On Board Le Bellot, Wild and Authentic Corsica, 12-19 September

[jpalbny]

Lois, the one caveat is that the francophone/ Anglophone mix may be different in more normal times and for non-French itineraries. When I first investigated Ponant for a different itinerary I was told 30-40% spoke English. 

 

I was not worried about this Corsica itinerary because I can get by speaking. Comprehending is still my weak spot but I did better at some times during this week.

 

We met two German women traveling solo who hung out together and on occasion they were on our English speaking tours.

 

Probably some French solos but we didn't meet any. A couple of multigenerational groups too.

 

Sorry I scared you off but the more you know the better your chances of finding a good match.

[AussieBoyTX]

8 minutes ago, Lois R said:

Hi JP, thanks so much for all those answers👍.  I was thinking about looking at one of their cruises but not sure anymore. Any thoughts on solo guests?  I speak no French at all.....but I do love trying new foods😃

 

If I may: Ponant offers cruises targeted at English-speakers. We have never been on one (we are booked on one next year), but they don't even show up on the French Ponant site. Some offer no single supplement. Here are some associated with Smithsonian: https://us.ponant.com/cruises?cruise_link_partners[]=SMITHSONIAN

 

And of course, there's Tauck.

[Lois R]

Hi JP, you didn't scare me off  ......I know you will give me honest answers🙂 that is one of your many attributes I admire.

[jpalbny]

Lois, I was being tongue in cheek. No worries.

 

@AussieBoyTX, thanks for all of the information, both now and before our cruise. There is not so much information about Ponant here on CC and I'm hoping to fill a bit of that void. I agree with your earlier thoughts that they fill a unique niche. Where else could you simultaneously visit Antarctica and feel like you're in France? 

Edited September 20, 2021 by jpalbny

[Lois R]

11 minutes ago, AussieBoyTX said:

 

If I may: Ponant offers cruises targeted at English-speakers. We have never been on one (we are booked on one next year), but they don't even show up on the French Ponant site. Some offer no single supplement. Here are some associated with Smithsonian: https://us.ponant.com/cruises?cruise_link_partners[]=SMITHSONIAN

 

And of course, there's Tauck.

Thanks for the link. I appreciate it🙂

[jpalbny]

Saturday September 18th. More unexpected time in Ajaccio, not Calvi.

The ship had briefly left the pier at 3:00 but returned by 7:00. We were up early and ready to go. Breakfast at the bar as usual. We are creatures of habit. Too large creatures so we limit ourselves to two huge meals per day which are still too many...

 

Then we collected our passports from the front desk so that we could try to get tested in town. They were very surprised that we were going to try this and tried to convince us to use the ship's infirmary. I hope that's not an omen.

 

We hustled into town and arrived near the first pharmacy with time to spare. So I found an ATM and restocked my supply of Euros. Nice to actually need them again! 

The first pharmacy was not open until 9:00 and had a big sign that said they weren't doing the antigen tests. Oh well. I guess that's strike one.

 

The second also wasn't open until 9. Bugger. Two strikes! But the streets were nicely decorated for the days of patrimony. 

 

 

So we walked another 10 minutes to the 3rd pharmacy and surprise, it was open since 8:30!. I took a deep breath and walked in. Bonjour, est-ce que vous pouvez faire les tests antigenique? Oui?! Et sont-ils les tests rapides? Oui! C'est fantastique, deux s'il vous plaît!

 

So they were happy to do the test for €25 each. By 9:10 we were all set. QR codes obtained by email and backup paper certificates were in hand!

 

Now we can visit anywhere we want for the next two days without worrying about it! And we are all set with our test needed to re-enter the US. Such a relief.

 

We felt so good that we stopped by the market and found a wine shop. I asked the keeper for some recommended wines from Calvi (which I'd planned to buy there) amd we got our last three bottles. Now we have an even dozen bottles of Corsican wine to try.

 

Back to the ship to return our passports. Then since we had time, we left to walk to the third Napoleon memorial before visiting Casa Bonaparte. Another stop in this square of course. Morning light is better.

 

 

Halfway there we passed a really nice looking place called Longwood House. 

 

 

As we passed by the gatekeepers asked if we wanted to come in. We wouldn't have time to get to the Napoleon memorial and back to Casa Bonaparte by 10:50 if we made other stops but they assured us that they were open until 19:00. We really love these days of national patrimony. So many things are only open then.

