Bonjour from Nice and Monte Carlo!

Our next stop was to beautiful Nice, France. We gave our feet a break from walking and took a bike tour to explore Nice. We had a fun time! Our tour guide was very good and took us to all the major Nice sites.

We first saw the Promenade des Anglais which runs along the ocean side of the city. The beautiful beaches here are unique as they are comprised of smooth stones versus sand. We also rode through Old Nice and saw the Opera House, a flower market, and several historical buildings in which the architects had painted false windows. Apparently when the funds ran low in building projects, faux windows were painted on!

Which windows are real and which are fake?!?

Hundreds of gelato flavors including a graham cracker variety a friend Steven suggested 🙂

We then rode up to the top of Castle Hill (Colline du Chateau) which is about 100m above sea level. From the top, we had panoramic views of the bay and beaches. Very nice (sorry, bad pun :))! We could also see homes of several famous people from here, including Elton John, Sean Connery, and the hospital where Anglina Jolie had her daughter.

Tasty Orange-Mango Soda the tour gave us. Interesting that it has no carbonation yet carbonated water is popular!

Next, we headed onto Monte Carlo, Monaco, which is located about 30 minutes from Nice. We took the scenic route into Monaco by driving the steep hills above the towns and sea.

Once in Monte Carlo, our Citroen held its own on the Grand Prix route – albeit our speeds only approached about 30 kilometers per hour. 🙂

We really enjoyed our time in Monaco! As you might imagine, we saw lots and lots of expensive cars and huge yachts docked in the harbor. I also saw the flashiest pair of Louboutins I have ever seen being worn!

Our first stop in Monte Carlo was to visit the Prince’s Palace that is set on a hill overlooking the city. We then looked through several beautiful gardens that overlook the ocean before winding our way off the hill.

We capped off our time in Monte Carlo with a really neat dinner overlooking the harbor and hills of Monaco. The view and the food were absolutely fantastic! (For those curious, we have been swinging the calories and budget of these meals by going light at least one meal… for example, if we have a nice dinner, lunch has been a piece of fruit and either yogurt or a granola bar. On average, we’re good! 🙂 Often, we have found some restaurants have a great tasting menu for lunch so it can be a great way to try nicer restaurants for less.)

Ryan’s formerly wrinkled sport coat. It didn’t seem to enjoy the compression bags so creative measures were used to make him look presentable.

Our actual rental car – that Citroen was just a joke so you didn’t get jealous

Next stop – Pisa/Rome!