The Mediterranean:
Dipping your toes into the warm clear water, the color a vibrant aqua. It is easy to see how this part of the world is known as the Cote D'Azur. Because the color of the water is so distinct and azure is the perfect color to describe it.
Rick Steves and the couple we met in Paris warned us that the beaches in Nice are rocky. Now living in the Pacific Northwest I just assumed they meant rocky. Instead the beaches contain no sand, as a budding geologist I feel compelled to go off on a tiny tangent about the definition of sand. Sand is sand because of the size of the grains. All minerals can be classified based on size ranging from silt to boulders and each has a specific size in mm. Sand is between 1/16mm and 2mm in diameter and can be made up of a variety of substances. Usually it is made up of quartz. But as I said, there is no sand on the beaches instead they are covered in what geologists would classify as pebbles and cobbles. Smooth rounded stones of varying size. And from being a huge nerd sitting under an umbrella staring at these rocks they also seem to have varying composition. Most were sedimentary but I did see a few granitic rocks as well. I am particularly curious what geologic phenomena creates a beach like this, I have some ideas but I have not looked into this more thoroughly.
Most of the beach in Nice is privately owned. A bit of a foreign concept to Americans. So you can go to various private beaches and rent an umbrella and lounge chair for the day for a price. In our case this was much preferable to buying all the equipment, hauling it to the beach, and cramming onto one of the public beaches full of screaming children. The Opera beach was close and for 15 Euro each we had our very own cozy spot on this pile of rocks. We spent our beach day working hard to not get sunburned. Swimming in the Mediterranean which has its own price. Sean and I were capsized by a wave, dragged under by the rip tide and when I came up I had no sunglasses and no hair band! I didn't let it ruin my day but I was surprised. The water appeared so calm.
Topless sunbathing is common on these beaches. I think Sean was particularly happy when a young attractive French woman decided to sunbath topless beside us. Also less so when her friend showed up and wanted to close the umbrellas. Eventually we left the beach after spending a good 6 hours there because the beach had been taken over by tan, sun worshiping, cancer seekers and we couldn't easily secure shade.
We had a blast at the beach but the next day our feet were killing us. Walking up and down from the surf on rocks bare foot does not make for happy tootsies. I would strongly advise purchasing swim shoes if you plan to enjoy a day or two at the shore.
Villefranche-sur-mer:
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| Picturesque Villefranche |
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| Villefranche from the cliff |
One town East of Nice is the quiet seaside city of Villefranche-sur-mer. The city like much of the region has ancient roots but the name which means tax free city on the sea, was given in the late 1200s when the ruling body enticed farmers to move to the coast in order to secure the area from pirate. Apparently offering tax free land worked and according to wikipedia the area remained tax free until the 1700s. Of course now it is just a misnomer. For a town of 5000, it has many notable stories surrounding it. It was along the winding cliff side highway that Princess Grace died. In fact hiking to Villefranche we passed a memorial marker indicating the point where her car went off the cliff. The Rolling Stones recorded their Exile on Main Street album here.
Sean read online that the walk to Villefranche is beautiful and only takes about an hour or so. Of course he failed to tell me it was up a cliff. Spoiled by all the flat walking we did in Paris, I was not the happiest camper to be hiking along this very high cliff. I am not afraid of heights but looking over the guard rail at the plunge down made my heart race a little. We walked from our flat across to the other side of town. We had been in Nice for days and days and never left the old town or tourist district. Seeing other parts of Nice was quite exciting. Beyond the downtown area, it looked a lot like San Sebastian.
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| Library in Nice |
The port in Nice is also a cool area. We walked along the marina we had seen from the park at the top of the hill. Admired the yachts. We then hiked up a giant hill. The sun is beating down on us and we get to a point where we can climb a seemingly endless staircase or follow the road around and up this hill. I just took one look at Sean and was "We are taking the road". In the end we got to the same place. Once we crossed the first big cliff, I realized we were still in Nice. The walk was beautiful coming around the bend and seeing the town of Villefranche nestled in a cove cliffs all around.
