Le perfumerie and a Monacan downpour

Nice is an excellent destination all on its own, but it is a pretty small city and can be appreciated in a day or two. But I think the true gems of the Cote d’Azur are the small villages and cities along the coast. As I mentioned before, the French couple from the hostel helped us come up with a pretty good plan in using the local one euro bus to take us to these other places. The one euro bus in discussion is sort of a gift the city gives to the locals, offering them cheap transportation to the outlying villages from the city. Most buses around Europe, even the local ones, aren’t this cheap. Our plan today was to take the bus from a small station by the marina east to Eze Village and then to Monaco. So we hopped what we called the “space tram”, a tram that travels along Avenue Jean Medecin and out to the bus station, a tram advanced in both technology and design, and found the local bus to Eze Village. These buses are the kinds that blow past stops if no one is waiting at them and if no one requests the bus to stop. So we made pretty good time. The bus took us around the marina and then made its way uphill, a little bit inland, into the suburban neighborhoods in the hills. We took a window seat in the back to have a good vantage point to soak in the atmosphere of the ride, but the engine below us screamed and vibrated in torment as the driver struggled to get the bus up the steep roads in low gear. The high road took us through small neighborhoods with palm trees and small homes with seafront views with iron gates and gardens. We skirted the edge of the cliff for much of the journey and the views were spectacular. About 45 minutes into the trip someone requested a stop and we pulled into the main intersection of two roads in Eze Village, a tiny village beside a castle, high above the sea. We got out and oriented ourselves a bit.

The intersection that we got off at was the cross between two roads, one that led back to Nice in one direction and then further on towards Monaco in the other, and the second that led further inland and up into the hills behind the village. The village lay entirely around the cross section of these two roads. So walking around was certainly easy and experiencing the village could be done in a matter of hours. We were pretty hungry, having missed breakfast in order to make it to the bus in time, hoping to find something en route but failing to find a cheap cafe, so we wandered along the road a bit in search of food. We found a small cafe on the side and on the edge of the road, overlooking the sea in the distance. The cafe was in a small building on its own and was open to a front terrace in the yard where we could take a seat in the sun. It had turned out to be a pretty nice, sunny day. We went in to see what the cafe offered and decided on a couple of cappuccinos and I took a slice of egg, ham, and cheese quiche, Lissy took a berry custard. It was delicious. Quiche is a very typical French food, easily sold at cafes as a midday snack or bit of breakfast, I made use of both purposes. The quiche was heavy on cream, giving the texture of the mould a very fine and almost gelatin quality. It was really good. As was Lissy’s custard. And the cappuccinos. We felt much better and then walked back to the center of the village.

The small cafe we found in Eze Village

My quiche and cappuccino, an excellent brunch

We then decided to make our way back over to the castle, an old fortress built atop the highest point of the cliff wall looking out over the sea. It was a Sunday and there was a local flea market sprawling along the cobbled walkways leading up to the castle, full of local vendors selling French wares and antiques and other odd memorabilia from the basements of old French homes. We wandered further, past the market, into the confines of the castle itself. As we climbed and wound our way through the narrow walkways of the castle, we could look down into the deep valleys below that led down to the sea and all the grand villas scattered around the hills. There were some restaurants and cafes in the castle, a little expensive though, and a really nice church, similar to the one in the old quarter in Nice, very pretty and peaceful, old Mediterranean paintings along the interior and grand crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. Walking back out, we kept on climbing through the maze of passageways that led us through the center and around the sides of the castle walls. Flowers and ferns hung from the iron bars of old windows and many of the little wooden doors to rooms and homes within the walls were open to art galleries and various shops selling local, hand made goods. The top though, pretentiously, we thought, was only open to those willing to pay for the view. In spite of that, we declined and walked back down to the village.

One of the flea market stalls leading up to the castle

Lissy and some French kids petting a donkey

The altar of the chapel in the castle

The chapel was lavishly decorated with chandeliers

A typical alleyway through the castle

The entrance to a cafe within the castle walls

The castle in Eze Village rose high above the village

Eze Village is also famous, as our a few villages in Southern France, for their perfumeries. They have factories that produce these perfumes for design label companies like Chanel, but they also sell their own perfumes right at the factory and in little shops around the village for a much cheaper price, but of the same high quality and in very fancy, French bottles. It was actually very cool. We walked in to one of the shops and was met by a woman who started to explain a bit about the qualities and types of perfume that they sold. We told her we were both interested and she laid out a display of perfumes for both men and women. She started with Lissy, spraying various types of perfumes on different places of her wrists and arms so that she could smell the differences. She explained the ingredients used and the impression they were supposed to make in combination. The fragrances of the perfumes, I learned, were strongest and of their true quality minutes after they were sprayed, to allow the alcohol in them to burn off. She did the same to me to allow me to sample the men’s cologne, which were all quite nice. After some deliberation, Lissy decided to buy a bottle of a perfume that had a slight citrus scent to it, we both really like it. I declined however to buy any cologne, deciding that it would be difficult to take with me on the rest of my trip. We left the shop and went back to the bus stop to catch the same bus further east to Monaco. 

