Nice' - The French Riviera

Just wanted to start by showing our first afternoon in Nice' and why we love this place.  We were very excited about returning to Nice', we loved our few days here when we were here on our trip 6 years ago so it was definitely on our itinerary for this trip.  We were blessed with some lovely spring weather while we were there.  By early afternoon each day, the day had warmed up and it was quite pleasant spending some time lazing on the beach.  We did have a swim each day but the water was still a bit chilly.  

On our second day we took the local bus up into the mountains behind Nice' to visit a hilltop village called Saint Paul de Vence.  We had visited the village last time we were here so we just had a short walk around then continued onto the next village along called Vence.  This was the final home for the artist Henri Matisse. We took a tour through the chapel du Rosaire, where Matisse designed a beautiful chapel for the nuns who had nursed him. He had repaid them by designing the chapel.  There is a museum attached which houses some of his work.  No photos were allowed to be taken inside the chapel or the museum so there are no pics to show.

One of the houses at the edge of the village of St Paul de Vence

 The next day we started the day with a walk and morning cuppa on the Promenade des Anglais which extends the entire length of the arc of the bay. Then we continued on a walk to the eastern end of the bay where the old historic town is and also the Nice' harbour.  After our long walk it was good to see there was a little boat available to take people from one side of the harbour to the other and the service was free, but we did leave a tip in the little tin strategically placed in the middle of the little boat.

Also at that end of town was a market and the remains of a chateau which was once perched on top of the hill overlooking the area that is now the city of Nice'.  Fortunately we approached the hill from the direction of the town and discovered a lift which went up through the mountain (it was the old well belonging to the ancient settlement).
Saved us having to even consider if we would go to the top, if we had to have climbed the stairs which some people were doing, we may have declined the opportunity to see the ancient ruins and the gardens on the top of the hill. Not to mention the view.

There is also an Archaeological museum at the eastern end of the bay which we stopped and had a look in.  Very interesting to see how the area would have looked many thousands of years ago when man was just beginning to stand upright on two legs.  After our big day of walking we opted to catch the local bus back to our part of town and have our afternoon laze on the beach.  On our last evening, we found an Irish Pub in the lively "restaurant strip" part of town to have some dinner before heading home to tidy and sort our suitcases before heading off the next day on our train trip into Italy and the Cinque terre.

Will tell you all about the trip into Italy on the next post.  Until then, take care.  Have fun and we will also continue to do the same.  Love Linda and David.