Itinerary through Corsica | Page 6

death and had already borne
him 13 children, 5 of whom were dead, and Jerome was an infant in the
cradle.
Parallel with the Rue Fesch is the Cours Napoleon, by which all the
diligences enter and leave the town. The continuation round the bay is
bordered with plane trees. At the commencement is a bronze statue of
"E. C. Abbatucci né à Zicavo le 12 Novembre 1770, mort pour la patrie
le 2 Decembre 1796." Near it is the railway station.
At the western end of the Cours Napoleon is the Place Bonaparte or
Diamant, bordered with trees and ornamented with a complicate bronze
monument on a granite pedestal by Violet le Duc, "à la memoire de
Napoleon I. et de ses frères Joseph, Lucien, Louis, Jerome." All are
life-size statues; Napoleon is on horseback, the others on foot,
marching solemnly towards the sea.
[Headnote: WALKS.]

EXCURSIONS.
From the port, 11 m. W., is the chapel S. Antonio, 850 ft. The road
passes the penitentiary of S. Antonio, 331 ft. North from it, under the
peak of La Barrage, 1476 feet, is the Castelluccio penitentiary.
Westward by the Hospice Eugenie and the Batterie de Maestrello, a
pleasant road leads along the coast to the orange gardens of Barbicaja,
passing by the Chapelle de Greco and the cemetery. About 4 m. farther
is the Tête Parata, 199 ft., opposite the Iles Sanguinaires.
A beautiful road, the continuation of the Cours Grandval, ascends 2½
m. to the Fontaine du Salario, 760 ft., commanding enchanting views.
This road traverses the Place Casone, 144 ft., occupying the site of the
Casone, the country house of the Bonapartes, destroyed in 1878. Close
by is the "grotte Napoleon," composed of blocks of granite, to which, it
is said, the youthful Napoleon used to retire.
About 6 m. N. from Ajaccio is the village of Alata, 1312 ft. Within an
easy walking distance north from Ajaccio is the pleasant estate of
Carrosaccia, on the canal which supplies the town with water from the
Gravona. 5½ m. N. from Ajaccio are the sulphurous springs of
Caldaniccia.
[Headnote: FAMILY TOMBS.]
In the neighbourhood of Ajaccio and of the other Corsican towns and
villages are numerous family sepulchral chapels enclosed within walls.
A more pleasing characteristic feature, probably inherited from the
Moors, are the numerous fountains in the villages and by the road side,
whence flow streams of cold, sparkling water of exquisite purity.
[Headnote: CLIMATE.]
Climate.--For convalescent invalids, Ajaccio forms a delightful change
from the Riviera, as it is so rural, and has such pleasant air and good
water. The hotels are comfortable and their charges moderate. As, too,
the road metal used around Ajaccio is that disintegrating granite which
so readily solidifies by the combined action of the rain and traffic, there

is very little dust in the neighbourhood (p. 9).
The principal winds are the Libeccio or S.W. wind, the Sirocco or S.E.
wind, and the Mistral or N.W. wind.
On the 12th, 13th and 14th of May the fair of St. Pancras is held, which
affords a good opportunity for purchasing Corsican horses. They are
from 10 to 14 hands high and of great endurance. It is wonderful to
behold the energy these small slim creatures display in dragging heavy
lumbering diligences up long, steep, winding roads.
But more wonderful still is it to see the peasant women and girls as
young as thirteen carrying on their heads up and down the mountain
paths big pails, or the more elegant two-handled brass jars of classic
form, containing about two gallons of water, without ever stumbling on
any of the many stones. The pails are made of copper lined with tin,
weighing when full of water from 55 lbs. to 65 lbs.
Among the curiosities of Ajaccio are gourds made into bottles, of
various shapes and sizes and mounted with silver, and the pretty
baskets made of straw by the girls of Alata.
[Map: Environs of Ajaccio]
Ajaccio to Bastia.
Ajaccio to Bocognano by rail, thence by diligence to Corté; Corté to
Bastia by rail 47 m., or 44 by road. The road from Ajaccio ascends the
valley of the Gravona to its source at the Col Vizzavona. On the N. side
of the Col it follows the course of the Vecchio. The most picturesque
part of this route is between Vizzavona and Vivario.
miles from AJACCIO miles to BASTIA
{ }{95} AJACCIO. Start from the station in the Cours Napoleon. The
road, after traversing the fertile plain of Campo dell Oro, crosses the
Col Sudricchio, 804 ft., and then the bridge of Ucciani, 948 ft., built in
the reign of Louis XIV., 17½ m. from Ajaccio and 2 m. from the

village of Ucciani. Use general map, and map, p. 27.
[Headnote: BOCOGNANO.]
{25}{70} BOCOGNANO, pop. 2000, and