Iwango went…to Nice

Old Dec 26th, 2014, 02:46 PM
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Iwango went…to Nice

Hi all, and thanks for all the advice you gave - both before and while we were on our trip! My husband, adult son, and I went for a week to Nice, from December 11-19th, and had a wonderful time! We concentrated on walks, art museums, good food, and taking in the holiday atmosphere.

We flew from LAX to Nice via Paris on Air France, economy but on the upper level of an Air Bus 380. Something about being upstairs makes the flight less onerous for me - maybe it’s the staircase you can walk up and down, the faster food delivery - or maybe it’s just the excitement of going somewhere cool. Whatever, it was an OK flight. Because our LAX-CDG flight was delayed almost an hour, we had to really hustle to make the usual walk-a-mile trek from 2E to 2F at CDG. Thank goodness we had our son with us, whom we promptly christened The Sherpa (I guess packing an extra set of clothes in my husband’s carryon made schlepping the bag harder than usual. Lesson learned!).

Two of our three pieces of checked luggage didn’t arrive when we did, but they were delivered that night, so we were fine. We booked an airport pickup and return with Mira at Friend in France - recommended, especially as our return flight was at 7:00am, at a cost of around 75E.

We rented an apartment through Nice Pebbles, and it was fantastic (www.nicepebbles.com) ! The company was prompt with replies and queries, made restaurant reservations, and had a great booklet with information for the Cote d’Azur. The apartment was called “Esprit", and had two bedrooms, a large living room, dining room, and kitchen. We had an en suite bath with tub/shower, and our son’s room had an en suite shower and bidet…although it was clearly stated on the website, I missed the fact that the toilet was in the hallway outside the bedroom. It was fine, but someone else might have been disappointed, so I mention it. The cost was about $1000 for the week, and the location could not have been better! We were on the Place Magenta, one block from the pedestrian rue Messena, three blocks from the Promenade des Anglais, and an easy walk from the Old Town and trams, buses, and trains.

After landing, my son and I took a walk around to get some groceries and scope out the boulangeries. I think we ate some bread, cheese, fruit, and crashed. Jet lag.

The next morning I’d booked a food tour from A Taste of Nice (www.atasteofnice.com), for about $75 per person. We met our tour guide, Gustav, by the beach and walked/took the tram all around the city, trying socca (chick pea pancakes, yum), petit farci (stuffed vegetables), pissaladiere, cheeses, macarons, wine delivered from a cask to your bottle, and candied fruit from Maison Auer. It was a great way to acquaint ourselves with the city, its history, and its food on the first day.

Maybe it was the holiday spirits - we bumped into an impromptu Santa-costumed band parade at the farmer’s market uptown - but we were also serenaded while we were sitting having our socca lunch. Gustav introduced us to Georges, a retired Nicois who burst into a traditional local song, Nissa la Bella. I had almost no idea what he was saying, but his gusto and gestures were charming! It was a wonderful morning, followed by long naps.

That evening we went to Luc Salsedo for dinner - fabulous! (www.restaurant-salsedo.com). My choices were a foie gras risotto with mushrooms (my favorite), sea bass, a little coconut mousse, dessert of french toast with apples and caramel ice cream, followed by a tiny cookies and macarons. It was our son’s treat, but I think the cost was around $250 for all three of us. A great first meal in Nice! And on to bed.

To be continued…Antibes, Menton, St Paul de Vence, and Nice.
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Old Dec 26th, 2014, 03:12 PM
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Love all the details and the dinner description. I am definitely along for the ride. We've been there several times, but in Sept. , not Dec.----how's the weather?
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Old Dec 26th, 2014, 04:17 PM
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TPAT, I wondered the same thing before we went! As it turned out, the weather was very crisp, low to high 50s, cloudy, a little rain - really nice. We carried our umbrellas around but didn’t use them much. We were told that November was unusually rainy.

Most people were wearing quilted or wool jackets, scarves, boots, jeans. Most of the people were not particularly dressed up, even in the evenings at restaurants (maybe a sports coat, sweater). Saying so because I’m always wondering what to pack!
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Old Dec 26th, 2014, 04:36 PM
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The next morning, Sunday, we took the tram up Ave Jean Medecin to the train station, using a ten-ticket tram pass we’d bought through Gustav the day before. Again, not having a chip-and-PIN card meant purchasing the train ticket at the counter with cash - the CC was not accepted. FYI. I’d thought it was because the guy didn’t put the card through correctly, but it didn’t work again another day, so carry some cash.

It was a short trip to Antibes, and we walked maybe half a mile or so to the Picasso museum. We’d seen it before on what we refer to as our Volcano Vacation in 2010, but our son hadn't. To digress…I never wrote a trip report on that one, so here’s a snippet of our 2010 trip to the Cote d'Azur.

We were supposed to leave on the morning after the Icelandic volcano erupted, and went to the airport anyway (on the advice of Air France), to be told that CDG was closed. I called on the way home and we were re-scheduled the next day on KLM. Back to the airport. No flights into Amsterdam or CDG. BUT! Where were we headed? The Paris flight was being diverted to Marseilles, and then we’d be on our own. Did we want it? Sure! (not until we were over Colorado did it occur to me…maybe this is not such a great idea?). OK, so we land, drive from Marseilles to Valluris, and collapse.

The next day, while searching for a bathroom in Antibes, we stumbled into a friendly office. Turned out to be Nice Matin newspaper, who were intrigued by our colorful (embellished! lots of arm movements and facial expressions!) story and took our picture. Lo and behold, the next morning there we are on page two, “The last Americans to leave Los Angeles”!

