Nice

Leaving Cannes was tough. It was gorgeous there and we knew it would be tough to beat. But this wasn't a Cannes adventure, it was a France-Italy adventure and it was time to move east.

Unfortunately, we took the train headed west instead (because we mixed up the arrivals and departures boards) and wound up here...



Now you might think to yourself, "Why wouldn't one want to be stranded here? Looks like a fabulous place to look around. And you girls certainly look very happy."



Oh trust me, we were. It was WARM that day (such that we could shed our outer layers), it was sunny enough to NEED sunglasses, and we were in the middle of gorgeous-town. Who could ask for anything more?



Well, we could, as it turned out. We arrived at this station at about 1 pm and were (finally) told (by the sketchiest train station employee who has ever lived) that the next train wouldn't be coming around these parts for about an hour. An HOUR?! Still, I was pretty happy about the weather. We could wait an hour, right?



Where were we anyway?



Well, according to the attendant, we were mere metres away from Jean Claude van Dam's house. Every morning, he walks up his road, crosses these tracks, and heads up to the national park that overlooks this...



So we had a choice to make: do we go see the magnificent lake that is the central attraction in La Trayas or do we just go try to sneak a peek at JCvD?

I think you may know me well enough to know what I thought was the better option.

So down the road we trotted...to Jean Claude van Dam's house. Sweet ass.



Whether it was true or not, the view was remarkable. I could not stop taking pictures of this place along the walk.



We finally made it to his house,



camped out for a bit, and took some pictures. Somehow in all this, we managed to miss our train. The only train that was leaving for the next two hours. Did we want some coffee, asked the (strange) attendant? F*ck. I guess so.

Luckily though, both Jamie and I were feeling adventurous. So we asked some nice-looking hiking humans if they could kindly drive us (and our suitcases) to Cannes. Of course they would. And so we hitch-hiked. Loves it.

We got back to the Cannes train station, boarded a train, and spent the next two hours resting after that long walk.


After getting off in Nice, we were pleasantly surprised by the gorge train station. It looked like things were going to get awesome fast.



Outside this fabulous train station...



Our walk to the hostel that was, "just around the corner" was long and annoying. Upon arrival, we discovered that there was extensive renovation work being done and the place was atrocious. The hostess showed us to our room and as we ascended the stairs, Jamie asked, "Are we going to die here?"

I think she was pretty sure at that point that there was no way these two Canadian gals were spending one more minute there. She told us that for the same (ridiculously low) price, we could stay at their sister hotel that was actually conveniently located on the main pedestrian walkway, adjacent to the beach, and nestled between two boutiques. Um, yes, we will be leaving now.

Before we left though, Jamie threw out one of her many hilarious one liners. Holding up a framed vintage postcard, she said, "Can I give you two euro for this?"

I just about died from embarrassment.

Shockingly, the woman told my traveling companion, "No, it's okay. You can just have it."

Thus began our winning streak.

After checking in to the much nicer (but still not really NICE) hotel on the strip, we took a long walk around. Disenchanted a BIT by the fact that Jamie left her Tiffany bracelet behind in Cannes, we made the most of the colourful night and took as many pictures as we could.



There was an orb theme going on in Nice. The orbs were all over the place...



...as were the fountains.



But the night sky as the sun set over the coastline, was just magnificent.



The French love their carousels. As do I.










We felt a real California vibe from Nice, though neither of us had been to Cali before. Something about the palm trees lining the ocean set alongside the seemingly out of place Christmas ornaments that made it feel somewhat falsified. It wasn't gaudy American Hallmark Holiday and it wasn't, well, French. It was a rare hybrid. Magical yet uncomfortable.



I thought this was such an interesting juxtaposition: Christmas trees being sold alongside the ocean. The colour was magnificent.





Whenever I take a picture of the moon, it never turns out quite as large as it seemed the night I took the photo. Odd isn't it? But this moon...this moon is just as majestic now as it was that night. Maybe Nice is nice after all?



A few French alleyways...





Wine. Store. Eat your heart out, LCBO.



Bucket o' champagne anyone? Fell in LOVE with France at this moment.

Since Nice wasn't that nice (maybe this was only because we were tired from a day of walking, missing trains, and feeling like bread and cheese was the only sure-fire way to fix us), we figured a good bottle of young wine would make us feel better. Unfortunately, it was a bit too young. It was more like grape juice. Le sigh. Good thing the booze is so cheap in France.



Outside the art display in the main square in Nice (well, main for us at least. It was close and central, so it was our main square).

At least we were nice in Nice ;)



We heard some place called something Texan was good for a drink after dinner. Willy's? Tommy's? Wayne's? I can't recall. Anyhoo, it was supposed to be a riot.

Yeah, it was a riot alright. Every SINGLE person in there was non-French.

Hey! We didn't come to France to be surrounded by English and Irish people. Oh no! Good thing the wine was so inexpensive. And then, for good measure (and not captured by camera because it was so offensively large and assuredly calorie-ridden), we ordered a MASSIVE cheeseburger and ate it together. Nice.



After Laura's request that I take pictures of all things infrastructure-related, I became a bit obsessed with doors. You'll see quite a few in this collection.

I just love the cafes littering the streets, don't you?



Divine Christmas tree in the centre of the square.

Note: I am still attempting to master the duo portrait. Having conquered the self-portrait, I continue to increase my knowledge base to include other humans in pictures with me. Talents abound ;)



What is with Europeans and their outdoor winter fairs? I am sure Canadians will concur: this is abnormal behaviour.



But naked statues...this I could get used to.










The long walk home after dinner. And the umbrella that didn't make it back to London Town. The adventure was just beginning...



