To Travel Is To Live: March 2015

We retrieve the rental car that hibernated during the Carnaval de Nice and use it one last time for a driving tour of "inland Riviera." I know better now, and thanks to the careful preparation for the driving routes before we start out, things actually do go pretty well without making me feel like I was going to blow an aneurysm.

For this day trip, towns to visit were picked because of their geographic proximity to each other, but they happen to outline what I would call (others also) the art route. We start in Cagnes-sur-Mer, where the last home of Auguste Renoir is now a museum. It is obvious that he lived in comfort in his last years although crippled by rheumatoid arthritis.
We move on to St. Paul de Vence, a vaunted tourist magnet, and for a good reason. A very interesting stop is the historical inn/restaurant, La Colombe d'Or, which hosted in the early 20th century who's who of the emerging artists. Some of their works adorn this establishment. The next stop is Fondation Maeght, a renowned museum of modern art.
A short hop to Vence takes us to the small church, Chapelle du Rosaire, which the aging Matisse designed in honor of his nurse. We do not go on to Grasse (can always stop and smell the perfume later) but head back early to Nice and return the car at the airport. Free at last, free at last!

Cagnes-sur-Mer: Renoir House and Museum.

Renoir Museum: Grand Atelier. On the film projected on the wall, Renoir is seen chain-smoking while painting in a wheelchair.

Renoir Museum: the farm house with olive trees - Renoir's painting vs the real thing.

Renoir Museum: Haut-de-Cagnes with a Grimaldi Castle in view. Jean Renoir, a renowned movie director in the early 20th century, talked about growing up here among ancient olive trees, some older than a thousand years.

Approaching St. Paul de Vence, a jewel in the crown of inland Riviera

St. Paul de Vence

St. Paul de Vence: Chagall's grave

Restaurant La Colombe d'Or in St. Paul de Vence: a large-print menu is always welcome

La Colombe d'Or: you can dine under a mural by Leger

La Colombe d'Or: Not known for food, but this 15-item charcuterie plate leaves us giggling, and it's just the first course

La Colombe d'Or: it's really a museum disguised as a restaurant - most of its works were donated by the artists when they lived and ate here, a Picasso on the left, for example.

La Colombe d'Or: next to the pool is an Alexander Calder mobile, which delights a child visitor

La Colombe d'Or: this place is a thumbs up indeed

St. Paul de Vence: men playing boule outside the gate

St. Paul de Vence: the Joan Miro Terrace at Fondation Maeght

St. Paul de Vence: Chagall's "La Vie" at Fondation Maeght (with a Giacometti thrown in)

Leaving St. Paul de Vence

Vence: Chapelle du Rosaire (Matisse Chapel), a tiny church that bears his touch in every corner

Vence: Matisse Chapel which the artist designed in its entirety inluding the bell and the cross. To him the cactus represented life and endurance, and it is reflected in the tree-of-life pattern of the church window

If yesterday was the art route, today is the glamor route. Using the, ahem, fabulous public transportation, we first head to Cap Ferrat and check out Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild, a sumptuously decorated mansion built in the Belle Epoque by Baroness Beatrice, a Rothschild heiress. The gardens are expansive but the interior décor shows you what (banking) money can buy. We walk along the coast toward Beaulieu-sur-Mer admiring the view but skip the Kerylos mansion.
Then hop on the mighty Bus #100 to Monaco. The palace square in Monaco-Ville overlooking the harbor is a bit disappointing up close. Everyone wants to see Monte Carlo, so we pay 10 Euros to enter the casino to watch other people lose money. How come there are so few Rolls Royces parked in front? I guess it's the off season for gamblers, too.
The original plan was to go on to Menton and catch the last day of their Lemon Festival, but we return early to Nice and splurge for dinner at Chantecler inside the legendary Negresco Hotel, which we had cancelled the first day because we arrived late.

Cap Ferrat: Walking up to Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild

Cap Ferrat: Rothschild Villa. As we enter the gardens, the fountains are dancing to Handel's Water Music, much like Baroness Rothschild would greet her guests, except back then it was live music. But we get a rainbow in the fountains!

Rothschild Villa: deep in the gardens

Rothschild Villa: a tea break at a stylish cafe with a view

Rothschild Villa: no expense spared

Rothschild Villa: arm chairs for dogs. PETA members would be proud - Baroness Beatrice Rothschild even arranged a formal wedding for her dog.

