From the Inside Out

Today was our last full day in Nice. We’ll be leaving for the airport early on Thursday morning for a return flight that will have us arriving in Dallas by the evening (we gain back the seven hours we lost on the trip out here). It’s a long flight, but after all the miles and miles and miles that we’ve walked on this trip, I think we’re ready to sit for a while…haha!

Speaking of walking, we walked all over Nice today. My feet were killing me by the end of the day, but it was worth it. We visited the Chagall Museum and checked out the collection of paintings they have there. Most of the artwork on display depicts settings from the Old Testament and each one tells an interesting story. The colors are bold and compelling — they really pop out at you. Also, it was neat to see how his artwork looks different when you are standing up close versus far away.

After the Chagall Museum, we trekked upwards and onwards (more uphill walking) to the Nice Archeology Museum (Musee de Archeologie) which sits beside the site of a 3rd century Roman town called Cemenelum. Here you can see the remains of Roman baths from the 3rd century and a Roman Coliseum.

Outside of the archeological site sits the Matisse museum and a lovely public park. Tired from all the walking, we sat down and watched the locals play a few games of Boules, which is similar to Bocce Ball and a favorite pastime of those who live in the French Riviera. After resting and enjoying the warmth of the sun, we decided to brave the 45 minute walk back down the hill.

Once back in familiar territory, we went to Vieux Nice (Old Nice) and did some shopping in the stores that line the old streets.

Taking a break from the shopping, we stopped at a cafe that was making crepes out front. We couldn’t leave France without sampling some of the crepes so we placed our orders and watched as they made them in front of us.

Then…more shopping! We toured through some of the high end shops in Place Messena before going back to our hotel room with our new souvenirs from Nice.

Finally, we ended the day with a good Italian dinner and afterwards stopped at a small dessert and coffee shop to enjoy some glace. Boy, they really know how to make it in France!! It was awesome by the way.

I’m sad that we have to leave tomorrow, but I’m glad that we had the opportunity to visit this amazing place. I have much more respect for the French people and their culture after being here. France is a great country with wonderful people.

Hopefully, we’ll be blessed enough to return one day.

Merci et au revoir, Nice!

NOTE: If you want to see more pictures from today, check out the new pictures added to the Nice ‘09 album in the photos section of the blog.

The weather was perfect today — sunny and warm. It was, without a doubt, the best day so far! See below for a short photoblog.

I’ll upload more pictures in the gallery tomorrow. It’s late, and I need to get some sleep so I can have enough energy for another fun-filled day of sightseeing.

Walked out of the hotel and enjoyed the warm weather and gorgeous views on the promenade

View of Nice from the promenade

Me enjoying the lovely day

Visited the flower and food market in Old Nice. This is where the locals shop and they had everything — fresh fruit, fish, veggies, spices, desserts, flowers, etc. It was great.

Stopped and watched a local street performer tap dancing. He also sang “Johnny Be Good” in English and was actually quite good at both.

Traversed the streets of Old Nice

Toured an old Italian Palace from the 1700s

Gary in one of the palace rooms

We climbed up castle hill where the city of Nice was first settled. The views were AMAZING!!!!!

Having a blast

Park on top of castle hill — people were juggling, playing soccer (or football if you’re French), reading on park benches, and simply enjoying the day

View of the Nice lighthouse and port…look how blue the water is…gorgeous!

Ah, I LOVE Nice!

The port of Nice…more yachts.

Walked out to the lighthouse

Relaxed on the beach and watched kids playing in the ocean — even saw people sunbathing in swimsuits earlier in the day!

Watched an amazing sunset — God painted a beautiful sky for us tonight

Had dinner at a strange “American” restaurant called Buffalo Bills

Yes, I did say Nice, not Monaco as I had mentioned in yesterday’s blog. Why didn’t we make it to Monaco? Well, it’s an interesting story. Our hotel room has blinds that you can lower to filter out the light from the balcony doors and windows. When we received our nightly turn-down service, the maid lowered them, and since Gary likes to sleep in a dark room, we left them down.