 

So, on to the third memorial. Andrea hadn't told us that it was a big uphill climb but we managed. 

 

 

Looks like they have something special going on here. Look, Chrystina, more stairs to climb, to the top of the memorial! 

 

Our legs were tired but FOMO won out. At the top.

 

 

A nice view down Grand Val and you can just see the beautiful water.

 

 

Back to Casa Bonaparte, where the process was seamless. The online reservation we'd made was in their system and the QR code from this morning's tests worked perfectly. 

 

Napoleon's baptism record. 

 

 

And a representation of his younger days. Apparently he learned his battle skills at a young age, by organizing his peers during snowball fights.

 

 

In the basement, an olive oil press.

 

 

The tour was quick but interesting. There was a huge line at the entrance when we finished. People without reservations were out of luck.

 

Since we were done before 11:30 we decided to go back to the Longwood House. 

 

The garden was small but inside the house, there were some surprises. Apparently this house is now used by the national legislature of Corsica. Who knew?

 

And we were just in time for a visit to the legislative chamber!

 

 

And, a big sideshow with a 25-minute commentary, in rapid-fire French from a lady wearing a face mask. I had zero chance so we enjoyed the photos, many old and historic. Still a fun time and I bet not many others have visited here.

 

On the way out we passed by a presentation about some type of uniforms. Bonus points if you can find us in this picture. I liked the stealth selfie here. Chris actually appears twice!

 

 

Now back to the ship for lunch. It's after noon and all this running around has made us hungry! 

[jpalbny]

Saturday September 18th. Afternoon in Ajaccio, not Calvi.

Lunch on board. Chris had an orzo risotto appetizer with asparagus which was delicious. 

 

 

I had Salade Niçoise. Mains were a roasted pork loin which was tender and very juicy, and I had a "Mediterranean aioli" which was a bunch of seafood and vegetables...

 

 

Served with a nice jar of aioli to dip everything into. So tasty! Chris and I decided for about 15 seconds that we should try to make aioli at home. Then we thought better of it. We can't eat like this every day.

 

White Côtes du Rhône, and red from Pays d'Oc, were familiar and went well.

 

After lunch, we headed back to town one last time to see what else was open. We started with a short walk in the Citadel but not much to see. No buildings were open. And no good panoramic views.

 

Then we went to the Fresch Museum and got glassy-eyed from looking at tons of art. Finally we went back to the ship after 20000 steps, to rest our tired feet.

 

There is a German cruise ship in port with us today. The comparison is striking. Le Bellot is a very pretty ship.

 

 

We had a disembarkation talk at 16:15 then it was time for sailaway, one last time. Ajaccio was a very pleasant stop this time, but we wondered what we'd missed in Calvi. At least we can try their wines!

 

 

One last look at the Sanguinaires Islands, and then Corsica faded from view. We have really enjoyed this trip.

 

 

We did most of our packing then got into our fancy clothes for the captain's gala farewell. In the main theater, he gave the usual accolades for the crew who had done a great job taking care of us. Well-deserved for sure.

 

Gala dinner was served tonight. We sat outside with a nice sunset view and great food. 

 

 

An amuse bouche of crab and avocado with salmon roe, then a cold salmon appetizer with different radish slices and grilled potatoes. 

 

 

The hot appetizer was seared scallops with a veal demi-glace over pureed celery root.

 

 

The main was a filet topped with a huge slab of foie gras. It was outstanding and cooked perfectly between rare and medium rare. More potatoes, and delicious slow-cooked onions made it even better.

 

 

The usual two desserts. A chocolate and caramel concoction which we couldn't finish, then mignardises. 

 

A Pouilly-Fuissé for the white, and a Lalande Pomerol for the red, went well with the meal. A most enjoyable repast.

 

It was a beautiful night. The moon was two days short of full, and then Jupiter and Saturn appeared. 

 

 

Jupiter is obvious and close to the moon, at 1 o'clock. Saturn is at the top center, more faint.

 

Off to the blue eye one last time for a glass of Champagne, but as we were moving fast it looked a bit like a front-loading washing machine.

 

 

We danced a little in the bar but called it a night just after 22:00. Finished packing, and put our bags out. They kick us off the ship tomorrow at 9:00.

