Everyone was slow getting up this morning but me more
than the rest. I said they should go on
and I would meet them at breakfast.
Before I even left the cabin, they were calling for those who had signed
up for tender number one which was us. I
went upstairs and found them and we headed to the rear of the ship to meet
until they would take us down to the tender.
This was an unusual setup in usually when you tender, the ship tours go
first and everyone else gets a ticket that lets you know what number tender you
are on. We actually signed up the first
day we were on the ship because Lindsay found the option on the ship app. No one ever confirmed and they didn’t tell
you what time they would call tender
number one but obviously it was earlier than we thought it would be. We don’t meet our guide/driver until 9 AM and
it is not 7:30 yet. Really by the time
everyone went to the restroom and were ready, we were heading to the tender and
shortly after were on the dock in Cannes, France!
There were lots of tours and people with signs but we
didn’t see one with my name but we were about a half hour early. Almost right at 9 we saw Sasha and talked
with him about what we wanted to do. He
gave us some options about dining and we all decided the picnic sounded like
fun. Paige wanted to see the Yellow
Submarine which is in Monaco and Sasha said we would try but they were having a
huge yacht show and they have had restricted access to Monaco all week for
security reasons. We pile in the van and
head off as he explains the buildings to us and how the film festival came to
be held there. He said it was basically
a summer only vacation place for the rich Arabs and Russians until the American
movie stars and writers came. If
something can be commercialized, leave it to us to find a way. It still is a place for the wealthy.
We drove along the shoreline to several gorgeous seaside
towns. One was perched high above the
water and there was an ancient church there and a beautiful overlook where we
took some photos. Sasha is also a
photographer so he also took photos for and of us.
Juan-Les_Pins was one that had a beach with beautiful
sand where we walked and got cappuccinos
and the kids got drinks and we soaked in the scenery. As with most European beaches, there were
some women topless on the beach which we didn’t think about warning the kids
until we were all staring at it. It was
quite amusing. We drove through Antibes
and Mougins on onto St Laurant-Du-Var all with breathtaking views of the Cote’d’Azur.
We moved onto Nice and drove along the beautiful ocean
plaza where the Bastille celebration is held and sadly where the terroist
attack took place. It is unbelievable
that there could have been such evil to take place is this beautiful and
peaceful place. Sasha explains that he and
his wife live just two blocks from where the truck began. The plaza is filled with people and bikers
enjoying the beautiful weather. He takes
us to a bakery where we buy sandwiches and pastries for our picnic. It all looks so good we have a hard time
deciding what we want. When we get it
all and get back to the van, we head on to another store to get some wine and
then start up the mountain. Elton John
has a home at the top of this mountain.
We sang “Rocket Man” as we passed his house. At the top of this mountain is a fort with
an amazing view and drop off. Sasha
explains that there were two forts and this upper one would signal the lower
one when they saw ships approaching…and you could see forever from up here!
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| Every bit of this was gone...all delish! |
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| The pig was chocolate |
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| Entrance to Elton's house |
We drove through these winding mountain top roads until
we came to another overlook and a small park with picnic tables where we
stopped for lunch. We all enjoyed this
food and there was nothing left! The
kids are getting used to this having wine with their meal European thing…well
the girls were but Chris not so much.
Paige is convinced she is meant to live here…she loves the area and
everything about it.
We head on to Villefranche. This city is good size and as all of the
French Riviera is inhabited by the rich and famous. The yachts in the harbor here are
amazing. Sasha again tells us that there
are a lot of Russian wealthy here. We
are next viewing the gorgeous St. Jean-Cap-Ferrat where the richest of the rich
live….no commercial property here at all…just homes that are not seen from the
road…purposely. We pass a couple mountain
top houses for sale and Paige says she wants to buy one of those. I said I would live there with her and do her
laundry and cooking.
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| Where Paige and I will be living... |
Our next stop is the ancient village of Eze which is
perched on a mountain top. We did not
have time (or for me the stamina) to climb to the top to see the actual village
as we were heading onto Monaco for Paige to see the Yellow Submarine.
When we get to Monaco, the police are blocking the
entrance. Sasha has a conversation with
them and we are advised we cannot go there because of the yacht show and
security today. Nothing we can do about
it but I felt bad for Paige. We drive on
to Monte Carlo.
We drive the route of the Grand Prix…the actual start and
finish line is painted in the road! We
park and head to the casino square. The
cars parked around the casino and Paris Hotel were amazing. We take photos and walk around the square and
go into a shop to look around. Chris and
Keith got a commemorative coin and the rest of us just looked. Sasha was telling us about the Starbucks and
McDonalds there…you don’t see them because they are underground. The rich and famous don’t want to be seen at
either of these establishments so they were built underground so they could
drive in without being seen. Wow. There really isn’t much to do here other than
look at how the other half lives and plays.
We can’t afford to play here so we move on. When Debbie and I were here we went into the casino. It cost 10 Euros 11 years ago just to go
inside! Now the price is 17 Euros…yikes!
By now it is time to start heading back to Cannes and the
ship. We take the inland expressway back
as it is the faster route. The kids
wanted to do some souvenir shopping so Sasha took us there first. As you can imagine, there are not many
souvenir shops in Cannes. We did find a
little place and the kids bought some gifts for their friends.
Our next stop was the theater where the film festival is
held. There are some interesting things
here as some stars have done their handprints on a path that heads to the sea
entrance. We are not able to walk the
stairs as they are setting up for an event.
Teresa and Keith went in a different direction looking for a restroom
that they found on the beach not far away. Teresa said it was unisex which they found out with a guy using the urinal when they walked in
There was also a carousel there that was playing Michael Jackson. We are all worn out by now so Sasha takes us
back to the tender area and we say our goodbyes. I am amused as they have now changed where we
must get the tender which it at the very end of the pier. Now we must walk not only the length of the
pier but out to where the lighthouse is to get on. It would be so much kinder to make people
walk this way in the morning rather than when they are tired….what’s another
quarter mile huh?
The kids take off as soon as we are back to go find their
friends. We have reservations at the tappanyaki
tonight . We all meet outside the restaurant and really
enjoy our dinner. We were all really
hungry by now. As soon as dinner is
done, the kids head back to the teen room and I went to bed. Obviously the rigorous schedule this week has
done me in. I always hear the girls when
they come in as they want to tell me how much fun they had but I had no idea it
was 2 AM!
I have to say that I like a bit of motion in the ocean to
gently rock you to sleep…the Mediterranean Sea has been like a sheet of glass
since we boarded last Sunday. If you
weren’t watching us pull away from the dock, you wouldn’t know we were moving. Good thing I was exhausted every night
because I slept well without the motion this trip!
Day 6 of the cruise is done!
