takeovers of the island. Pasquale Paoli was a significant leader of the Corsican independence. He has called for a Corsican Republic in and wrote the Corsican Constitution, which later he became an influence on the U.
Later, the island was sold off to France and tensions grew among the locals. Today, there are vandalized road signs, with a black marker scribbled over the French language, with only the Corsican language underneath visible. A local told us that the Mayor is so corrupt, there was voter fraud in the election where his name was being submitted by forged signatures from people.
As a tourist with little to no French, it was difficult to navigate too. The winding roads were almost dangerous; it was hard to see oncoming cars around the sharp bends. We managed to get directions from the Bed and Breakfast owner for our way back to the airport. The other frustrating part is where to go for the beach. The closest beach for us required a good hike up and down some dirt roads. The hotel owner drew us a map so we can understand how to literally climb our way to the beach.
