Day 114 – 118: The French Riviera
Place: Train headed for Barcelona Spain
Feeling like we were leaving a chunk of our hearts in Paris after such an epic visit with Emma and Denis, we dragged ourselves with ‘dropped lips’ and backpacks’ to the station and waved the stunning Emma goodbye.
The trip went smoothly and we arrived to the central station in Marseille, which would be home and our ‘lively’ bunch of gypsy neighbours. Craig and I dropped our bags and made our way back to the train station to grab a take-away dinner and reserve seats for the train to Monaco the next day.
We knew beforehand that this section of our trip would be hectic as we would be doing a lot of running back and forth and fully expending every cent from our Eurorail pass.
The plan was to stay in Marseille as it was the only place close enough to the French Riviera that we could afford.
Plan in simple as follows:
Wednesday, 25th July – 3hour train to Nice Ville + 25min train to Monaco + spend
day in Monaco + get back onto 25 min train to Nice and
finally get 3hour train back to Marseille.
Thursday, 26th July - 3 hour train to Nice Ville + scope it out + get train to
Cannes + hang out with the rich and famous + catch train
Beach on French Riviera for an hour or two + get back
Onto the train headed for Nice + catch final train to
Marseille.
Friday, 27th July - 45min train to Cassis + bus to Port Mieu + hike around the
Coves + catch bus to train station and get train back home.
So as you can see; we were pretty swamped and the early mornings of waking up at 6am were not easy, but being as determined to see this magical coastline.
Wednesday, 25th July
Our neighbours were on top form that night and in high spirits, which of course meant that we would hear every minute of the festivities and poor Craig didn’t get ANY sleep at all.
This made the 6am wake up even more difficult, but we both got up, dressed, smacked a coffee and breakfast and then tried to dose on the train.
4 hours later (delayed train) we arrived in Monaco and were welcomed by a clear blue sky, bright shining sun and the smell of money.
Monaco is a small city built around the harbour housing huge expensive yachts. We strolled along the port and headed to the tourism office to grab a map and see all the sights that Monaco has to offer, without spending much.
We were directed to the palace where we could visit with our lovely fellow South African, Charlene Woodstock Grimaldi (well just see her house from the outside) and also witness the changing of the guard.
Pristine men in white uniforms came marching by, as hundreds of tourists snapped away. Craig flung me onto his shoulders so that I too could see and take a couple of shots myself. They were exact and perfectly in line, hitting the guns on the ground, then back onto their chests and putting on a well-received show.
We then moseyed along the alleys scanning the souvenirs and food joints before grabbing a sandwich and headed to a grassy spot to sit and enjoy lunch with a view.
Refueled, our tanks were fired up to walk along the Monte Carlo Grand Prix route and gawk at all the passing Ferraris, Porches and Bentleys. Its quite remarkable how these F1 racers don’t have more accidents as the roads have ridiculous bends, up hills and downhill’s.
We ended up at the top of the hill where we walked passed the finest Gucci, Chanel, Prada and other fine stores before arriving at the Casino which is one of Monte Carlo’s best sights.
Although there is plenty of cash in this area and people go there to flaunt it, Monaco and Monte Carlo has a ‘humbling’ undertone to it. It is not arrogant or too flamboyant but has a lovely feel and plenty of history around it.
Thursday, 26th July
Aaaaargh, 6am wake up again and it was becoming more difficult to get up, we followed the same procedure as the day before and headed for Nice.
A quick takeaway brekkie of fruit, yoghurt, and then a rooibos tea (from the MacDonald’s, can you believe it) for the train.
Craig and I are absolutely loving the trains as even though we are rushing around, trying to see as much as we can, the train allows us to see so much more and sleep when we need…and I can tell you that we seized every little bit of ‘shut eye’ possible.
Arriving in Nice, we walked down the busy streets and made our way to the extremely ‘disappointing’ beach. It looked as though hundreds of people had laid their towels on rocky gravel overlooking the beach.
Frustrated, we walked through the local market and for the first time I can say that the town was actually nicer than the beach.
So we headed back for the train station and made our way to one of the beaches we spotted coming back from Monaco.
Exactly as we pictured the French Riviera; speedos, pebbles, château’s on the surrounding hills and vines with fuchsia coloured flowers growing up on the walls, not to mention the many beer bellies and boobies hanging out.
It was the hottest that I have ever been and I went into the ‘refreshing’ water more than a record 3 times in the space of 2 hours.
Eventually the sun had taken its toll and I couldn’t wait to get into some shade, so we gathered our goodies and made our way back for the long journey home.
Friday, 27th July
Yes, alarm goes off, and this time its 8am and we are headed to Cassis. Cassis is a small town closer to Marseilles, which allowed us the little sleep in.
Not having a super detailed game plan as I didn’t pay enough attention to Denis when he explained how to get here, we arrived in Cassis and stumbled upon our destination of Port Mieu and the start of our hike along the top of the Calangues.
Cassis, what a little gem!
This is such a cute little coastal town with so much to do. We sat on the wall of a square and watched the ballies play platongue (French version of lawn bowls) as we ate breakfast.I could feel that this morning I was a ‘bottomless pit’ and if we didn’t go walking soon, I would eat anything and everything I could get my hands on.
So Craig and I made our way to catch the shuttle, which would take up to the starting point of the hike.
After a few minutes wait, the bus came passed but was full, so Craig and I decided that it didn’t look that far and would walk it.
I am so happy that we did, because it was a short ‘hop and skip’ away and we arrived within a few steps and minutes.
Right, hiking shoes (running shoes) on, water in hand, snacks in backpack, sunscreen lathered on and camera on …we were ready for what lay ahead.
A scorching sun, white reflective gravel road, sweat beading down our backs and faces we walked up, down, over and around the mountains and coves.
It was beautiful, the colour of the water changing every step we took and the scenery was enchanting. We found a little beach hidden along the hiking trail and knew that we would be back for a dip on route home.
Stopping every now and then to take in the views, catch our breath and have a snack, we made it to the point which made it all worth it.
I cant quite explain what we saw in words, so take a look at the pics and you will see.
All in all, the French Riviera has been so wonderful, in fact, France has been one of the highlights for me on this trip as it has exceeded all expectation and we have managed to see a little bit of everything…mountains, farms, beaches, Bradley Wiggens win the Tour de France, and probably the biggest blessing – being able to experience Paris with our French/Finnish friends.
Emma and Denis have been a super highlight of this adventure and we cant wait to share another adventure with them in somewhere in the near future.
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