"On the pleasant shore of the FRENCH RIVIERA, about half way between Marseilles and the Italian border, stands a large, proud, rose-colored hotel." - F. Scott Fitzgerland, Tender Is the Night

Bonjour!

View of Villefranche

Our most recent adventure was to La Belle France. And let me tell you, the country certainly lived up to its name. We had a wonderful 5 days in the south of France on the Mediterranean sea. Our "home base" during the trip was Nice. We took three day trips to Antibes, Monaco, and Villefranche and Eze.

 Our days were spent meandering in cool alleyways, basking in the sun on overlooks and near the Mediterranean, eating pastries (mostly crepes & croissants), sandwiches, and olives and drinking cafe (which we thought was coffee, but given France's proximity to Italy, it is actually espresso). While our days may sound relaxing, they were actually incredibly exhausting-- but in the best way possible. Read on for more!



First, Nice:

View of Old Town Nice from Castle Hill

Known for its sunshine--

and sunbathing...

Pebble beaches--

The Nice beach is made of small and sometimes not so small (read: ouch!) pebbles.

& Seafood ---

Yuuum!

I would love to tell you (or brag to you) that we spent a day on these gloriously comfy looking chairs soaking up the Mediterranean sun. BUT, if you know Phil at all, you would never believe that. There was far too much to see to spend a day on slothful sunning. Maybe next time?

I'm coming for you, chairs...

Our first day in Nice was kind of cloudy so after walking through the market and Old Town Nice, we decided to check out a few of the local museums. (Some of the photo below were taken on a different, much sunnier day.)

Cours Saleya-- daily flower and produce market. This is where we got olives. =)

Nice is known for its Niçoise olives. They are about half the size of a
Kalamata olive and DEEELICIOUS!

Old Town Nice: Every corner you turned there was another beautiful alley.

More beautiful views down the small streets.

On our way to the museums and despite the cloudy weather, we stopped for gelatto.

Fenochio Gelatto - Chocolate for me and Creme de Menthe for Phil

Phil, caught in the act!













 We went to the Chagall and Matisse Museums. Neither of us had ever heard of Chagall before but his museum was definitely a highlight of the trip. 

One of Chagall's pieces - Unusual use of color

Marc Chagall was a Russian-French artist who mixed his Russian-Orthodox-Jewish childhood with stories from the Old Testament in bright, splashy paintings. One critic called his art "Hebrew Jazz in paint."

My favorite blurb of color. I love the movement and warmth

Another part of a painting I enjoyed. See the burning bush?

Unfortunately, the Matisse Museum did not have very many of his famous pieces. His grave, however, was in a beautiful location, overlooking the city.

Matisse's Grave

Phil enjoys the view.































Luckily, we had better weather on the other days we were in Nice.

The Russian Orthodox Cathedral. Built in the early 1900s by Czar Nicholas II,
this is the biggest Orthodox Cathedral in Western Europe. It was built so that
Russians who wintered in Nice would have a place to worship.

He makes it too easy sometimes.

Yes, there were palm trees. Surprising but indicative of the sun and warmth!

Southern European Sun on the buildings. We don't have sun like this in Stockholm, yet.  


















As for food and drink during our time in Nice,

Dinner! On our balcony in Nice.

I didn't mentioned that part of our activities included drinking red wine? Oops!






C'mon, he's asking for it.

We also enjoyed walking around the city at night. 

Place Masséna (the main square on Nice) at night.

Notre-Dame De Nice

Note: I almost physically assaulted Phil after he took this photo-- requiring him to set his camera (and himself) down in the middle of the street. But luckily for him, the photo turned out really well and I couldn't stay mad. That and my adrenaline rush from watching the street for incoming cars and motor scooters left me feeling somewhat vulnerable and in need of a hug. =)

View of the Negresco Hotel from the outside.

Another important sight in Nice is the Negresco Hotel.  Built in 1912, it is one of the fancier hotels in Nice and the only one, I believe, that has a 2 Michelin Star Restaurant.

Our ice cream at the Negresco Hotel Cafe- Incredible!

View of the Negresco Hotel Cafe. The carousel theme was really fun-- not
what I was expected from such a fancy hotel.

