Bonjour Cote d‘Azure

Four Days of sun, four days of blue sky and four days of walking back up a few steep streets to our hotel in Cagnes Sur Mer from the bus park. I did choose a gorgeous hotel called Le Cagnard. The view looking back at Nice and the Mediterranean from the dining room deck was spectacular, but given there are no cars in this village and the narrow lanes are lined with gorgeous ancient rock homes all covered with climbing plants and colourful pots at the doors made walking fun. However, the uphill grind was a littte tough for some – but, the promise of a beer or wine at the top made the short sharp distance worthwhile.

I was thrilled with the hotel choice – the rooms were exquisite, breakfasts delicious and we ate dinner there several times. But, at the top of Cagnes Sur Mer is the castle which is surrounded by a square lined with restaurants. A game of Petanque was always going on with the locals and the children had spaces for their scooters and bikes. So there was plenty to look at for our afternoon aperitive.

Visiting the once-hometown of Picasso–Antibe was our first stop. The marina was filled with extremely large super yachts along with many not quite so big but still huge. The city has a market every day in the morning and the narrow streets in the old town filled up quickly with visitors and shoppers. Nonetheless, you can’t come here and not visit the former Grimaldi Mansion on the seafront which became Picasso’s home and studio for a time after the Second World War. The top floors house an impressive selection of his works from painting, tapestry and drawing to sculpture and ceramics. Our new driver Sebastien was so accommodating and drove us around the coastline through San Juan to Cannes – past the former homes of people like John Wayne and the vast multi multi million Euro mansions. However, once we arrived in Cannes no one wanted to get off the bus or shop at the high-end stores. We were happy back in our quiet charming hideaway relaxing in our surroundings.

I use walking guides wherever I can and the old town of Nice is best left to a local guide. Sebastien drove us firstly for an expansive view of Nice and the Coastline. The houses up here were beautiful and evidently were where the wealthy English aristocrats built in the late eighteenth century, helping Nice flourish for visitors. The French Riviera extends from Menton through to Marseilles – History has changed it’s profile and brought with it new residents and visitors who love the climate.

This also brought artists who loved the light and clear blue skies and many impressionist painters like Matisse, Cezanne, and Renoir made this their home.

We thoroughly enjoyed our guide Marina., and many of us had Soca and Pissaladière - traditional chickpea flour pancakes and onion tart for lunch.

Driving along the Promenade de Anglais at the end of the day for over 16 km, past a continuous line of apartments which makes you understand what allures people here, but you have to like people and a pebble beach!!

Our final day was a trip inland from the Mediterranean -  first to the cute hillside village of Saint Paul de Vence – now home to a host of art dealers, rather than the original artists. It was remarkably quiet compared to last year, but easy to move around and we had time for a really lovely lunch of cheese, charcuterie and French bread – nothing simpler and nothing better. The home of perfume is also not far away, although in the built-up town of Grasse. Its reputation is world wide and historically perfume has been made here for hundreds of years.

The French Riviera has a reputation as a playground for the rich and famous and the Monaco Grand Prix was on the weekend before we arrived and the Cannes Film Festival finished the day we arrived. The coast was still lined with hundreds of super yachts. However, it is beautiful and we had a great time.