Jun 14, 2012 - France & Monaco - French Riviera & Monte Carlo

31st May 2012 (Bed 38) Remember those lovely English people we met in Bruges, well it was time to take up some of Nicky’s advice and visit two places on our way to Monaco. The first stop was the village of Antibes where we enjoyed a short walk along the waterfront. The shore was lined with artists taking advantage of the beautiful views and painting scenes some using pastels and others water paints. Looking at the sketches and partly finished paintings, it amazed us how one person view differs from another’s. All looked different yet had a...

May 24, 2012 - Monaco F1

Hi Readers, We went to Monaco on the train. Dad and I went to see the F1 practice run while Ethan, John and mum pottered around Monte Carlo. The F1 car that I like is the Vodaphone car that Lewis Hamilton drives (grey, black & red). It was very noisy and I had to get some earmuffs. We sat about 6 meters from the race course in a stand; we could see a chicane that they had to get through ( a chicane is zigzag in the road that makes them slow down). Dad loved it, mum went shopping and took the boys to see the underwater world. We met up for...

May 20, 2012 - St tropez to San Bartolomeo al mare (May 16-20th)

After leaving St tropez I was pretty excited to be heading closer to Italy and along the sea. The first place I saw was Sainte-maxime which is directly across from st- tropez adn has a great view on its better known cousin. When I got to St Raphael I stopped for lunch( my favorites: olives, cheese, bread, salumi, with a little dijon washed down with some good rose. From St Raphael until Cannes the ride was just so awesome and beautiful. It was definitely some uphill and tough riding but it was hard to complain. At this point for some reason...

Apr 6, 2012 - Monte Carlo

It’s Good Friday in Monte Carlo! The weather here is beautiful today and the view from the ship is excellent! Monte Carlo is like Barcelona, in that most cruises through the Western Mediterranean stop in Monte Carlo… as a result we’ve stopped here several times. The view from the harbor seems to be more unbelievable each time!

Sep 16, 2011 - Monte Carlo - London

Friday, September 16 - Monte Carlo, Monaco Today we sadly leave the ship and head off to London. After a late night of frantic packing and three hours of sleep, a final breakfast on the ships Veranda and many good byes to folks we had met, we are escorted to our luxurious Mercedes and driver for our trip to the Nice airport. An uneventful, quick flight to London (1 ½ hours) we ease through immigration and customs areas of the airport and find our driver waiting outside customs, who gets us safely to our hotel - Dukes. After we get settled...

Jul 18, 2011 - Monte Carlo & Monaco

Monaco and Monte Carlo I knew were the land of the ‘rich and famous’ but I really had no idea just how pristine the land would be. Not a piece of trash to be found, but Ferrari’s, Bentley’s, Masaratti’s and the likes line the streets, while large yachts dot the coast line. It was a beautiful day, a cool shore breeze welcomed us as we strolled and people watched. The town built upon the cliffs allowed us to look out on to the water and appreciate the serenity of it all. So beautiful and quite (the government even asks that you not raise your...

Jul 15, 2011 - Monaco day

July 15, 2011 Today Rolinka is getting us to Monaco by bus, but after that, we are on our own. By this time, however, we have learned enough French and know enough about how the bus system works to get by. She got us to Monaco, walked us up the hill to the castle of the prince, (the castle was built in the days when one needed a castle holding the heights to maintain your hold on the land) and helped us go through tours of the castle and a related museum about Napoleon. Then we left her there to follow our own path around Monaco. Monaco is...

Jun 24, 2011 - Monte Carlo, Monaco

June 24, 2011 Friday morning found us anchored off Monte Carlo, Monaco with clouds over the hills behind the town and hot, humid sunshine aboard the ship. As we enjoyed breakfast on the deck we heard several loud blasts and saw the Island Princess entering the anchorage zone. She was bearing down on a Zodiac with several wet-suited divers aboard…the fact that it wasn’t moving meant they had divers over the side underwater. In a panic the divers scrambled aboard and just cleared the path as the huge liner went over their dive location,...

Jun 24, 2011 - Monaco and the end

Hilary will long remember this as the day of the big accident and one that forced her to have an “at sea” day while anchored at the opulent Monte Carlo. During her morning deck walk Malcolm rearranged the furniture to form a chicane and rather then ‘go around’ Hilary ‘lept over’ and twisted her ankle when she fell on her left side . Oh dear. Her full weight went on her poor ankle and the response was an immediate swelling that later turned dark purple. She spent the rest of the day on crutches and was wheeled in a chair at the airport...

Jun 8, 2011 - Monte Carlo, Monaco

The ship’s navigator keeps us up to date every day, telling us where we’ve been and where we’re going. When we left Livorno, we sailed past the northern tip of Corsica and entered the Ligurian Sea for our destination, Monte Carlo, Monaco, on the Cote d’Azur. The Cote d'Azur is well known in Europe for the glittering allure of its seaside towns. Monaco is on a stretch of the coast known as the French Riviera. This is a tender port for us, meaning they will anchor away from the docks and shuttle us back and forth in the small tender boats. At...

May 27, 2011 - Aix-en-Provence and Monaco

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