Inside the Negresco Hotel. The 16,309 crystal chandelier was commissioned by
Russian Czar Nicholas II but it could not be delivered due to the revolution.

We spent time with some friends from Stockholm.
This photo was taken after a delicious meal of Moules Frites

One last bit of beauty from Nice...

Flowers on Castle Hill

And now onto Antibes:  

Boats everywhere!

Due to its naturally protected harbor, Antibes has historically been an important trade center. In the far back right of the picture above is a 17th century fort. 

I love the juxtaposition of modern and ancient in this photo

Today, it is a quaint, little town with tourism as the main industry. The streets are narrow and quiet with little shops selling local soap and linens. 

Beautiful and romantic alleyways.

More beauty.

We started our day walking along the rampart, ducking into the shady streets for some relief from the sun and lunch. 

See me trying to mimic the statue?

Most likely fellow tourists enjoying the sun and delicious food.

My Niçoise salad! Definitely exceeded my expectations.

We then warmed up by walking along the city wall and cooled down with a nice gelatto. It was that kind of spring day- warm in the sun, chilly in the shade. Just perfect!

I would love to be on that boat

View of the coast of Antibes

Look, Phil bought me a flower!! Pistachio and chocolate gelatto-
Mom, I thought of you!

Weary travelers after a long day in Antibes. Even our smiles look tired.  

Next, we visited Monaco: 

View of the main harbor of Monaco.

 

Another view.

An independent principality, Monaco is famous for its zero income tax and low business taxes. As a result, this city is the playground of the rich. Monaco is also home to the real-life fairy tales of princes and princesses.

Old Town Monaco is set on the top of a hill. It has harbors on both sides.

Old Town Monaco, is home to the Royal Palace, the Palais de Justice, and the Cathedral of Monaco.

The Palais de Justice

The American Actress and Princess of Monaco, Grace Kelly

 The top of the Old Town is ringed with beautiful public parks with great views. Like this one below:

Calm and Shady

 

Me, taking it all in.

We saw the changing of the guards.

Video of the changing of the guards:

We saw the ridiculous yachts.

And we made friends along the way.

We stopped to take photos of ourselves...

And of our friends... (the lizard is down there somewhere).

And of our other friends.

We were treated to a private musical performance:

Unfortunately, we were also given an encore in the form of one of the performers sharing Phil's sandwich with him.

Moving on to happier memories...

One of many beautiful displays on flowers

I mean, really?

Pretty building

These little guys were everywhere during our trip not just to Monaco but in Nice and elsewhere too!

I swear, every street was this well-kept and photogenic

He knows he's busted!

The Monte Carlo Casino!

View of the Casino reflection.

Flowers!

Pretty!

We had a great day in Monaco that surprisingly didn't break the bank. Our experience was capped off by a view of the harbor at night. The palace/Old Town can be seen on the left in the picture below. (To give you an idea of the layout of the city)

Monaco & harbor at night.

Our last day was spent split between Villefranche and Eze.

Villefranche:

Villefranche sur Mer is a town that is smaller than Antibes but has a similar feel. (Windy, small streets with beautiful Mediterranean views.)

Method used to keep score during the game of Boule (French version of Bocce Ball).

The highlight of our trip to Villefranche was our lunch.

The view from our table. I could get used to this! =)

Us enjoying the food and the view. And yes, I am wearing a bib.
Saffron stains, okay?

Bouillabase- a saffron-loaded seafood stew that this region is famous for.
We went to the restaurant recommended by Rick Steves. Incredible and
definitely out of our price range. haha   

Un petit bateau.

Finally, we headed to Eze:

After a 20 minute long, hairpin-turn laden bus ride, we arrived at Eze Ville, established in the 1300's and nicknamed an "eagle's nest."

Eze from afar.

The yellow tower is the Notre-Dame de l'Assomption in Eze.

Me taking a much needed break.

Rooftops of Eze

À bientôt, France! See you again soon! 

We had an amazing (and busy) 5 days in France. But we didn't see everything! Next time- St. Tropez, Cannes & Marseille.

Next Wednesday we head to Belgium (Brussels & Bruges) for 4 days. While it won't be as sunny as France, we're looking forward to the chocolate and beer. Another update coming soon!