The shop where we went to educate ourselves about perfumes

Lissy and the perfume she bought

This bus ride was similar to the one that took us from Nice, winding its way first down the cliff face towards the local train stop by the coast. Then it continued to hug the coastline, zigzagging around the train tracks as they dipped in and out of tunnels. The sun was still out and the sea below us was that same bright turquoise color. After another hour or so on the bus, we pulled into Monaco. Realizing that you are coming upon Monaco is easy because the city, built along the cliff walls leading into the sea, is so dense and so extravagant that it could not be confused with any other possible place. So we knew we had arrived and got off. Monaco is a small, dense, city confined by the natural boundaries the steep mountains allow, and is itself a sovereign state. They have their own royal family, their own royal palace and royal guards, and they have a lot of rich people. The palace is extravagantly set atop a stand alone hill, high above the sea, much like Eze Village’s castle. The apartment buildings scattered around the city are posh, and the streets are full of expensive, luxury Italian and German made sports cars. Monaco is also well known for its annual Formula 1 race that it hosts in May along the city’s open streets, and its casino in Monte Carlo, a fancy neighborhood in the central part of the city.

The city of Monaco, Monte Carlo on is on the hill, from the vantage of the palace on the hill

Changing of the guard in front of the palace in Monaco

Me above the city, the marina below

In the distance we could see these really dark and ominous clouds closing in on Monaco from the Italian shores beyond to the east and we knew we had a couple of hours of sun before those clouds engulfed the city in rain, so we decided to first walk around the palace and royal neighborhood a bit while the weather was still good. Walking up the hill leads to a small square ringed by the palace on one side and a small  residential neighborhood on the other. We were able to witness the hourly changing of the royal guard, a ceremonious swapping of soldiers outside the palace walls. And then wandered around the square a little to get sweeping views of the city and of the marina below. The marina is also world famous as the destination and home for many of the world’s great yachts. There are some of the biggest and most lavish yachts that I have ever seen and I have been to many ports and seen many impressive marinas. We followed a path that wound down the side of the hill, through gardens and parks, down to the marina to walk along the docks and admire the yachts a little. But the rain clouds were getting much closer and it had begun to rain a little. It didn’t take long for the sprinkles to become rain and then quickly downpour all over the city. We had coats on at least but didn’t think to take umbrellas. So we walked along the marina rather quickly and took refuge in the overhang of some waterfront buildings. From here we could see the place where the Formula 1 race next month would start. They had started to set up stands for viewers and had a big banner over the starting line that broadcast the dates of the famous event. 

This is what was barreling toward us in Monaco

The starting line of the Formula 1 race being held in May

Since it had started to rain and we were able to gauge that there was no near end in sight to the storm, we decided to go check out the casino, famous around Europe for its grand building and its high stakes games. Apparently, the best card players and gamblers from all around the world come to Monte Carlo to play because it has some of the most exclusive halls game rooms in the world, people can bet as high as they like in these rooms, and are unfortunately off limits to tourists, unless you want to pay a large entry fee. But you can get into some of the smaller, more normal gaming areas for free and it is a good way to check out the casino’s grand interior. The casino is relatively small when compared to the casinos in Las Vegas or Macau, but it makes up for this by staying exclusive and lavish. The high ceilings of the game rooms are delicately moulded and painted with golden edging and the rooms are dotted with huge golden chandeliers. Card tables are spread around the center of the floor and slot machines are grouped along the sides. As a tourist, you’re only allowed in the first few halls before a pricey fee takes you into the real high stakes rooms. But we weren’t up for blowing our money in these rooms. After a little while of walking around, we headed back out, passing some very fancily clad Europeans on their way in.

It was still raining and it was getting a bit late, so we made our way back to the bus station and hopped the bus that took us along the darkened coastline, back to Nice. We slept for much of the trip. We were pretty hungry when we got back in the late evening and there was a small Chinese restaurant that was still open. We’re both China enthusiasts so we thought it would be fun to go in. It was. The food was decent and filling and then we went back to the hostel and to sleep. We had one more full day in Nice and Lissy just had the one more full day before she had to return to Berlin so we thought we’d make the most of it. We were going to take the one euro bus this time to the west, along the beach to a village called Grasse and then further on to Cannes. We were hoping the weather would let up a little.

I’ll make another quick real time note before I sign out for this post. I’m writing this post after the fact as well, from the roof top terrace of a beautiful hostel in the Medina Casbah in Tangier, Morocco, overlooking the Strait of Gibraltar to the shores of Spain in the distance. It’s sunny, late afternoon, and I have my feet up on the edge of the terrace, typing away. Rooftops of the other buildings in this dense, Alladin-like maze of buildings sprawl out below me. I have one more post to write after this one and then I’ll be completely caught up until now. So a flood of Spain posts should follow (they are already written - I just didn’t want to post them before France).

Also, I should let everyone know that I am officially changing the destination of this journey from London to Lisbon for several reasons. Chiefly, its a matter of convenience on my part. It seems more fitting and natural, based on the path I have chosen to make through Europe. Also, the goal was to go from coast to coast, by train, through Eurasia, and, skipping to the chase a bit, I’ve actually reached the Atlantic here in Spain and Morocco, but I think Lisbon would be a nicer, more recognizable place to finish. And I’m running short on time and money. And Lisbon is nearly along the same line of latitude as Boston and even closer than London. And I’ve been to London before anyway. And lastly, I can’t use my Eurail pass on the train between Paris and London, through the “chunnel” because it is a privately owned train and is extremely expensive to take if I was just going to pay for it on my own. So for all these reasons I think it makes sense to change London to Lisbon and I hope you’ll forgive me for that. So basically, I’m rounding the coast of the Iberian Peninsula, detouring in Morocco, and taking coastal buses up to Lisbon in Portugal. Still a pretty cool end to a very cool trip.

Almost there...