San Remo, Ventimiglia, Monaco, Eze

Today was another amazing day in a long string of them that just keeps getting better. Our driver Peggy (a lovely petite french woman that was named after Peggy Fleming) picked us up at 9 a.m and off to San remo, Italy we went. The 50 kms on the motorway is quite scenic with many tunnels and mountain and sea views abound>.Arriving in San remo at 10 a.m. we jump right out onto the streets of the old town for some seriuos shopping. The life of Italian townspeople is just as I imagined it...cafe's buzzing with the talk of the day, the smell of fresh bread in the air and people moving about frantically to get their daily supplies and shopping compoleted before lunch.

After a few small purchases (ha ha) we met Peggy and headed to Ventimiglia, 14 km down the coast for lunch at Bagni San Guiseppe, Restorante Bar, directly on the sea (speaking of Guiseppe, happy birthday to my brother Joe today, aka Guiseppe). Well, the reputation of Ligurian cuisine is alive and well. For primi,Lee-Ann enjoyed the local pasta specialty. The pesto was the greenest green I have ever seen and was to die for!!! I enjoyed another house specailty, Canelloni Guiseppe, which was very delicate and delicious. Lots of ricotta and basil stuffed pasta with a bolognese sauce...ya man! For secondi, I enjoyed a cold dish of Vitello Tonello, Basiaclly, veal carpaccio with tuna sauce and capers. It was excellent, but very rich. Lee-ann enjoyed the fried shrimp and calamari. We woont tell her mom Lena, but this calamari was a close second to hers that she makes at Christmas. A nice bottle of Chianti accompanied our lunch and we were happy and ready for the afternnon trip to Monaco and Eze.

I never imagined the principality of Monaco to be so small, even after numerous people had told me so. The elegance and opulance is quite astonishing for such a humble Canadian boy like myself. We visited the cathedral (where Grace Kelly and Prince Ranier were married and I even took a pic of her tomb) We visited the golden square, the Monte Carolo casino, Cafe paris and the mothership for restaurantuers, Loius XV, Alan Ducasse's first and foremost Michelin star restaurant. Next we drove the race course of the Monaco Grand Prix and toured the harbour, where million Euro yachts are common place.

We left Monaco and drove along the Moyen Corniche road back toward Nice and stopped at the midieval village of Eze. Peggy drove us up the long hill into the village and we walked up further into the oldest, pedestrian only part of the village. It is perched on a spectaluar point, which served its purpose for defence over the years. very interesting residence, hotels and shops make up this cobbled village.

Enjoy the pics and blog....we are abou t to watch a fireworks show from our balcony at the Hotel Suisse. This week, Nice is celebarating 150th years of being returned to the French from italian rule. We are here in Nice for a half day tomorrow, then back to Toronto via Amsterdam.

The 1st pic is me blogging on the balcony of our hotel room.

Bon Soir!

Sunday in Nice

The mistique and storied past of the city of Nice has a lot to do with its location and climate. It has been much sought after over the years and has always had its share of visitors; the romans, the french, the italians, the british aristocrats and the neveau riche all have enjoyed this playhouse of a city. Our cycle tour of the city with our guide Matt was very educational. The architecture, the history, the artifacts, the legacies, the stories and the land all combined to make an excellent and valuable tour. From the Promenade D'anglais to the historic casino's and hotels, to the old city architecture to the museums, the squares, the markets, the restaurants, the port, the chateau over looking the city, we biked and took it all in. This month the city of Nice is celebrating the 150th anniversary of the return of the city to France from Italian rule. There are concerts and happenings all over town. Tonight we enjoyed a casual dinner at La Pizza, and now it is 12 a.m. and time to blog.....

A busy day lies ahead tomorrow, we have booked a private car to take us to San Remo, Italy and to Monaco for the day.

Bon Soir!

Vieux Nice ce soir

This vibrant and bustling city comes alive on a warm Saturday night. We walked te streets of the old, previously walled city and joined the crowds on the Cours Saleya. Marie et LA picked a wonderful seafood restaurant for dinner. Tres bien!!! After a long dinner of mussels mouliniere, soup de poisson, grilled sea bream, aioli provencal with seafood and veggies, spaghetti de la mer with much vin rose, we strolled the town. First the port, then we said good-bye to Marie and DD, who had to catch a 7 a.m. plane back to reality. LA and I kept going for hours, to Place Girabaldi then to Place Massena and to the designer stores of Rue Massena then back to the Promenade D'anglais and along the sea to our hotel. Sunday we will start our day with a 3 hour bicycle tour with Nice Cycle Tours.

Bon Soir!

The Road to Nice

Today has beeen an eventful and amazing day. Leaving our lovely adopted home, La campagne Saint Chalres, the drive from Cotignac took us through new unexplored Provence countryside on the way to St. Tropez. Arriving there by 10 a.m. we drove through town , checked out a beach, but with a care full of luggage and valuables, we felt we shouldnt stray from it to far. Feeling unpretentious in a very pretentiuos environment, we stopped for a cafe au lait and a croque monsoiur to gather our thoughts.With over 50 km of Cote d'Azur shoreline to follow to Nice, we decided to head out. First through Ste. Maxime, then Port Frejues, Ste. Raphael, and the coastline gets more scenic with every kilometer. The corniche rising above the rick blue of the Mediterranean. A few stops for pics and cold drinks and next thing you know we are in Cannes, apres festival du film, but none-the-less, home to the rich and famous. It certainly shows and the watrefront is impressive. The final 20 km to Nice is uneventful. We dropped DD et Marie off at their airport hotel(as they fly out tomorrow after joining us in old town for sights and dinner this evening).

We drop off the rental car and I say goodbye to my beloved Mercedes that treated me so well. I love driving in France! The narroow roads, the lets go attitude and cornering at speed is just my style> I am not sure how many times LA said "slow down!!!" We took a taxi to the Hotel Suisse and her I am, sitting on our balcony , 15 mteres above the Promenade d'Anglias, looking out ofver 10 kms of beach and downtown Nice......having a mineral water and kissing my bride in joy and happiness for just being here.