Rothschild Villa: A classic French garden seen from the mansion

Cap Ferrat: a pleasant walk from Rothschild Villa toward Villa Kerylos

Monaco: Palace Square seen from Jardin Exotique

Monaco: Palace Square is somewhat underwhelming up close but this may be the most elegant police station anywhere

Monaco: from Palace Square, there is a commanding view of Monte Carlo and the pier

Monaco: it's not often people get married and buried at the same place. Grace Kelly and Prince Albert did at this cathedral.

Classic French elegance at Chantecler in Nice

We proudly lug our suitcases and board the direct bus from Nice to Eze-le-Village. Eze deserves every bit of the praise we have heard. A jewel of a hill town, it is smaller and steeper than St. Paul de Vence, Those two, along with Les Baux de Provence and Roussillon make a quartet of the most atmospheric small towns we have seen on this trip.
The following day, we walk down the philosopher's path (referring to Friedrich Nietsche who supposedly loved this trail) to Eze-bord-de-Mer and catch the local train to Menton. We are going to this eastern outpost of the French Riviera for one reason - to experience the meal at Mirazur, ranked #11 in the world according to Pellegrino. We pass Jean Cocteau Museum on the way up to the restaurant, which is literally a few doors down from the Italian border. The food and the setting are spectacular. What a memorable lunch under the Mediterranean sun. A really satisfying finale of the part of this trip that's been an epicurean pursuit, i.e., a gastronomic rampage.
The last couple of days, without driving, we take in the experience at a slow pace, and it feels like a real vacation. But of course that's when this trip to South of France comes to an end...

Eze-le-Village: Upon check-in at the hotel - is there a better place to be offered a welcome drink?

Eze-le-Village: same stupendous view from the hotel restaurant

Eze-le-Village

Eze-le-Village

Eze: it seems there is not a yard of space which is straight and flat - paths are always curving or sloped in this little town

Eze-le-Village: Chateau Eza hangs precariously. Our room is the one with the front balcony in the upper row on right, not bad for a low-season discounted rate (after a free upgrade!)

Eze-le-Village: a wide-open vista from Jardin Exotique

Eze: Looking back up at Eze Village as we go down on Nietzshe's path. The philosopher wrote the third part of "Also Sprach Zarathustra" while enjoying this steep trail from the top to the seaside.

Eze: view of the coast from Nietzsche's path as we near Eze-bord-de-Mer

Menton: A citrus pavilion remaining from Lemon Festival

Menton: at Mirazur, fresh ingredients from their garden are used for this vegetable dish, and the bread comes with a printed ode to bread by Pablo Neruda.

Menton: supposed to be a poor man's Nice, but it's a nice view of old Menton and the Promenade from the aptly named Mirazur

Menton: a mignardise plate at Mirazur, where the nice view takes a back seat to the stunning food

Menton: at the conclusion of Lemon Festival, locals line up to purchase the fruits that have been used in the festival

Menton

Eze at dusk from our hotel room balcony: the foreground is Villefraiche-sur-Mer; next a strip of runway in the Nice airport seen on right; then Cap d'Antibes; and Cannes beyond that

After the driving debacle in Aix-en-Provence, we arrive very late in Nice. We must be very close to our hotel, but keep circling the central area, as all means of electronic navigation are still dead. Plus these roads in Nice seem designed not for the cars but against them. The garage space our hotel has reserved for us is so narrow that it may physically be smaller than the width of our rental car. I certainly would not want to do more damage than a little paint scratch that happened while I was rushing to park near Atelier Cezanne in Aix. It finally dawns on me, in a near PTSD state, that the pros of driving in this part of France may be outweighed by the cons. I was aware that Nice is supposed to have excellent public transportation and further research convinces me that essentially all locations we plan to visit are doable by trains and buses. So after "recalculating," I boldly decide to return the car early. Our itinerary will be simplified and two locations will be dropped: Antibes (we have been to Picasso museums elsewhere) and Cannes (I will just have to return to rub elbows with all the stars!)