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| From the Port of Nice |
Unfortunately by the time we got to Villefranche it was almost 7:30pm and the last bus back home would be at 9pm. Not enough time to really walk around or get a proper dinner. So we end up at this delightful pizza shop. Later we found it was one of the three restaurants recommended by Rick Steves.
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| Long way down |
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| More Villefranche |
Adventures in Old Town:
Much like in Paris, we had read all about the fabulous markets in Old town. We woke up early on Saturday with the intent to purchase fresh fish from the fish market and fresh vegetables from the fruit and vegetable market because by all accounts, the city shuts down on Sunday. Having been to Spain and seeing first hand how a large bustling city can shutter up on a Sunday, we wanted to be prepared and besides out flat had a lovely little kitchen aching to be used. Not unlike our search for fish in Paris, the fish market was hidden down a series of winding streets in Old town.
The old part of the city is vast maze-like network of narrow roads that cut and cross each other. All filled with boutiques, shops, restaurants, bakeries, spiceries, etc. We found our way there eventually with some directions obtained with my broken French. The fish market was in a small square in old town with a fountain. Three stands full of fresh fish set up in a L shape. We looked over the stands and one particular fish kept catching our eye. The Italian fish monger did not speak English. But we finally got him to spell the name for us in French and were able to look up that Merou is Grouper. I LOVE Grouper and have not had fresh grouper since we visited Sean's cousin in Florida back in 2009. We bought a fillet, the fish monger threw in a handful of parsley and we headed to the vegetable market.
On the way there we passed a Tunisian bakery, it was the second one we had seen and I was curious. We went inside and the friendly merchant was happy to box up all the treats we pointed at. He asked us if we were from Tunisian and we were like "Uh no" and he proceeded to tell us where Tunisia was. So I assume he meant to ask had we heard of Tunisia which we were both familiar with the small North African country. He asked where we were from and we told him the US. And he said
"Oh, New York City?"
"No."
"Los Angeles?"
"No, Seattle."
He was a funny guy encouraging us to come back. This seems to be a common practice in French merchants who try to lovingly bully you into returning the next day. He suggested we get a cake that didn't look too appetizing but he assured us was the most famous dessert in Tunisia. I am glad he did because most of the Tunisian desserts were... not my favorite. They are all very dry. I get the feeling based on the amount milk he had on had in the fridge and the variety of syrups above that perhaps Tunisian desserts are typically served with flavored milk. I think the milk probably helps with the texture. But the cake, which was like a honey soaked pound cake with a small filling of jam, was quite tasty.
The fruit and vegetable market is right near the flower market and it was fabulous. Stand after stand of fresh fruits and vegetables. The peaches we bought were so sweet and juicy and ripe. I am so use to shopping in the US where the peaches are always hit or miss. And to have this succulent sweet peach was a real treat.
All in all Nice has so many markets. A flower market, fruit and vegetables, fish and then each Saturday there is a different market that sells crafts. Sometimes it is art and crafts sometimes it is antique postcards and records and sometimes old books. I have no idea what to expect from an antique postcard market but that is on the 3rd Saturday of the month and we did not get to experience that wonder.
As expected, the grouper was fabulous. Sean cooked it in butter and flour, pan seared until it was just barely opaque. He served it with some roasted potatoes and roasted zucchini smothered in Gruyere. It was the best fish we had all trip.
Final Thoughts on Nice:
Nice was a city full of surprises. I didn't know what to expect when I told Sean I wanted to go. Obviously the French Rivera holds its own weight. It is the playground for the rich and famous. But Nice is such an unimposing city. It has the laid back vibe of a beach town. It has the shopping of Las Vegas in all of the malls and boutiques. But also the charm of an old city. Walking the narrow winding streets of old town looking for the fish market and stumbling upon all sort of hidden gems. The local cuisine is certainly not very French it has a distinct Italian feel. And I am amazed at the number of times we ended up eating pizza. For more on the food, one of the highlights of Nice please check out my post "Restaurants in Nice" that shares all the delicious courses we tried. Below are some more wonderful photos of this unique city.
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| Downtown Nice at Night |
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| Cool building in Nice complete with palm tree |
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| Modern Art Museum in Nice |
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| 50s diner in Nice |
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| Random McDonald's promotion |
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