[TrulyBlonde]

2 hours ago, Lois R said:

Hi JP, you didn't scare me off  ......I know you will give me honest answers🙂 that is one of your many attributes I admire.

Hi Lois,

I do know that Tauck uses Ponant for many of their small ship cruises. My understanding is they cater more toward Americans with the menu and also English speaking lectures, etc.

I found that on our Ponant Antarctica cruise, 75% French vs other nations. Most Americans and Australians did not care for the food. However, I really enjoyed it. 

JP is correct, the French are reserved but not unfriendly.

[Lois R]

7 minutes ago, TrulyBlonde said:

Hi Lois,

I do know that Tauck uses Ponant for many of their small ship cruises. My understanding is they cater more toward Americans with the menu and also English speaking lectures, etc.

I found that on our Ponant Antarctica cruise, 75% French vs other nations. Most Americans and Australians did not care for the food. However, I really enjoyed it. 

JP is correct, the French are reserved but not unfriendly.

Hi TB, thanks so much😃

[TrulyBlonde]

JP,

I have a question re: the Cote du Rhone whites they were serving. French whites are my favorite because they are light and crisp. Do you remember the name of the white you were drinking perhaps?

This is for everyday consumption so not looking for a Montrachet;-)

Thanks.

[Catlover54]

13 hours ago, jpalbny said:

Killing time in the Nice airport lounge. Fast Wi-Fi and not crowded at all.

 

Here are a few pix of the zodiac dock used for loading and unloading. You check in and out under the little pavilion by touching your cruise card to a reader.

 

 

The whole assembly folds into the stern of the ship when not in use. 

 

 

Walk down the stairs to a dock.

 

 

The zodiacs are at a nice height to step in.

 

 

And you're off. Effortless.

 

Very nice setup. Silver Explorer is a fair amount more difficult as you'remostly on a ladder. Silver Cloud isn't bad but neither is as easy or as nice as this setup.

Question about getting into the Zodiak:  is that yellow and black thing a box you step on inside the zodiak after stepping  onto the side of the zodiak, before you then step all the way down?  Crystal Endeavor in Iceland  had a nice transition box, which was great for me to learn Zodiak entry.  I don't think I could handle a ladder like you describe on Silver Explorer.

 

I will be on my first Ponant cruise this spring, with DH.  

[jpalbny]

3 hours ago, TrulyBlonde said:

JP,

I have a question re: the Cote du Rhone whites they were serving. French whites are my favorite because they are light and crisp. Do you remember the name of the white you were drinking perhaps?

This is for everyday consumption so not looking for a Montrachet;-)

Thanks.

 

The one that I have handy right now was Camille Cayran, a blend of Grenache Blanc and Rousanne. There may have been another one but I will have to go through my menu pictures to find it.

 

56 minutes ago, Catlover54 said:

Question about getting into the Zodiak:  is that yellow and black thing a box you step on inside the zodiak after stepping  onto the side of the zodiak, before you then step all the way down?  Crystal Endeavor in Iceland  had a nice transition box, which was great for me to learn Zodiak entry.  I don't think I could handle a ladder like you describe on Silver Explorer.

 

I will be on my first Ponant cruise this spring, with DH.  

 

Yes that is a box. First step from dock to side, from side to box, then from box to floor of the boat. The box gets removed once everyone is loaded up, and put back in the boat for unloading when you return to the dock. It's super easy this way.

[jpalbny]

Sunday September 19th. Disembarkation in Nice.

Up by 6,  as more sleep was futile. All good things must come to an end. And we can mope about it. At least we don't go home today. 

Finished packing our carry-on bags and secured the wine too. The wine checks feel light compared to what we remember from previous trips. Maybe all this wine carrying is building muscle.

 

Breakfast in the restaurant, for the first time. The menu was nice but after last night we didn't want too much. And we may have a lunch reservation to look forward to! Saving room. 

 

Then the waiting. We passed some time on the back of deck 3 in the morning air. Looks like a nice day. 

Disembarkation a little before 9 and we found our luggage on the pier. We got the free port shuttle and asked the driver to drop us off right at the tram stop. She liked our wine checks and  asked if we could forget them in her van.

