Corsica is situated 160km off the southern coast of France in the gulf of Genoa, but it is actually closer - 80km - to Italy and was in Italian possession until 1768 when it was purchased by France.Ajaccio is the capital of Corsica, one of metropolitan France’s 22 governmental regions. The splendid island of Corsica, birthplace of the Emperor Napoleon I, is a major tourist venue, with 300 beaches, 12 marinas and mountains reaching 3,600 metres.
The island's diverse coast of 1,000km has a mix of rugged cliffs as well as some of the finest beaches in the Mediterranean with beautiful half-moon bays and picturesque villages. There are no high rise developments along the coast as buildings are restricted to a maximum two storeys and not allowed to encroach too closely upon the beach.
An island next to France covered with never-ending white beaches and jagged stone coasts, quaint rolling valleys and picturesque streets. The island provides an ideal place for water sports like diving and water skiing, canoeing, as well as opportunity for mountain biking, hiking and trekking. There are a number of places to see also, starting from citadel, the "cultural centre" of Corsica, which is situated majestically between the mountains directly over the old city of Corte. Should not be forgotten the ancient city of Calvi. Here, right in its midst is another old citadel, which still houses the famed Foreign Legion. The city's breathtaking beauty will accompany you while shopping on narrow side streets.
Inland further diverse landscapes can be found. Driving up the steep climbs and around sharp hairpin bends through the jagged mountains can be exhilarating. Half of these mountains are snow-capped for almost the entire year. The mid-level mountains are covered in maquis - a mix of harsh and resilient bushes including broom, gorse, juniper, laurel, lentisk and myrtle mixed with the strong aroma-giving plants like asphodel, cistus, heather, lavender, thyme and sage (which provide the spice in Corsican cooking). Pine and chestnut forests cover the craggy mountains and olive groves fill the valleys.
Corsicans are known for being intimate in community but to strangers very reserved and some outsiders could find the taciturn people unapproachable. The family is paramount to the people. The language Corsu is more closely related to Italian and many people are working to keep it alive, evidenced in the bilingual or exclusively Corsu street and shop signs about the island. Almost half of the population is concentrated in the two major towns and in the interior of the country many communes are suffering from depopulation and few activities exist outside of agriculture. The most effected are 136 communes in the west of the island where more than half of the population are aged over sixty. Communes that are less deserted, but which have no shops or services, are those close to the autoroutes. The people here drive to work in the major towns.