Stranded in a storm: Corsica

Waiting an extra hour for a bus in Èze is nothing compared to what we are experiencing in Bastia, Corsica!  We are on lock-down in a seaport two star hotel as a Mediterranean tempest storm named Adrian passes over the island.   They are predicting winds over 150 km/hour.  We were frantically told by a woman on the street two hours ago to go inside.  They are shutting down the town. They call it Red Vigilance. All the stores are closed now and they want everyone off the roads.  It's intense!  Matt is following it on twitter as we can't see anything from our inside courtyard view but I can hear the winds.   I am hopeful that the storm will pass without much drama.We've been on Corsica for three nights and until this morning, it has been lovely!  I adore this island.  We flew from Nice on Thursday morning and were surprised with the mountainous terrain and size of the island.  It's big! After renting a car at the airport we went towards the mountains.  I was stunned with the beautiful peaks, rushing river and gorgeous topography.  The fresh mountain air was delicious!  Brewster had fun shooting photos and Sadie hopping from one river rock to the next.  I felt like I was home.

Matt and I even snuck in a date at a five star restaurant and savored the delicious French food.   We woke up yesterday and drove North to Bastia.  Our intention was to return our rental car and sleep one night near the port and leave for Italy this morning.  Right as we were returning the car, I checked my email and saw that our ferry to Italy this morning was cancelled.  I wasn't sure why  and felt very inconvenienced!  Until....we woke up this morning to a total down pour and thunder and lightening.  I was grateful we were not on a boat out at sea.   We spent the morning in a very small hotel room watching the Red Sox win the World Series (Woot Woot!  Sorry, Caroline) . We rebooked our ferry for tomorrow and found a hotel room for tonight.  We waited for the rain to slow down before heading to our car.    That is when we realized that we were in a big storm!  Our hotel was located on the quai and there was police tape along the shore.  The waves were crashing over the seawall on to the cars.  A wave drenched Sadie and Matt at the car.  We drove slowly around the block to our new hotel and have been here on and off ever since.Fortunately, we have wifi, good books and a deck of cards.   I snuck into a grocery store for a few beers and snacks a couple of hours ago so we are safe and sound.  Whether we will be here another day or not, we shall see....the adventure continues! #rougevigilance