Where sand whispers

Oh this place! I’ll admit I was pretty much sold on visiting it just by having a quick browse on the internet and discovering it was pretty much the most beautiful cove you could have seen in Tuscany. And yes, they were all so right about it!

To get there the very first time, we got lost several times and walked for an hour or more without being able to figure out what was the right path to take and almost giving up. We woke up bright and early just for the occasion, as everyone was saying the cove tends to fill up very quickly but getting there early to spot it semi-deserted was totally worth a try. And we spent all the sleeping time we deprived ourselves of, by wandering around without a logic!

But then we got it, and spot the sign we’ve walked past several times withour even realizing. And from there we realized we needed to practice a good 3km hike to get to our final destination, as if all the wandering wasn’t enough. Needless to say we weren’t able to see Cala Violina almost empty that time, or never really!

Each time we went there, we were basically already exhausted before even arriving (but with practice it got better at some point!) but it was so extremely worth it!

After what felt the longest, most intense hike of all, we found ourselves in front of the most beautiful, crystal clear sea I’ve seen in years, on a cosy white sandy beach all surrounded by trees and montains and nothing else at all! I’ll admit sometimes I wasn’t even able to determine where the sea ended and the sky started because of how beautifully blue both were at the very same time!

It’s called Cala Violina because of its sand being on the grainy side, causing a little sound or whisper when you walk on it, especially at sunset when the cove is a little bit quiter, reminding of the sound of a violin. A bit poetical, maybe, but I can say, if there’s something poetical in this world of ours, it’s because of places like this one.

It really didn’t matter how tired we felt by the end of the day, or the fact that the hike was seriously as intense as it could be in the severe Summer heat of Italy in August and with several bags on our shoulders. It was just worth it so much that I decided that it was the place I wanted to spend my birthday in, and believe me when I say I never, ever, thought I would have ever wanted to go for an extreme hike on my birthday, when I could have done anything I wanted really!

That said, can somebody bring me back there, pretty please?!

P. S. I have a little Tuscany guide coming up next with more places worth a visit if you’re interested! x