The blinds had small openings between them so we thought some light would filter into the room. We were wrong — very wrong. They were blackout blinds. Gary and I woke up a few times this morning, but since it still looked dark outside, we didn’t get up. The room was so dark that I couldn’t see my watch, and there isn’t an alarm clock in our room.

Finally, Gary got up, and I asked him what time it was — it was still pitch black in our room. Gary casually checked his watch…

“It’s 2 pm,” he said.

I jumped up, “Are you kidding me?”

“No.”

We freaked out. It was impossible. That couldn’t be right!

Alas, it was.

We opened the blinds, and yes, it was the middle of the afternoon. So much for making it to Monaco today.

Since we didn’t have enough time to venture outside of the city, we stayed in Nice and explored the city a bit more today. We strolled the beach, walked up the Avenue Jean Medecin towards the hills, ventured into the local mall, ate dinner near Place Messena, and wandered through Old Nice, a charming area with buildings dating back to the 16th century. The streets and buildings of Old Nice reminded me alot of the streets in Florence. This area is great — during the day, there’s a market, and at night, it’s bustling with activity as people visit the restaurants with live music, brasseries, clubs, and theatres.

A few pictures from today are posted below, but if you want to see more, check out the Photos section of the blog.

Walking along the Promenade de Anglais

The Mediterranean Sea and Nice — in front of our hotel

Old pier at the beach…I like the cloud patterns in the sky

Hotel Negresco, one of the most famous hotels on the beach

Avenue Jean Medecin — lots of restaurants and shops here

Old Nice, the Place Charles Felix with a view of Castle hill in the background

The streets of Old Nice

After spending 11 hours in the air, we arrived in Nice around 3:30 local time. The flight from London wasn’t full so we breezed through passport control and customs — no lines, yay! After exiting the customs area, we met our driver who escorted us directly to our hotel, the Palais de la Mediterranee on the Promenade Des Anglais, one of the most sought after locations in Nice.

The Palais de la Mediterranee opened in 1929, and it was restored in 2004. The Art Deco style remains both inside and out. Our room is nicely furnished and spacious by European standards. And the location can’t be beat. You walk out the front door and are treated with an amazing view of the Mediterranean Sea!

After settling into the hotel, we set out on foot to explore the area — and find food. Shops, cafes and restaurants line the street across from the beach and the streets behind our hotel. We found a neat area which was designated for pedestrian traffic only. Along that stretch were many interesting places to eat. We eventually selected a small Italian food restaurante to provide our first meal in Nice. Tres bon!

After dinner, it was dark outside, so we strolled around checking out the local sights and shopping in the stores along Promendade Des Anglais.

When we arrived back at our hotel this evening, we decided to investigate the small casino on the first floor of the hotel. Compared to Vegas casinos, this one is not notable, but it did have some really cheap slot machines, so we decided to take $20 and entertain ourselves for a while on the 20 cent slots. After playing for a few minutes, Gary hit a jackpot and won $200! We cashed out immediately and walked out happy — not a bad way to end the evening.

Tonight, we will try to get caught up on the sleep we missed while crossing the pond. Tomorrow we plan to visit Monte Carlo.

NOTE: For a complete photo album of Day One, check out the Photos section of the blog.

We’re traveling to the French Riviera in January! Nice will be our final destination with day trips to Cannes, Monte Carlo and the Southern Alps. After our October vacation plans were foiled (because of a hefty workload), I thought we’d be going elsewhere. Possibly New Zealand or Australia because the weather is warm and sunny in January.

I changed my mind after investigating the flight options. The best case scenario had us arriving in New Zealand about 24 hours after departing. With the time difference, we’d lose an entire day just traveling (i.e. depart on Sunday, arrive on Tuesday). While the charm of New Zealand is appealing, the thought of spending two entire days on plane is not. We’ll save that trip for a time when we can be gone for more than one week.

Even though the weather will be a little chilly, I’m really excited about this trip. We’re staying at the Palais de la Mediterranee, an oceanfront property located on the Promenade des Anglais in Nice. And since there are ski resorts about 60 miles inland we can stroll along the beach in the morning and ski in the afternoon. How cool is that?

Viva la France!

The Palais de la Mediterranee

View from the pool area