Au Revoir France

We finished our tour of France with three days in Nice.

Nice is a seaside resort.

This is a shot of a private beach,

identified because of the matching chairs and beach umbrellas.

This is a public beach, just next to the private one.

Kate and me enjoying a night time stroll along the beach.

Nancy in front of Villa de Rothschild.

Views from the Rothschild Villa.

Note the pink facade of the villa.

It was Madame Rothschild's favorite color.

The flower market in Nice.

Scenic drive from Nice to Monaco.

This is the cathedral where Prince Rainier and Grace Kelly

were married and are now buried.

The palace at Monaco.

The changing of the guard at Monaco's Palace.

The casino at Monaco.

Marina at Monaco with no shortage of yachts!

Monaco is very dense...

...and our tour guide told us they were always building more there.

So we bid the fondest of farewells to France.

It is a beautiful country,

with wonderful people,

and for us, so many memories now.

When can we go again?

Snapshot Impressions of Avignon

The Papal Palace in Avignon

After our three day stay in Paris

we made our way through the Provence countryside,

via a high speed train

to Avignon.

Avignon is a walled city dating from the 1300s.

Our hotel was the Cloitre Saint-Louis,

dating back to 1589, 

when it was a Jesuit School.

It served as a military hospital during 

the French Revolution.

Imagine eating breakfast every morning in the 

above cloister!

Avignon is filled with elegant shops.

And of course, lots of them sell lavender,

in all shapes and forms.

Eating is never a problem in France.

Walking in Avignon is a perfect mixture

of old and new.

Nancy and Kate ready for lunch at a sidewalk cafe.

Kate's lunch of fresh mussels at the above cafe.

...and for dessert!

French ice cream is very much like Italian gelato.

It is readily available everywhere at "glaciers" on the street.

The flavors are exotic and intense.

This being Provence,

I even tried lavender!

One of our fondest dinners was at the 

above small cafe, which we found

while wondering some side streets of Avignon.

Once seated at one of the outside tables,

another patron who was leaving,

brought a bucket with a half bottle of wine

to our table which he gifted to us!

Of course, I could not leave Provence 

without visiting and purchasing from a beautiful

Provence fabric shop!

I bought three different prints.

I am not sure what I will do with them,

but without a doubt, something beautiful!

Please visit back later

when I will complete our trip on the Cote D'Azur.

Bonjour!

I have just returned from ten glorious days in France!

And, I am in love!

I have decided that if I were not American,

and I could choose any other nationality to be,

I would be French.

Kate, me and my sister Nancy on the plane, waiting for take off.

This trip has been in the making

for three years.

When Kate started law school

I told her I would take her anywhere

she wanted to go, once she graduated.

View from the Eiffel Tower.

She choose France!

I am SO glad she did!

Our guide advised us at the beginning of the trip that

the greeting, "bonjour" goes a long way with the French people.

Notre Dame Cathedral

So we used it often and found

everywhere we went,

the people were overwhelmingly

gracious, warm and friendly to us. 

The Louvre

One of my "take aways" from my French experience

is to make an effort to use a greeting 

when approaching people here at home.

Not just a "do you have this is a different color?"

But instead, "Good morning, do you have...?"

The Louvre Pyramids

So much more civil!

The cities, towns and countryside

were spectacular to see.

Sacre Coeur

I am awed by the sheer elegance of France.

And the fun of it!

We were joined by our brother Rick and his wife Terry,

who live in Germany.

We made lots of use of the endless sidewalk cafes!

I've shared just a tiny little bit of our trip.

We also visited Avignon  

and Nice, Monaco and the Cote D'Azur.

I'll tell you about them later in the week.

Be sure and come back!

Until then, 

"au revoir!"