Well we try to book a holiday to Greek island of Kephalonia, but it didn't work out and so here we are on the beautiful island of Elba for our 'official' holiday.
This little gem is practically unknown to English tourism, but is a favourite weekend retreat for Tuscans and former French emperors! (Napoleon being its most famous former resident.)
The only question is, can an island roughly the same size as the Isle of Wight have enough to keep us busy for a week? Let's see...
Arrival - Rio nel Elba
With no hotel or ferry reservations, we drive from Florence to the port at Piombino and manage to get a ticket! We're straight on the 2.30 ferry heading for Portoferraio, the capital of Elba.
After locating the tourist office and phoning round several places, we have an apartment for the week! It turns out to be the gorgeous little hill-top village of Rio nell' Elba and we're in the main square...
It's only a half-hour drive away and in no time we pick up the key and settle in and go for dinner in our local bar/ restaurant, 'da Cipolla'.
La Biodola and Il Giardino
Day 2 and we force ourselves out of bed for cappuccino and pastry at bar Cipolla, last night's band have cleared up and left and the bell tower didn't start ringing until 8 am!
We head straight to the island's best beach, La Biodola - it's jam-packed, but the sand is powder white and the sea a wonderful transparent turquoise!
After a relaxing afternoon we drive back home for a shower and head out to Porto Azzuro and settle on a restaurant just out of town... It's called 'Il Giardino' and after an hour's wait we have a table! I think maybe we need to book next time...
The wait turns out to be worthwhile... We order a 12 dish antipasti, which is just incredible!
L'Inamorata and Il Chiasso
Or roughly translated as 'in love and noise'!
Day 3 and an earlier start - we head off to the pretty 'lovers' beach, which is a lot smaller and less crowded than Biodola - with beautiful, emerald green sea... We stay until 7 pm, drive back home, shower, change and then decide to check out nearby town, Capoliveri. It turns out to be the most popular town on the island, perched high on a hill and buzzing with activity. This is what we came to Italy for! We find a cozy restaurant just off the main square, 'il chiasso'. The food is superb! We munch away on some wicked pasta dishes, meaty main courses, all washed down by a very nice Vernaccia di San Gimignano wine from Panizzi.
After, we wander the elegant streets and I buy myself a cool Armani watch. There is a live band playing in the main square and we enjoy some dancing... La dolce vita indeed!
Zuccale and 'il Cantinetta'
Day 4 and we have a lunch date in the picturesque harbour of Porto Azzuro. We've had our eyes on this restaurant and we enjoy a long lazy lunch here before driving onto what turns out to be Annette's favourite beach at Zuccale. Small, quiet and peaceful.
In the evening we finally manage to eat at home and catch up on some Olympic action...
Cavoli, St. Ilario and 'la Cava'.
Day 5 and we journey to the centre of the island, first stop is the gorgeous sandy beach at Cavoli - some big waves make for some amateur surfing, after which we drive up to the pretty little village of St. Ilario and have a pleasant stroll and happen upon an interesting looking restaurant with a spectacular panoramic view. We enjoy a wicked lobster pasta dish and a lovely bottle of chardonnay from Castello di Ama as we watch the sun set and moon rise... lovely!
Morcone and Tony Coleman
Day 6 and yet another warm, sunny day. We spend a lazy morning breakfasting in our local bar in the pretty square of Rio nell'Elba and check out some of the old parts of the town.
Our search for the beach of Remaiolo proves fruitless (it turns out to be private and only reachable by boat or shuttle bus from a nearby hotel) so we settle for Morcone - renamed by me 'jelly fish cove' and I have the sting to prove it!
We pop home for dinner and then back out to Capoliveri for our concert date at the 'Sugar Reef' with funky, blues drummer, Tony Coleman - ex band member for James Brown, B.B. King etc. A 1 am start and a very funky evening ensues... at 4.30 am we stagger out, find the car and eventually our way home...
Poggio, Marciana, Paolina and Procchio!
So how many places can we fit in to one day? The answer apparently is five!
A late start for our drive to the west of the island and we arrive in Marciana Marina for a nice relaxing lunch on the water front. We then drive up to the quaint little village of Poggio and then on to neighbouring Marciana Alta where we have this ridiculous idea to go up a very large mountain in a very small chair! Going up is definitely more scary than coming down, but we are rewarded with some spectacular views of the whole island...
After successfully coming back down what turns out to be the 1,100 foot Monte Capanne, we recover on a tiny beach where Napoleon's sister, Paolina used to bathe. Afterwards we drive back up to Poggio and find a cool bar with a magnificent view to have a very civilized aperitivo. On the way home we spot a 'sagra gastronomica' at Procchio and decide to investigate... It turns out to be a huge fish banquet and some traditional dancing... too good to pass up! And we enjoy a very pleasant evening.
Departure
It's our final day on the island. We pack up our bags, pay up and check out and have six hours before the ferry leaves from Portoferraio...
A breakfast stop at one of the island's most well-known wine estates, Sapereta, where I indulge in a little wine tasting and come away with a bottle of the island's famous dessert wine 'Aleatico'.
We try to find the beach at Capo Bianco, but fail! So settle for a small, shingly cove at Seccione, where we soak up the last few rays of sun... We head back to Portoferraio and have time for a last 'cafe shakerato' before embarking at 5.30pm. The crossing back to Piombino is calm, as we watch the beautiful island of Elba disappear...
Will we return?
Hopefully...
(Original journal entry 29/8/04)
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