Live your Life and Forget your Age

Our last temporary home along the French Riviera was in Villefranche sur Mer (free port by the sea), named for being a tax-free port in the 18th century to encourage business. The Citadel, down by the sea and built in the 1550's, was massive and served it's purpose centuries ago. It was easy to get lost in the old town narrow alleyways, although the stairs helped guide you to the sea below or the new town above. Our apartment was in the new town, close to a bus stop which we used for our day trips instead of the Iron Horse. Later in the week we made a couple of return trips down to the old town for outdoor dinners.

Our first foray was to the neighbouring town of Beaulieu sur Mer (beautiful place by the sea). We stopped in to tour the Villa Kerylos, built in the early 1900s to replicate ancient Greek style. The floor mosaics, furniture and ceilings were impeccable. Another day we took the bus into nearby Nice to visit the Chagall and Matisse art museums. There were lineups to get into both museums, the first for 30 minutes and one hour for the second, reinforcing the popularity of these two great artists. We went back into Nice a second time to stroll around the seafront promenade and wander in the old town. The street market was busy and the building architecture was something our young country could never replicate. The surprise highlight was our visit to Eze Village on another day. Perched 427 metres above the Mediterranean the charming medieval village with its narrow alleys was a treat to walk around. The views below to the sea and surrounding area from the fortress ruins were spectacular.

Monaco was next on our list, only 15 km's from our base in Villefranche sur Mer. The opulence was evident immediately upon arrival with the building architecture, statues of prominent inhabitants and expensive cars. We toured the Monte Carlo Casino before play started....the only way allowed.....so no sign of big stars but the fact that they had private gaming rooms indicated they had a home there. Even though we didn't gamble, the Casino still got $60 out of us, the entry for wandering through the various games rooms that were immaculately constructed with serious money. There was even a dress code "to perpetrate the legend of the Casino". The harbour was filled with superyachts and the Gucci-type stores abounded. We walked up to the Rock of Monaco where the old fort was along with the Cathedral, the Royal Palace and the old town narrow alleys. The next day we went to Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat which 10 years ago was determined to be the second most expensive residential area in the world, second only to Monaco. Not a lot has changed. We saw many palace-type homes (we liked one for sale for C45,000,000) and we toured the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild, built in the early 1900's by a Rothschild Baroness who wanted a winter home to visit. With many of it's contents dating back to the 16th century and 7 different gardens outside, not to mention hilltop views of the Mediterranean on either side the peninsula, the power of money was apparent.

Our final day trip was to the seaside town of Menton, beside the Italian border, so it had the feel of Italy with many pizza / pasta restaurants. The pedestrian-friendly, narrow old town roads were great to stroll along. We stopped for drinks near a small square where a good guitar player was churning out the tunes for tips. The Basilica Saint Michel was beautifully adorned with art, architecture, mosaics and more, as were the hundreds of other European churches we have been blessed to see.

We are now finished with our time along the Cote d'Azur. With a 28 night stay we helped the economy and kept the locals happy (not that they needed our money in some places). It was nice to have 3 different bases from which to make our many day trips, allowing us to visit almost 20 towns along the Riviera. It was also a good workout, as every seaside town seemed to be built on the side of a hill, meaning there was a lot of up and down walking. Our French adventure now takes us to the Mediterranean island of Corsica. It is a mountainous island so our legs still have some work to do.

Villefranche sur Mer, which was our base for this segment of our journey. Similar to most of the places we visited along the French Riviera, unless you walked along their lovely seaside promenades, your legs were in for a workout.

The reception room inside the Greek-style Villa Kerylos in Beaulieu sur Mer. Positioned beside the Mediterranean the views outside were scenic, just in case one got tired of the amazing interior of the palace home.

Marc Chagall's Garden of Eden, on view at his museum in Nice. The audioguide, cleverly accessed by your phone's QR code reader, was extremely helpful in describing the many stories within each of his paintings.

One of the narrow streets in the enchanting medieval village of Eze. With no vehicles of any sort allowed in the old town, all shops and restaurants were required to hand deliver their supplies.

Our restaurant window view in Eze Village of the chapel and down to the sea. We found a local bus to take us from the seaside to a spot just below the old town avoiding the grueling 2.5 km Nietzsche path, which on a cooler day would have been a nice challenge for at least one of us.

The Cours Saleya market in Nice. We always enjoy visiting the markets when we travel for their local traditions and items. While here we had a local specialty, Socca (chickpea pancake).

Our view of Monte Carlo taken from on top of the Rock of Monaco where the Royal Palace stood. There was a fair, with rides for the children, going on down by the harbour. We had lunch in the old town by the Cathedral which was also up on the Rock.

One of the handful of Games rooms inside the immaculately designed Casino de Monte-Carlo. Although daily play didn't start until 2 pm, I did notice a well dressed man playing in the Private Room which was roped off for special participants (that did not include us).

The Reception Salon inside the extravagant Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild in Cap-Ferrat. The divorced Baroness had the villa designed, built and embellished with 17th and 18th century treasures, using a small fraction of her enormous wealth to create a winter seaside retreat to relax.

The Baroness had the garden area designed in the shape of a ship with the Mediterranean visible on both sides of the Cap-Ferrat peninsula since it was built on a hilltop. There were 9 gardens and this was the main one (the bridge of the ship) behind the Villa. She had 30 gardeners and they dressed as Sailors for this very peculiar woman.

The Basilica Saint Michel in Menton. I'm not sure why they keep naming so many churches after me. I haven't even achieved sainthood yet, but it must be in my future.

The beautifully embossed stairway down from the Basilica to the water, with quite a few switchbacks. There seems to be a common theme to build these beautiful churches near the highest point in a town, ensuring patrons need to make an effort to enjoy the interior design.

On our final day in Villefranche sur Mer we headed back down to the seafront for a late afternoon lunch. At our table beside the water, I had a fresh tuna tartare meal that was excellent while my better half enjoyed their house special pizza.