45th Anniversary 2019

As it turns out, yesterday's entry was not the last entry on this blog, this one is.  We got up early, around 0530.  Finished packing, had breakfast, (French croissants, naturally) cleared the apartment and went to the train station.  I had purchased a one way ticket to Nice, and we departed La Napoule at 0800 for a 45 minute train ride to Nice.  Upon arrival, we visited the Visitors Center for directions to Old Town Nice.  It was about a 15 minute walk from the station.  When we got to the old town, we boarded a small tourist train and received a nice tour of Nice.  We enjoyed hearing about the history of Nice, and our route took us on the same promenade a terrorist used on July 14, 2016, when he deliberately drove a 19 ton truck among a crowd of people gathered to celebrate Bastille Day.( this is the French Independence Day).   The resulting carnage was 86 people killed and 458 were injured.  The attack ended when, after an exchange of...

This trip, like any other, is coming to an end.  Tonight is our last night in France.  When you read this blog, we will be packing for our return trip to Milan, Italy and boarding our flight home.  This trip has been a learning experience to say the least.  You can prepare as much as you can, read as much as you can, plan as much as you can, but until you get into the environment you realize the challenges that await you.  You don't speak the language, read the language, or understand all of their customs.  It has been our experience in foreign travel that the people you meet are some of the friendliest and helpful people you could hope to encounter.  The French are that way.  You just need to remember you are the one that speaks a foreign language.  What I am saying is embrace travel, enjoy and learn from your travels. Enough of that....   Today we visited Antibes, another commune that saw its early beginnings with the Etruscans, Greek...

EZE How many of you have heard of the medieval village of Eze?  I had not until we planned this trip.  Eze can trace its origins back to 2000 BC.  It sits near Mt Bastide at the 1400' level overlooking the French Mediterranean.  It is a renowned tourist site on the French Riviera and is famous worldwide for its views of the sea.  While many European tourists visit here, it is off the beaten path for American tourists.  We were undecided whether to take a tour bus to Eze or do it ourselves.  We decided against the tour bus.  We took the train to Eze by the Sea and then a bus to  the upper village.  Well worth the trip.  The views are spectacular.  We spent several hours wandering this ancient village.  As we were walking by a tourist group, I heard the tour guide tell her charges, "You have 30 minutes to enjoy this beautiful village, I will meet you back at the bus".  We made the right decision. After we finished e...

Today we checked out the Mandelieu  Castle and toured Monaco, home of the Monte Carlo Casino.  The castle was built in the 14th century by the Countess of Villeneuve and was rebuilt several times,  In the 19th century it was turned into a glass factory.  In 1918 it was purchased by two Americans, Henry and Marie Clews.  They restored the castle and made it their permanent residence.  The street in front of our apartment is named Henry Clews Avenue.  The Clews lived here through the rest of their married life.  Henry died in 1937.  The Germans occupied the castle in WW II.  Marie stayed on and served the Germans acting as the maids chief of staff.  She did this to remain close to her home and the memory of her husband.  Marie passed away in 1959 and their family was left in a trust and opened to the public.  The gardens are listed as one of the most notable gardens of France.  If you are here it is worth a visit. ...

Our French holiday really started today.  After a long train ride from Milan, Italy to Mandelieu-La Napoule,  we got off the train and had a short walk to our apartment. ( about 150 meters).  The apartment was everything we thought it would be.  Jean-Paul Krebs, our landlord, had told me what to expect.  We walked in and were very pleased.  Jean-Paul had left a bottle of champagne for us in honor of our anniversary.  After a full night's sleep, it was time to explore our little village.  But first we went grocery shopping.  Thanks to Jean-Paul, we knew where to go.  Linda made a shopping list and we walked to the village grocery store and bought what we felt we would need in the coming week.  We then stopped at a local rotisserie store named AU Bon Poulet.   The owner was Philippe.  We told him that Jean-Paul told us to come there and he loaded us up with ham, ribs, rice, gravy and a fantastic grilled pineapple. ...