After leaving Marseille we drove out to the Verdon Gorge, the 'grand canyon' of France. Just driving along the top of it you get to see how spectacular the place is. We spent 5 days there, in a campground full of other climbers (predominately Italians - all over the border for the May Day long weekend!). The climbing there is spectacular - most of it perched high abover the Verdon river climbing brilliant limestone. One bad weather day gave us an excuse to rest, and we also went up to the start of the gorge proper and walked through the initial system of tunnels and paths, which I believe were initially put in for a hydro scheme.
For our route to Italy we decided to go via Nice. Our first night out of Verdon was spent in a forest on the outskirts of Nice. We were surprised when a 'local resident' approached us upon arriving and questioned our purpose. He decided we must have been alright, and brought us over 2 solar powered lamps for the night. We then got a morning wake up call, with a platter of coffee, milk, sugar and two mugs!
We only spent a few hours in Nice. Typical of how we have been 'appreciating' our destinations (by eating the local specialty), we indulged in a Socca (like a pancake made with chickpea flour and pepper) and a Nicoise salad. We then went through Italy via Monaco - saw the Casino, saw a Ferrari, and left.
Another free night was spent, at Cinque Terre on the Italian mediterranean coast. A big tourist haunt, we hiked out to a nearby outcrop, and met some Latvian's who'd had the same idea as us.
The day after, last Sunday, we drove to Arco via Crema, a town that I spent 2 weeks in when on exchange from a Dutch school (long story if you don't know it) about 9 years ago. I managed to find several places that I remembered - the school, the gelato bar we used to go to after a night out, and the park we always had lunch in. It was good to trigger some memories.
And now we're in Arco. After a few 'rest' days (ie not climbing) we'll be hitting the rock this afternoon. It seems like a nice place now that the long weekend hordes have emptied out. We only plan on spending a few days here then heading north to the Dolomites, but by all accounts they're covered in snow and we may see ourselves heading south back to here.
For our route to Italy we decided to go via Nice. Our first night out of Verdon was spent in a forest on the outskirts of Nice. We were surprised when a 'local resident' approached us upon arriving and questioned our purpose. He decided we must have been alright, and brought us over 2 solar powered lamps for the night. We then got a morning wake up call, with a platter of coffee, milk, sugar and two mugs!
We only spent a few hours in Nice. Typical of how we have been 'appreciating' our destinations (by eating the local specialty), we indulged in a Socca (like a pancake made with chickpea flour and pepper) and a Nicoise salad. We then went through Italy via Monaco - saw the Casino, saw a Ferrari, and left.
Another free night was spent, at Cinque Terre on the Italian mediterranean coast. A big tourist haunt, we hiked out to a nearby outcrop, and met some Latvian's who'd had the same idea as us.
The day after, last Sunday, we drove to Arco via Crema, a town that I spent 2 weeks in when on exchange from a Dutch school (long story if you don't know it) about 9 years ago. I managed to find several places that I remembered - the school, the gelato bar we used to go to after a night out, and the park we always had lunch in. It was good to trigger some memories.
And now we're in Arco. After a few 'rest' days (ie not climbing) we'll be hitting the rock this afternoon. It seems like a nice place now that the long weekend hordes have emptied out. We only plan on spending a few days here then heading north to the Dolomites, but by all accounts they're covered in snow and we may see ourselves heading south back to here.
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