Tuesday, April 11, 2023
Initially, our ship was to anchor off Villefrance; however, there were so many tours scheduled, that there was no place to park all of the buses. Therefore, the ship anchored off of Nice instead. Lovely water shuttles were there to take us ashore.
Throughout the Mediterranean, the weather has been quite chilly and sometimes breezy, but very sunny. This day was no exception. Toward the afternoon, it becomes more comfortable in the warmth of the sun, with a bit of chill in the shade. We have truly enjoyed the weather. It is such a lovely time of year in the Mediterranean, with trees flowering, olive trees, gardens in bloom, and oranges and lemons heavy on the trees along the city streets. Truly, the sparkling Mediterranean feels transformational.
The Riviera is renowned for not only its beautiful coastline, but also the clarity of the air and the vividness of the colors, attracting artists through the ages, including Claude Monet.
We were happy we got to see a bit of Nice, because it is quite beautiful. The architecture is a combination of Italian and French. Nice had belonged to the House of Savoy royal family of the Italian Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia until it became French in 1860. My imagination went wild picturing myself living in one of the little condos with a wrought iron balcony and a window box of red gardenias.
Our tour bus took us on a scenic ride through Nice, with its ancient walls, and then started climbing upward, driving us along the winding corniche, with its steep drop down to the Mediterranean, taking us to Monaco. Tiny Monaco is a separate country, and Europe’s second smallest state. The shuttle bus dropped us off at the port area, where we met our Hop-on, Hop-off. Before we boarded, the shuttle bus driver pointed out where the Palace and Casino were and recommended that we don’t try to walk back from those areas because it is very steep and the roads are deceivingly winding and confusing.
The Grand Prix race was in town, as well as the Monte Carlo Masters. We had views of both venues during our ride through the city of Monaco. The streets were packed with tourists and heavy traffic. Monaco is even more stunning than we imagined. It is only for the rich and famous. If you like the highest priced cars in the world, this is the place to see them. The shops are the most high end that you could find anywhere.
The ride was a slow go because of the traffic. Concerned that we might not make it back to the Grand Casino, we hopped off there first. It was about 11:00 by then, and we had to be back at our shuttle bus by 4:00. The casino doesn’t open for gambling until 2:00. We were concerned that trying to get back there after visiting the Palace and Old Town in order to gamble a little and then get back to the shuttle bus on time in all of that traffic would be too much of a crunch.
We walked inside the lobby, took photos, and peered into the slot machine room on the left. When the casino opens, anyone can gamble in that slot machine room. You pay 17 Euros each and receive a 10 Euros voucher for the slots. One woman from the ship said she won 1700 Euros using the voucher. To get into any other part of the casino, you must pay an additional amount and have a valid passport.
From there we got back on the Hop-on, Hop-off bus, which took us up the winding steep hill to the Palace and Old Town. Our Princess Port Guide said that the old city is a maze of narrow, twisting lanes and vaulted passageways that date to the 14th century. However, I loved how the streets ran parallel to each other, with an arched alleyway joining each street. It was quite easy to find our way around to see the little shops and cafes. The views from so high up by the palace were absolutely stunning. We walked around, took photos, and found a little place for a snack before heading back on the Hop-On to the shuttle.
The shuttle bus took us to Villefrance, where our ship had relocated and anchored. We could understand when seeing the steep old walls and narrow streets why the shuttle buses didn’t have enough room to park that morning.
Villefrance was founded in the early 1300s by Charles II of Anjou, Count of Provence. It is one of the most beautiful roadsteads in the Mediterranean, with deep-water anchorage for even the largest cruise ships, as well as aircraft carriers. Smaller than Nice, its port, citadel, and streets reflect the 17th century. We would have liked to have seen more of Villefrance than just driving through it. Villefrance has an Old Town with a lovely waterfront, brightly painted houses, and a colorful fishing harbor. There is a massive Citadel towering over Old Town, dating from 1560. It was quite impressive.
Overall, it was a wonderful day traveling along the steep coast overlooking the Mediterranean, enjoying the lovely, well kept buildings, ancient churches, walls and fortresses, and gorgeous flowers and trees. The whole area is so beautiful, any of us would not have minded spending the rest of our lives there.
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