 

Two tram tickets for €3 (total) and we were off. The hotel was a bit of a walk from the tram but we were there by 9:30. Hyatt Palais de la Medeteranée, which looks nice.

As expected it was far too early for the room to be ready so we dropped our luggage and headed to the old town. Along the way, the centennial monument.

 

 

Looks like a marathon was finishing up along the promenade so we watched that a bit then headed to the market.

 

We bought some soap and salt but forgot to take pictures of the market. But we were happy with our finds. And I got a confirmation of our lunch reservation at 12:30. Now to burn some calories! 

A few churches of course. The inside of the Cathedral.

 

 

And outside.

 

 

Then we tackled the Colline du Chateau. From the Cathedral, a steep street leads to stairs,

 

 

Which lead to some nice views. The color of the water is amazing. 

 

 

A good climb to reach the cascade. Too bad it's not so well lit. 

 

 

There's a viewing platform up there, so we went all the way to the very top.

 

 

Since we had time we went down the other side and wandered the port.

 

 

Le Bellot was there, where we'd left her a few hours ago. One week goes by too fast on a cruise.

 

 

We passed by the war memorial. 

 

 

And then we walked the promenade a bit longer, taking the slow way back to Old Town. Almost got a clear shot of this.

 

 

Since it was a little after noon,, we cut back into Old Town for lunch.  Early might be better than late.

[jpalbny]

Sunday, September 19th. A very Nice afternoon and evening. 

 

Lunch at Le Panier was special. Nice outdoor table on a pedestrian street. Imaginative cocktails, nice wine list, and great food.

 

A roasted mushroom appetizer, with parsley espuma. And a spring roll that had escargot! 

 

 

Fish stew. Two parts. The seared fish, 

 

 

And a vegetable stew. Delicious spices in the broth. A real taste sensation. And some dots of aioli on that bread!

 

 

We had dessert too. Oops. But no coffee. You have to draw the line somewhere. 

We went to the Palais Lascaris for a visit and saw the couple ahead of us being turned away because they didn't have the darn passe sanitaire. We did. What a pain.

 

Time for a break, so we went back to the hotel for our room at 15:00. On the way we passed the Sunshine Fountain. 

 

 

A bit of rest before one last visit to Villa Masséna musée. Then back to the room for a shower and change of clothes. The sun felt super hot today despite a high only in the low 80s.

We weren't hungry yet after the big lunch, so we wandered by a possible dinner place and found the menu too heavy for our liking. So we scoped out a few other places then strolled the promenade to work up an appetite.

 

 

It looked magical in the golden light just before sunset. And the temperature felt much more pleasant. Twilight came quickly.

 

 

So we had a nice dinner at an Italian restaurant. Service was a bit slow but delicious food and it was seemingly filled with regulars so we felt good about the choice.

 

I had a beef dish, with grilled vegetables.

 

 

And Chris had a veal dish with cheese similar to veal parmigiana but it was served over chunky mashed potatoes, made with gallons of olive oil, no doubt. But very good..

 

 

We only had mains which was plenty after that lunch.

Back home to digest and pack everything we could into our suitcases. We may as well keep our backpacks as light as possible since we have to check bags. It will be a long day tomorrow. 

 

***

Monday, September 20th. Departure for home.

We slept better than usual and got up at 7. A coffee on our balcony helped pass the last bit of time here.

 

 

Then we gathered our stuff up and left the hotel for the tram. It was a little more crowded than yesterday but we got on and made it to the airport just a few minutes after 9:00 for our noon departure. Same price as yesterday, €3 for two tickets. No airport surcharge. 

No lines at check in and our covid test results from Ajaccio were accepted with no second thought so all good there. Security was also quick, and no line at immigration, so we were in the lounge by 9:30.

 

And the lounge wanted to see our passes sanitaires before allowing us in! Hadn't expected that. Glad that we have them. Yet again, well worth the hassle that we had to deal with to get them. 

Nice and quiet in the lounge at first but then it filled up more. A small delay before boarding but we pushed back on time and were airborne at 12:12.

Uneventful flight. I passed the time doing lots of blogging. Approach to JFK was way early and fairly direct without circling or slowing down much. Wheels down at 14:17, 59 minutes early! Amazing. 

Immigration was fast and luggage reasonably so. Out of customs a little after 14:45 for the air train. On the road before our scheduled landing time which was supposed to be 15:16. Love it when that happens. 