Baby wellies! Aren't these the cutest?



Here is the view from our room. Louis Vuitton on the right and Armani on the left. Sure, the hotel was a bit shady, but the view was phenomenal. SO French.

We had a delightful last meal in Nice at this cafe. Several hilarities ensued: the tapping of the napkin holder to remind us of last night; the suitcases jammed in beside our seats; the older gentleman beside us whose seated position made it impossible for us to leave...the list goes on and on. Needless to say, I captured my friend in quite a good moment on our way out of the city that made us say,"Nice is not so nice".

Cannes

The start of my trip to France was absolutely fantastic. I mean it...it was as if my life were a fantasy. Ah, and so begins the Real Life Versus Fantasy that became our lives for the next two weeks. Here we go...

You may have heard about a snow storm that absolutely rocked the nation here in Jolly Old. On the advice of my roommate, I took the train to Gatwick, trusting that it would only take about an hour to arrive. It took nearly three. I looked up from my book every now and again, glanced at my phone to check the time, but never really panicked about the fact that it was snowing like a m*therf*cker out there and I was super late. So late, in fact, that I was afraid I was going to miss my flight.

But I didn't need to worry about that.

Upon arrival, I whisked through security quite quickly and entered what can only be described as the twilight zone. All over the place there were signs reading, "Airport Closed." But how could that be? I was flying out today. How can the airport be closed if my flight is leaving? I was perplexed.

Honestly, my ego is sometimes so intensely inflated that it takes me a firm reality check from a hot-headed flight attendant to bring me back down to earth. The airport was closed. And I was not leaving. Imagine that?!

So I sat with the hoards of others and waited. Every twenty minutes or so, it was announced that a new flight was added to the canceled list. ALL the flights to France were canceled (or so I thought), and so I rushed to the information desk to see what alternate arrangements could be made for me. It was about this time that I found out that Heathrow was closed as well, and my school/work companions headed back to Canada were stranded. This was bad. Luckily, it was still being toted that my flight (shocking, right? I mean I think I actually was born with a horseshoe up my rear) would be taking off. Late, mind you, but taking off nonetheless.

To make a loooong story a tad shorter, I did take off. I was four hours late, pushing my arrival into Marseille back four hours. This posed a new problem: I had 55 minutes to deplane, get through customs, and get to the train station, some 40 km away. Gulp.

Somehow, by some stroke of luck or divine intervention, I made it. The taxi cost me £60 and when the driver was clocking 150 km/h, I have to admit I assured myself that the life insurance policy was a good idea, but I made it all in one piece.

I caught the LAST train to Cannes and made it somehow to the four star hotel that Jamie and I had snagged for a great deal. Things were looking WAY up.

Another little snag with check-in ("Your friend is not here. We do NOT have a reservation for you and no, you can not use our phone."), I made it upstairs to the fantastically clean and Canadian-occupied room. It was a huge success.

Come the next morning, we were starving and ready to see how France did breakfast. Determined to share all food so to get a chance to taste it all, we headed down to the downtown for some breakfast.



...saw some flora along the way...



...and finally crashed into a plate of pain au chocolat.



We took a stroll down to the convention centre where the Cannes Film Festival is held annually (and then my camera died)...



...and took a long walk along the beach.


I must say we thoroughly enjoyed the walk along the beach in winter. There were very few people in the town, and we got to see it all on such a gorgeous day. Who could ask for anything more?

Not this gal.

The yachts were simply to DIE for...



...especially when we spotted this one sporting a Canadian flag (which province is this? Is it Ontario? God, that's embarrassing to admit. But then, who studies flags?)

Europeans love their carousels...



...and we loved their seaside bistros.







We took a long walk up a hill to see the city from afar.

And a kind lady from New York (who also owns a house here with her intoxicatingly gorgeous husband) took our picture.



What a place!







We popped into the hilltop church to have a peek around. Lordy do they do atrocious nativity scenes here! They light them up, have moving parts...it's just hideous. Luckily, I captured the less heinous aspects of the holy place ;)

And when night fell, it mesmerized us even more...



As did the French alleyways we passed on our way home...

This is the restaurant where we had lunch earlier in the day. Croque Monsieur and gorgonzola gnocchi. And wine. Always wine.



For dinner though, we stocked up on the essentials and headed to the (clean, white-sheeted) bed back at the hotel.



Stopping along the way to appreciate some architecture.



Swiped some robes from the open supply cupboard, showered, poured the vin, and we were set.







In the morning, we headed here for breakfast, enjoyed the passersby, and headed to the train station.

Ready for the next stop...

Josh Groban Sings Kanye West Tweets

I love it when famous people have a sense of humour that is not malicious. Enjoy this while I try to get you some pics of my vacation.

Much love.

Back at Last

Hello my lovlies.


Can I start by saying how moved I am that people are still reading this blog? It really warms my heart to see the numbers creeping up and up. It's pretty cool.


As a start to 2011, I looked back at this time last year to see what has changed and boy oh boy have there been some biggies. I lived in three continents last year, and I was VERY emotional. Reading all those blogs has been quite strange over the last few days.

Anyway, I'm back now and officially back at school. Ever just wish your job would give you an extra week off? Argh...as if two and a half wasn't enough. I'm also doing my best to cleanse. Eating and drinking one's way through Europe is one sure fire way to feel quite lethargic and, frankly, fat. Ohh, we have some doozies from this trip...one liners that are sure to make Jamie and I smile. Perhaps you too.

Right then...I'm off to do some work. The classroom book police are checking out what our kids have written down since, oh, October. This should be fun.

Have a great day.