Corsica with Vickers
Andrew Vickers and his Peugeot station wagon were a sight for soar eyes after 24 hours of trains and ferries. We piled into the party wagon and kicked off our week of chillaxin’. Lauren and I struggled to change English gears from ‘pronounce everything’ foreigner mode to high-speed mumbling and Austin slang. Our tongues were a little fatigued from 2 months of failed attempts at pronouncing strange languages.
Most of our time was spent enjoying the liberty of the car, the comfort of the house, and the tranquility of the beach. Inside the Peugeot wagon the radio never left French pop/electronic station “FUN RADIO.” The exciting beats and high-energy rhythms married well with Andrew’s driving, which could be described as anything but dull. Back at his Aunt’s breathtaking villa overlooking the port town Ile Rousse, the setting similarly harmonized with the symphonic masterpieces constantly flowing from radio “Classique.” On the beaches all sound was absorbed like a sponge into the purifying whooosh of the ocean massaging the shoreline.
The stunning island of Corsica combined with Andrew’s companionship was just the reprieve we needed. “Lazy” doesn’t come close to describing just how blissfully uneventful our days were. The extraordinary week of fine-grained beaches, island road trips, and easy conversation involved nothing of real consequence. Perhaps the most monumental of our achievements were the feasts we prepared each night.
Things picked up a bit when we made it back to mainland France in time to celebrate Andrew’s 22nd birthday. After a quick tour of Antibes, we met up with some of his Swiss friends for drinks. The night unraveled the same way any birthday celebration would on 6th Street. As Andrew said, “things got American real fast.”
The next day we didn’t lift our faces off the beach until the sun was gone and it was time to meet up with Seline, one of the Andrew’s Swiss girls, for a delicious Italian dinner. Later we finished Andrew’s 22nd by sipping on some Brunello di Montalcino and looking out at a dark Mediterranean. To top it all off, Lauren and I took credit for arranging a spectacular fireworks display that was coincidentally erupting across the peninsula. It was as regal a gala as the birthday-man himself.
Tags: Travel
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