Traffic was ugly so we took a very different route home but pulled into the driveway at 18:35. We'd made amazing time.

Grocery trip then takeout. The wine was stored in the cellar with care, all intact.

 

 

 

Off to bed. What a fun trip!

Edited September 22, 2021 by jpalbny

[Lirio]

46 minutes ago, jpalbny said:

Sunday, September 19th. A very Nice afternoon and evening. 

 

Lunch at Le Panier was special. Nice outdoor table on a pedestrian street. Imaginative cocktails, nice wine list, and great food.

 

A roasted mushroom appetizer, with parsley espuma. And a spring roll that had escargot! 

 

 

Fish stew. Two parts. The seared fish, 

 

 

And a vegetable stew. Delicious spices in the broth. A real taste sensation. And some dots of aioli on that bread!

 

 

We had dessert too. Oops. But no coffee. You have to draw the line somewhere. 

We went to the Palais Lascaris for a visit and saw the couple ahead of us being turned away because they didn't have the darn passe sanitaire. We did. What a pain.

 

Time for a break, so we went back to the hotel for our room at 15:00. On the way we passed the Sunshine Fountain. 

 

 

A bit of rest before one last visit to Villa Masséna musée. Then back to the room for a shower and change of clothes. The sun felt super hot today despite a high only in the low 80s.

We weren't hungry yet after the big lunch, so we wandered by a possible dinner place and found the menu too heavy for our liking. So we scoped out a few other places then strolled the promenade to work up an appetite.

 

 

It looked magical in the golden light just before sunset. And the temperature felt much more pleasant. Twilight came quickly.

 

 

So we had a nice dinner at an Italian restaurant. Service was a bit slow but delicious food and it was seemingly filled with regulars so we felt good about the choice.

 

I had a beef dish, with grilled vegetables.

 

 

And Chris had a veal dish with cheese similar to veal parmigiana but it was served over chunky mashed potatoes, made with gallons of olive oil, no doubt. But very good..

 

 

We only had mains which was plenty after that lunch.

Back home to digest and pack everything we could into our suitcases. We may as well keep our backpacks as light as possible since we have to check bags. It will be a long day tomorrow. 

 

***

Monday, September 20th. Departure for home.

We slept better than usual and got up at 7. A coffee on our balcony helped pass the last bit of time here.

 

 

Then we gathered our stuff up and left the hotel for the tram. It was a little more crowded than yesterday but we got on and made it to the airport just a few minutes after 9:00 for our noon departure. Same price as yesterday, €3 for two tickets. No airport surcharge. 

No lines at check in and our covid test results from Ajaccio were accepted with no second thought so all good there. Security was also quick, and no line at immigration, so we were in the lounge by 9:30.

 

And the lounge wanted to see our passes sanitaires before allowing us in! Hadn't expected that. Glad that we have them. Yet again, well worth the hassle that we had to deal with to get them. 

Nice and quiet in the lounge at first but then it filled up more. A small delay before boarding but we pushed back on time and were airborne at 12:12.

Uneventful flight. I passed the time doing lots of blogging. Approach to JFK was way early and fairly direct without circling or slowing down much. Wheels down at 14:17, 59 minutes early! Amazing. 

Immigration was fast and luggage reasonably so. Out of customs a little after 14:45 for the air train. On the road before our scheduled landing time which was supposed to be 15:16. Love it when that happens. 

Traffic was ugly so we took a very different route home but pulled into the driveway at 18:35. We'd made amazing time.

Grocery trip then takeout. The wine was stored in the cellar with care, all intact.

 

 

 

Off to bed. What a fun trip!

 

[jonikal]

Thank you for all the wonderful photos and excellent comments!  The food ones are totally droolworthy.

[jpalbny]

Food menus. For those interested. 

 

There was a single page (front and back) menu for each lunch and dinner. I took pix of almost all of them but the lighting and resolution may vary.

 

First page has food including daily offerings and the always available menu.

 

Second page has dessert and the daily wine suggestions. There is also usually a list of a few selections from the wine cellar.

 

I forgot to take pix of the lunch menu on the 14th and we are dinner at the grill that night so no menu from there either. I have the rest.

 

Dinner September 12th. 