The following morning, it is immediately obvious how close our hotel is to the action in Nice - just a couple of short blocks from Place Massena. And the bus and train stations are all within walking distance. Last night's decision to ditch the car is justified! As we walk, the oversized king and the queen of Carnaval de Nice greet us at the entrance to the old town. The weather is beautiful and the market in Cours Saleya is charming. What a difference a day makes. A combination of socca (a chickpea crepe) by Theresa and a tourte aux blettes (Swiss chard tart) at Espuno's consumed while walking makes excellent lunch. Topping it off with an ice cream at Fenocchio's makes the car troubles of yesterday seem so far away.

Nice: oversized King and Queen of the Carnaval at Place Massena

Nice: flower market at Cours Saleya

Nice: fresh strawberries are popular in the Cours Saleya market.

Turning left on to Rue Droite

Nice: A beautiful morning at Place Rossetti. A middle-aged woman is belting out "La Vie en Rose." Can't avoid putting a coin in her basket, nor ice cream (right).

Our mind and body rejuvenated, we are ready for marathon Carnival activities. First up is the flower parade on Saturday at 2:30pm. Entering the arena set up on Promenade des Anglais along the beach is well organized, and crowds are orderly. This is certainly no Rio or New Orleans. Although there are a lot of young people and even small kids, the reserved seats in the stands are occupied by distinctly older crowds. The flower parade is like a more intimate but possibly more ornate version of the Rose Parade. This is definitely a fine visual feast in a comfortable setting.

Nice: Just before the Carnaval, the Russian troupe shows off in Place Massena.

Nice Carnaval: getting ready

Nice Carnaval: minutes before the start

Nice Carnaval: the confetti shower signals the start of the flower parade

Nice Carnaval: At the flower parade, it is the flowers that are tossed, duh, instead of beads

Nice Carnaval: flower parade

Nice Carnaval: fragrant yellow mimosa flowers are tossed

Nice Carnaval: flower parade

Nice Carnaval: an advantage of sitting in the last row is the 360-degree view. The parade is on the Promenade running along the beach.

Nice Carnaval: some people are exiting early and in too orderly a manner for a mardi gras. Perhaps the average age may have something to do with it.

Nice Carnaval: the theme of this year's flower parade is "the King of Music"

Nice Carnaval: flower parade

Nice: flower parade

Nice Carnaval: flower parade, or its aftermath

Nice Carnaval: it has just ended

For the second parade, the Carnaval moves from Promenade des Anglais to Place Massena under the lights. It does not start until 9pm, but a simple dinner feels like it is a brief break between the two events. It is a bit chilly but the performers (and most of the audience) are enthusiastic.

Dinner during the break between the day and night events: Salade Nicoise

Nice Carnaval: the night parade. Again, the confetti explosion marks the beginning.

Nice Carnaval: the night parade

Nice Carnaval: the night parade. The King's days (hours) are numbered, as his sacrifice on the last day (following night) is the finale of the Carnaval.

Nice Carnaval: the night parade

Nice Carnaval: a Psy-lookalike makes an appearance as "Gangnam Style" blares over the speakers as . For equal time, Kim Jung Un floats down later in the evening.

Nice Carnaval: can't stay away from politics. Hint: Yellow and blue are national colors of the Ukraine.

Nice Carnaval: the night parade - the aftermath

While most of Nice is likely recovering from the festivities of the night, we are on an artistic pursuit this morning. Getting to the Chagall Museum without a car is a breeze: going over by the slick tram and returning by the bus, which takes 10 minutes door to door. My faith in Nice's public transportation system is rewarded. Dedicated to the biblical theme, generously donated by the painter and inaugurated during his lifetime, this museum feels intimate and cohesive. A fitting tribute to the global artist whose works are celebrated all over the world, in a location he lived his last 38 prolific years.

Chagall Museum: an informative film plays in the auditorium, where you find his stained glasses and a piano that has his drawing on it.

Chagall Museum: a collection of large canvases each with a biblical theme. The one on the right depicts Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac.

Chagall Museum: "Paradise" This is a good place to try out different white balance settings on my camera!

Chagall Museum: a tribute to his wife

The Carnival resumes with a final day-parade on Sunday which turns out to be the same repertoire as the night parade. Our seats are closer to the action and although somewhat redundant, it is like an encore in a different light. The final event is the burning of the king for which there are no reserved seats, but my concern for a mayhem is unfounded, as it occurs out in the sea, and people are spread out over the beach and they are pretty sedate. The actual burning is over quickly, a bit of an anticlimax, but the ensuing fireworks on the beach last forever and are a fine way to end the marvelous weekend of Nice Carnival.