I know, not funny. But so far, my favorite of all the places we have been in France.
We drove to Nice via Avignon. This was seat of the Catholic Church in the 13th century. 9 popes. We toured the Palace of the Popes. It is only fair to compare this to the Vatican. Avignon seemed a working place. the actual seat of a religion. The Vatican seemed self-impressed and built to impress. The former was about the faith. The latter about appearances. The former built of unadorned stone. The latter out of ostentatious marble and gold. That is just one (Jewish) man’s impression.
So we arrive in Nice and check in. After cruising for parking (NOT POSSIBLE) we finally relented and put the car in a paid garage. NOTE TO SELF: Our next European trip will be by Train…a car is NOT an advantage.
The apartment building PREDATES the French Revolution (1789). The building next door is a place where Mr. Bonaparte himself actually lived for 6 months. This makes the neighborhood WAY COOL. The suite itself is modern. At least it appears modern because the age of the building comes with some challenges. For example…NO Solid ANYTHING to be flushed down the toilet (Paper in the can, the manual can). And soft showers or the drains overflow. That should be no prob. As we are experienced in RV Showers (sometimes called “Navy Showers”).
Having said that, the suite is totally fine. Good internet. I could not imagine a cooler neighborhood to spend a couple of days. TONS of restaurants and bars. A walking area. Lots of activity. This is a distinct contrast to the really quiet places we have stayed so far. I should mention the pièce de résistance, there is a GELATO PLACE Downstairs. In the same building. That is EXCELLENT, and pretty dangerous.
Our host (Daniel) is a 50-something guy who speaks perfect English. Great sense of humor. He lives in the suite…what he seems to have done is take a larger apartment and create his unit and 2 studio units for rental. So we have a private space but direct access to the Landlord if necessary. He gave us a bunch of “Local” restaurant recommendations. He told us how to take the train to Monaco (a 6e bargain).
Liz and I have decided to try one of the Local places tonight. We were directed into the old town (which our suite is on the edge of). AWESOME. Hundreds of restaurants. There was even a square with FOUR Gelato shops. We ended up eating a seafood extravaganza at a restaurant recommended by our host as THE place locals go for seafood (for over 100 years). Not yet full, we went to another spot and had some sushi. Followed with Gelato, of course.
Tomorrow we’ll get up early and take the train to Monaco. Spend some time there; maybe have some lunch, buy a yacht. Drop a mil at the tables.