 

 

 

Lunch September 13th 

 

 

 

Gala Dinner September 13th 

 

 

 

The dinner ones are a little harder to read but if you click on the picture and blow it up a little, they are fairly legible. I'll post the rest later.

 

Remember, in France the entrée is a starter.

Edited September 22, 2021 by jpalbny

[lincslady]

Merci beaucoup, jp - des menus interessants, et naturellement du fromage avant le dessert.  Et du  choix pour les vins.  Formidable.

 

Lola

[jpalbny]

More menus.

 

September 15th, lunch.

 

 

 

September 15th, dinner.

 

 

 

 

September 16th, lunch 

 

 

 

September 16th, dinner.

 

 

 

Edited September 22, 2021 by jpalbny

[jpalbny]

And the last two days. I didn't have the 14th menus.

 

 

September 17th, lunch.

 

 

 

September 17th, dinner.

 

 

 

 

September 18th, lunch

 

 

 

September 18th, Captain's Gala Farewell Dinner

 

 

 

So that's what we were offered for meals. We were happy with the choices and the food quality. Our clothes rebelled a little bit and shrank in the salt air, in protest.

 

There was opportunity to eat ashore for L&D in Bonifacio if desired, and also in Ajaccio. Some took advantage. Not a lot, IIRC. 

Edited September 22, 2021 by jpalbny

[wandb]

Thank you JP and Chris for taking us along on this wonderful cruise!  I've enjoyed every post and loved all the pictures. Would love to see one of the main dining room with you two in it--all dressed up for a night out!

 

Do you possibly have a link to your amazing review of your river cruise when you visited Budapest?  If I remember correctly you were on the Uniworld Beatrice?

 

Thanks!

 

[jpalbny]

On 9/24/2021 at 7:39 AM, wandb said:

Do you possibly have a link to your amazing review of your river cruise when you visited Budapest?  If I remember correctly you were on the Uniworld Beatrice?

 

Here you go - that was certainly another great trip!

 

 

[jpalbny]

Epilogue - French bureaucracy.

 

So we had tried twice to take advantage of a French program which will convert our US CDC vaccine cards into a digital "Passe Sanitaire" for use in France.

 

You need these do do pretty much anything in France - you can't sit in a restaurant or visit a museum without them scanning the digital QR code. And supposedly they don't accept alternative proof.

 

So we applied for this on August 21st, following their instructions carefully. We scanned our passports, CDC cards, air itinerary, and an application form that we had to fill out, and e-mailed them to France for processing. No reply for a while. Then I read that they had changed the application process so on September 1st, we applied again using the new method. You still have to have the same documents except you fill out the application online at a website, and upload the scans of the other three documents directly. It is supposed to be faster...

 

Then on September 3rd we got a response to our first application - not exactly the one that we had been hoping for. The email said, to paraphrase: We have received too many applications and we won't be able to process all of them. Please re-apply using the new method. Since we already had done that, I was hoping that we were ahead of the game.

 

On the new web-based application you can track the "progress" of your application, so to speak. Our applications sat there untouched while we got ready to go to France and they stayed that way for the entire duration of the trip.

 

So we had to use the alternative method (test on arrival) to get temporary passes good for 72 hours. At least there is a convenient pharmacy in the Nice airport and it only took about an hour. That covered us for Sunday in Eze, and for Monday/Tuesday of the cruise. We did the test again on Saturday which covered us in Ajaccio, Nice on Sunday, and to come home on Monday. So we only had to take one extra antigen test. It wasn't terrible but it was a little frustrating that they didn't get to our applications on time.

 

So yesterday morning, we both got e-mails from the French Health Ministry, helpfully informing us that our applications had been denied. The reason? You see, our stay in France had already ended! They apologize for not being able to process our application on time and invite us to try again for our next trip...

 

LOL. Annoying but what can you do? In the end we were able to get the pass(es) that we needed but it certainly could have been an easier process. Oh well - we looked at the cost of the first antigen tests in Nice as an entry tax.

[AussieBoyTX]

9 minutes ago, jpalbny said:

Epilogue - French bureaucracy.

😱

[Cie]

Thank you so much for your post on your trip.  We are doing the same cruise next week.  I am glad I read this I did not know there was so much hiking, so I am pulling out my hiking boots 🙂