| Bosco is named after the wood that used to stand here in the tenth century. In those days a community of hermits dwelt here, but nowadays the limestone plateau is open and desolate. The only sign of life comes from the military training camp where young Corsicans sweat out their national service. The entrance to the Bosco is marked by the church of St-Dominique, a rare example of Corsican Gothic architecture – it was built in 1270, most probably by the Templars, and later handed over to the Dominicans. Beyond the church, rue des Moulins leads on to the ruins of three mills dating from 1283, two of them decrepit, the third restored. Behind them stands a memorial to the 750 people who died when a troopship named Sémillante ran aground here in 1855, on its way to the Crimea, one of the many disasters wreaked by the notoriously windy straits. The tip of the plateau is occupied by the Cimetière Marin, its white crosses standing out sharply against the deep blue of the sea. Open until sundown, the cemetery is a fascinating place to explore, with its flamboyant mausoleums displaying a jumble of architectural ornamentations: stuccoed facades, Gothic arches and classical columns. Next to the cemetery stands the Couvent St-François, allegedly founded after St Francis sought shelter in a nearby cave – the story goes that the convent was the town's apology to the holy man, over whom a local maid had nearly poured a bucket of slops. Immediately to the south, the Esplanade St-François commands fine views across the bay to Sardinia.
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