The French Riveria

Hey all,

It has been a fair while since we have been able to get enough time to do a post of our travels, but finally it has here!

The French Riveria is a very special place. From the very ritzy Monte Carlo in Monaco to the small fishing villages dotted along the coast it is a land of contrasts.

We left Rome and were on our way north on the Eurail pass. We made it into Bolonga, the home of Bolognase. Of course we had to have a spaghetti Bolognase (Ragù) to. It was pretty damn good! There wasn't much else to see, and we were on a mission to get to Torino for our overnight stopover. Made it there through some beautiful hilly countryside pretty late.

Torino is a very beautiful city. It used to be the capital of Italy until the mid 1940's. It is very well laid out for an Italian city. Unfortunately due to time contraints we did not get up to the mountains to check out where the Olympic events happened but they did have at the tourism bureau an awesome memorial of the olypics with videos and pictures and stuff of the 14 crazy days up here. A place that we would like to get to know better. Will have to get back again soon.

In the afternoon we were off to our next destination, Avignon. This would be a long day travelling. But we were to get our first TGV experience. This the French high speed trains. Very smooth indeed. This leg we had to upgrade to 1st class ast this was all that waqs available. A step above the rest! The train ride from Torino to Lyon (our transfer) was stunning. One of the most picturesque rides that we have done. You could see the snow capped montains in the distance with the train cutting through the mountains and stuff. Very special indeed. We pushed on from Lyon (there wasn't really any cheaper accomodation available here for some reason?) We made it into Avignon pretty late and pushed onto our hotel.

16/05/06 Avignon
Avignon was first class. After a great breakfast we headed out to explore the town. Surounded in the city walls with only the 5 entrances to get in, it really feels like you are getting away from it all.

A beautiful leafy town, that waqs easy to navigate. One main street that cut through town. We had a look around at the sights, which were impressive on there own, but were told that we had to have a picnic up on the hill. So we found a greengrocer that also sells deli stuff and cold drinks and he spoke English! He helped us pick out some fresh ingredients and nibblies and of course a local cold Rose to enjoy with it.

Walked up the hill, to this amazing park on top of the hill overlooking town and the Rhone River and stuff. Very serene indeed. Sopent a few hours there enjoying the beautiful food and wine. It was then time to stroll back into town for a few more pictures and then head south to Nice.

Back on the TGV we headed south to the coast! Yay some ocean air! This leg of the train trip was awesome too. Got into Nice at night. The hostel was a bit out town but they picked us up and this place was awesome! A highly rated villa around the world with cheap beers and pizza and a real party atmosphere. Even the resident cat greeted us in our room.

Got some info and we were off. We went to Eze village, built into the side of the mountain, where lot of small shops and stuff are carved into the moutain. This goes back to the 12th century.

We then went into Monte Carlo, home of the rich and famous. Beautiful place, with some of the biggest power yachts I have ever seen. Overlooking the coast, very ritzy indded. Had an awesome lunch there too. The Grand Prix was being set up also.

It was then time to head back, and the bus ride along the coast was awesome too! The best value sightseeing ever!

We went into Cannes the next day to see where the Film Festival was being held. We were hoping to catch a film but it was invitation only. Went up the top of the hill on a petite train. Could see the flashes in the distance from the papparazzi but too far to see anything. But the place was buzzing with atmosphere. We were then back on the train for back into Italy down the west coast. It was onto La Spezia. The Cinque Terre. This will be in our next post.

All the best. Missing everyone heaps.

Cam & Nat