Day #6 Cannes and Wine Tasting

Happy Day #6! Today was walking around the city of Cannes (the Cannes Film Festival starts next week, by the way) as well as a visit to a local winery. The highlights..... 

Cannes was a great city to see, but other than the film festival there's nothing that differentiates it from many of the other beautiful cities in the area. Please don't get me wrong, I'm glad I went, but you could also likely see the beautiful streets, shops and market square in other cities as well. The main difference was all the prep work for the film festival starting next week. Lots of white tents, BIG yachts moving into the area, and fencing going up. There was no red carpet available (despite what the website said, which was a bummer). Definitely a decent excursion, though. Gorgeous pictures are below.... 

The island and the winery area we visited was absolutely gorgeous. It was so very peaceful, I can see why it was also home to an abbey. Two interesting notes: 1. This was the first wine tasting I've had that was actually in the vineyard. It made for interesting atmosphere. 2. Many wineries in France use volunteers to harvest the grapes in season. This winery is the only one that has to turn away volunteers - they keep a wait list. A wait list to do sweaty, all day work. Fascinating concept. 

Oh, and one more! Funny story....when we first got to the island we paused for a potty stop. Several people went, I didn't. Later, I was told to WAIT and NOT use the toilets there. The reason? They may have been in a separate building and had a door, but were little more than a hole in the ground. Not good for those with difficulty balancing.......

Dinner tonight was at Le Sens.....a tasting menu and my first Michelin restaurant. Sad I couldn't finish all the food, it was yummy! 

......and now, the pictures! 

Funny story: I ordered bouillabaisse (fish soup) for lunch. While we were waiting for our meals, the waiter dropped this off at our table and walked away. No explanation. We decided it was a free appetizer and split amongst the table. Nope - it was the accouterments for my soup! 

One of the walkways on the island. Beautiful! 

Gorgeous day, pretty vineyards.  :) 

This was one of the "tasty snacks" served with our wine tasting. Southern friends, what would you call this? 

The sea in front of us, the vineyard behind us. Not a bad place to drink some wine. 

Me!

The ladies. It's a fun group. 

Worth enlarging the picture to look at the size of the boats and the coastline.... 

More of the ladies We keep each other laughing..... 

.....because I've seen many celebrities take pictures up at the Cannes sign. I was a little further away, but that meant I could actually tell what it was..... 

This was a recumbent bicycle! The gentleman you see in the corner had driven it there, and was enjoying his espresso and newspaper. He looked at me like I was a little mad when I asked to take a picture, but it was so cool! 

Worth enlarging the picture to see all the characters painted on the wall.  I couldn't name all of them, how many can you name? 

An American standard, here in France. I've also seen several Shake Shacks. Gotta teach the French about quality burgers....this ain't it. I miss Fuddruckers. 

Atmosphere pictures. I keep talking about "normal".....amazing to believe this is someone's definition of normal, everyday life. Beautiful. 

The couple having breakfast on the balcony..... 

Shopkeeper and his dog. The dog had a brother that was store security, but could easily be bribed by pets and ear scratches...... 

Loved the sign...... 

Day #5 Monaco and Monte-Carlo

 Reminders to self: 

1. The French Riviera is built into the French Alps, so hills are to be expected. My calves will thank me later, but not now.  

2. It's fun to people watch with a glass of wine and an outdoor seat 

3. Be kind to people, and most of the time they'll be kind back. 

4. I come from a family where someone (who will remain nameless) may have crawled into the backseat of a car while on a winding mountain road to flip off a driver behind them who was tailgating too closely. I am not allowed to do the same..... 

5. You don't have to do it all, but you do have to do enough so you don't have regrets later. 

6. There will always be someone with more money, better clothes, and even more chocolate or croissants than you (I mean dang, these shop windows!). Sit back and enjoy the ride. 

......and now, photos! 

In front of the Casino Monte Carlo. We made it into the lobby, but not into the casino itself. Can buy lottery tickets at home. Ruth is behind me - hoot to hang out with! 

Consignment shopping in Monte Carlo. Yes, I had fun. If you know the bag, you know. :) 

I posted the picture above on Facebook, and immediately got a message from my mother asking "Do you have a security guard following you around while you're carrying that bag?!?!?" So, I asked one of the security members at the Casino to take a picture with me. He was happy to oblige, and even put on his "serious mean" face just for the picture. 

What was in the bag: Hermes bag and Dior scarf. I love consignment - at least half off, and you don't play the luxury store game for quality goods. 

Someone explain to me the name of the store (please), because the grammar is driving me up the wall..... 

The Casino Monte Carlo 

Nothing fancy, I just loved this guy. In someone's office window.... 

Pictures of the harbor. The size of the boats is unreal. If you've seen Below Deck (Bravo), think bigger. 

The ladies: Myself (Charlotte), Caroline (Vancouver), Ruth (Pittsburgh), Paula (Albany), Jill and Terri (Wichita) 

I mean, really. The boats! 

More pictures from the ride up. This big bus on these tiny mountain roads.....I'm glad there was a good view! 

Nothing big, I just liked the framing of the picture. 

OOTD. I laughed at myself so hard this morning. Cardigan, or too hot for cardigan? Big scarf or no? Little scarf? Are my shoes ok, or will they deny my entrance into the casino? Problems of the Riviera, I tell you......  :) 

Day #4 Grasse and Making Perfume

 Today's story, told in pictures...... 

The French don't use ice in drinks. This is what happened when a table mate asked for ice in their drink at breakfast - a bowl of ice! 

Art outside Fragonard. They used to use the copper pots to make fragrance, but discontinued and turned them into art. Side note: I haven't been able to capture half the beautiful art I've seen. It's everywhere.....

Today's journey: Perfume making! 

The "nose" station. Perfume bottles lined up like a pipe organ, with a wall of more bottles behind. Very mad-scientist-y. 

Wall of fragrance 

Where the process begins. 

No matter where you are, you'll always need a can of WD-40. :) 

Our turn! Time to make our own perfume. 

Tracy, myself and Judy with our creations. 

The three notes you started with - base, middle and high. We mixed these together to create our own scent. 

This is our whole group. 

View of Grasse from the back of the cathedral (next few pictures). So pretty! 

One of the cathedrals in Grasse. All stone, with beautiful paintings from Ruben. Architecture always amazes me. The entire building was built from stone, something we would never have the patience for today.... 

Grasse was celebrating the Festival of Roses, so there were pink umbrellas (signifying roses, I guess?) all over the main shopping / entertainment area. 

The second part of the adventure. Our tour lead told us he thought he knew of a place that served escargot, and he was going to go in search of it. We were welcome to join if we wanted. Well, I had never had escargot, so..... 

I liked it! Several others told me they had never seen it served that way before - out of its shell and baked into a crispy puff pastry. Very yummy, would try it again. 

My main dish - bolognese gnocchi. Three of us ordered this, and three of us finished the entire bowl So good! 

Our waiter thought we were absolutely hilarious, and was a total flirt. Ten women (four not pictured), and our tour guide had to leave for a while to guide the rest of the group somewhere before he joined us. Did I mention it was in a lower part of the restaurant where Google translate didn't work? Only one of us spoke French (from Canada), and I spoke enough to be dangerous. We were all laughing. 

Another quirky piece of architecture. Never seen a door knocker like this in America..... 

Y'all, someone explain this to me. Look at the width of the building. It appeared to be a real building, but about 10ft wide. 

More umbrella shots..... 

See ya later, Grasse!