On Thursday morning, Liz was on her way. She had organised a clever itinerary to get to Narbonne. Unfortunately the Italian trains did not run to time, and she missed her flight from Pisa. In the end, she had an exciting trip by train, with a short overnight stop in Nice, and was only 24 hours late to Bages. Where, we gather, there was some more sailing, but also major gastronomic explorations of the nearby restaurants.
Meanwhile, we set off towards Rome. Our first stop was due to be Porto Azzuro, only 4 miles away by land but 16 by sea. As you sail north to round the Capo Vita, you pass a series of little bays which would be nice anchorages in the right weather. Also this splendid coppery rock formation, in which lurks the bulbous nose and round eye of an old man waiting impatiently for his next glass.
The colour reminds you that Elba was mined for a very long time (the last one only closing in the 1980's), giving mineral wealth to its rulers from the Romans to Napoleon.