Cote d'Azur

My brother Jim and I just returned from five days in Nice, on the French Riviera. Yes indeed, Nice is nice!! It captured my imagination, and while I know it gets totally crowded in the summer, too many people, too expensive, it still let me dream of what a life would be like living amidst that temperate climate, the gorgeous colours of buildings, the expanse of sea, the fantastic food, and the easy pace of life. We had some cool weather and some rain, but still had a fabulous time.

One day we took the bus to Monaco (only one Euro!!) so got to see the coastline and then the casino, Monte Carlo (pictured). I also took the picture of the pink motorbikes there just because they looked so cute. Monaco is beautiful and so clean...and wow, there are a LOT of rich people there. I haven't seen so many fur coats worn since--well, I have probably never seen so many fur coats in my life. If those women were walking in Vancouver, they would be sure to get a can of red paint thrown on them!

There are pictures displayed of Princess Grace (the former Grace Kelly, American actress). Jim said, and I think he is right, she was their equivalent of Princess Di.

Another day we took the bus the opposite direction and saw Antibes, which felt like a Nice-lite. Beautiful market place and all kinds of neat shops and cafes, but my heart really belongs to Nice.

Nice used to be part of Italy and it feels like a mix of Italy and France--how great is that!! So many buildings that are coral, orange, red, rust, peach--you can see the Place Massena above, which was beautiful...also an aerial view (we climbed up on top of a hill, which had such lovely parks and great views). Of course we saw beautiful churches, mansions that were so ornate inside, tons of art. One day we made our way to the Matisse museum. I love Matisse...there weren't tons of his works there but I still enjoyed it. It was also in a rich neighbourhood so there were just so many beautiful old buildings and gardens to admire.

Then we headed to the Chagall museum. I like Chagall but have seen quite a few of his works, so I thought, oh well, this will be nice. No, it was FANTASTIC! It was all these huge canvases he had painted specifically for the museum, on biblical themes. We stood in front of each one with our mouths hanging open.

The other beautiful thing that so impressed us was the display of foods. One store pictured above specializes in olives and olive oil. We bought olive oil soap there. They had gigantic vats of olive oil, made of brass, and you could bring your bottles and purchase oil in bulk. And then the candy and chocolate stores were just so incredible too, as well as the pattisseries (pastry shops) with their amazing displays. Oh, and did I mention the ice cream? And pasta? And wine?

It was so easy to walk pretty much everywhere we wanted to go, and there were tons of cafes to stop for a coffee or a beer. People watching was just great too--the Europeans are just so, well, European...such flair, style...and then at times such excess. Of course Jim and I got pegged as tourists just by our sensible North American coats and shoes. But I did manage to communicate in French sometimes and that always feels good.

Mary was batching it for the five days we were away, working on some writing. She was so great, had a big batch of soup prepared for us when we got home, and a bouquet of flowers to help ease the pain of re-entry. Jim has left to head home to Toronto today--we were up at 4:45 am to get him to the train, to head to the airport. It was really a great visit.

And in less than a week, Mary and I are off to Morocco for two weeks! It is spring break at school for her...we are leaving March 18 and will be back April 2. We'll be in Marrakech, then heading to the Sahara--we are going to do a camel trek in the desert and then overnight with a Berber family. Yes, I know, me, who is afraid of horses, on a camel--I am just not thinking about it too much. We'll also go to visit a women's co-op and meet up with a young woman she met when she worked there, who is an American working in Morocco, so it will be very interesting to get into a smaller village.

Meanwhile, England is having big wind storms. We have been shielded from the worst of it, but still this morning when I was driving Jim to the train station in our little car, I was definitely wrestling to keep it on the road. I am so looking forward to spring and some warmth--though Morocco will definitely offer us sun and heat, and England should be warming up by April (and really it hasn't even been that bad a winter.)

Mary's birthday is this Saturday...we're going for dinner and martinis at one of her school mate's

homes. Time ticks along, and while I am enjoying so much I am experiencing, I think of home often and am counting down the weeks til I return to Vancouver.

Hope to post again before Morocco. Be well, all!

Avebury

My brother Jim arrived on Friday and we have been having a great time. Just like Mary and me, he managed to catch a bit of a cold in London but a few days of restful country life here has him on the road to recovery. Mary planned an excellent day's outing for us--there is an amazing amount of history to see in the vicinity.

First we saw the white horse (pictured above)--it is carved into the hillside and filled with chalk. Very impressive to see! There are tons of these around this area--no one really knows what the inspiration for them was. Then we headed to Avebury, where you can walk around the stone circle. It's amazing how close you can get to them, and how uncrowded with people it felt--especially considering it was Mother's Day here! we also saw Silberry Hill (not pictured)--it is the oldest prehistoric artifact in Europe. But it is just a hill sitting in the middle of a field--no one knows it's purpose, and I have to admit all I could think of was Centennial Hill, in the suburbs of Toronto, which is a ski hill formed out of garbage.

But back to the tour! Then we had lunch in a beautiful old country pub, where Charles Dickens apparently used to eat. After that it was on to Lacock, an old English village that has been used to film some of the Jane Austen films. Mary and I had gone there in the fall, but this time the Abbey was open--it's pictured above. It was very impressive--HUGE rooms, archways, stone floors. It was built in 1137 or some incredibly early year like that. The grounds were impressive too, and you can see one field where tons of purple crocusses were in bloom.

Finally we headed to Castle Combe, another gorgeous quaint village with amazing stone buildings with slate roofs. We were gettting tired by then so just drove through, and I didn't get any pictures, but Mary and I are planning to return and explore a little more.

Jim is in Bath today, exploring the Roman Baths, then he and I will go back tomorrow to see more of the sites...and then Wednesday we are off to Nice! More pictures and stories after our return.

Karen