Pretty funny. We’re famous. I have the paper.
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Old Dec 26th, 2014, 04:53 PM
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Ok, so the Picasso Museum was interesting, and now it’s time for lunch. Before leaving I had done some (lots) of research on nice places to eat. I mean, hello, you’re on vacation - if there’s a place two blocks over that’s great, I want to know about it.

So I’d noted Le Figuier de St Esprit, a Michelin one star, near the museum. I called, and they had an opening. We walked by and perused the menu, which said that the prix fixe lunch was 39 E, and it sounded wonderful - this would be our splurge for the day. As it was an impulse choice, we were not well dressed, but the staff was absolutely wonderful and did everything they could to make us feel comfortable. It was a lovely restaurant. We got water and the menu (mine without pricing), and settled in, and asked what was on the lunch menu. And were informed that this menu was not available on Sundays, only M-F. Oops. And that the chef recommended the lamb (55E) or the fish (50E). Well, oh-kay. And what wine would you like? They ran around 75E. So my simple “let’s eat here! It’s supposed to be really good!” turned into a $400.00 lunch.

And it was not my favorite. I had fish and we shared a starter of 1.5 orders of cannelloni with seafood. But the guys said their lamb was really, really good.

Again, the people there could not have been nicer, and the restaurant more lovely. It’s just that it was not what we’d intended.

We walked through the town, seeing all the holiday decorations and rides for the children. Apparently they were going to make a giant buche noel that night, but we were all ready to go home, so we walked back to the train and Nice. That night the Sherpa and I went for a light dinner at La Voglia, while my husband stayed in the apartment. All in all, a nice day!
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Old Dec 26th, 2014, 05:22 PM
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Monday dawned bright and early, and the Sherpa and I made a boulangerie run. Over the week we tried several: a place on the rue Massena called Chez Pierre? with good baguettes but not Viennoises/ sweet breakfast pastries, a Multari (chain, but open and close by), and another one on rue Gioffredo, for the final few days. Wow, why can’t they have good bread in the suburbs of LA, I ask you?

Anyway, then we took the #15 bus up to the Matisse Museum. FYI, the central Nice tram and bus map is on the following website, but I’d suggest you get a larger copy at the TI or your hotel, as it is impossible to read online. http://www.lignesdazur.com/ftp/plans...pt13(02)bd.pdf

It was a short, maybe 15-20 minute windy journey up to the Museum, which is located next to Arenes archeological site (free). We wandered around the site, which was very interesting, then over to the Matisse. I was glad to see a model of the chapel in Vence, because as it turned out we did not see the chapel the next day. After that we went over to the Franciscan monastery and gardens, with a lovely view of the city and mountains.

We stopped on the way down the hill at the Chagall museum, and that was my favorite of all. We were lucky to catch a a 45 minute video in English before finishing our tour of his vibrant paintings.

We had to return to the flatlands for lunch, because there wasn’t any place up there to eat (I asked the locals), so we went to a little socca place in the Old Town called Bella Socca, where we had a combination plate (all the Nicois specialities), socca, wine, a salad Nicois, tea and coffee for 45E.

That night we walked over, through the festive streets, to the Old Town for dinner at La Voglia. My receipt says $68.00 for a massive - like, it could have fed four people - lasagne that my husband ate alone (he said, defensively, hey, if it’s there, I’ll eat it), my pasta with seafood, my son’s pasta, and some wine. I wish we’d ordered their antipasti, which we spotted too late - it looked fabulous, with seafood and all kinds of stuff. We sat outside in their covered, windowed front patio, which was wonderful, with people moving in and out, the fresh air blowing, the heat lamps keeping it cozy. It was a very popular place and a good value for the food. I’d go there again.
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Old Dec 27th, 2014, 04:40 AM
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I'm also a Chagall fan. Such whimsical, joyous art.

It sounds like your casual $68 dinner was much better than your $400 lunch but saying "Let's eat here" will forever give you a good laugh.
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Old Dec 27th, 2014, 09:39 AM
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It should be pointed out that in any nice place, the toilet is absolutely never in the bathroom. That's just the way it is done in France. Frankly it is much more efficient.
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Old Dec 27th, 2014, 11:21 AM
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Enjoying your TR and following along!
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Old Dec 27th, 2014, 01:14 PM
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IWANTOGO, great report. I love Nice. Sounds as if you and your family are having a great time off season.
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Old Dec 29th, 2014, 10:18 AM
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Great report, one of my favorite areas.
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Old Dec 29th, 2014, 02:42 PM
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Thank you for the feedback! Sometimes you wonder if anyone reads this stuff. I know I do! I get so many great ideas from everyone’s trip reports.

Kerouac, you are right in that having the toilet accessible to everyone in the apartment is a better idea; it’s just that we didn’t know that would be the case, and it was not as private as anticipated.
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Old Dec 29th, 2014, 03:36 PM
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It’s now our fourth day in Nice, and we decided to go to St. Paul de Vence. We’d been there in 2010, staying our final night at le Hameau, and I remembered that there was a fabulous shop with linens just outside the village, by the bus stop. So we caught the #400 bus at the Albert 1st stop, which by luck was about two blocks from our apartment! We walked out the door, down the rue Paradis past all the chichi shops (Hugo Boss, Louis Vuitton…leche-vitrine only), across the road and there it was, idling and waiting for us. Nice! It took about an hour and 1,50 E for the winding journey up the hills.

BTW, one of the best little things we got from the Nice Pebbles people and the Tourist Info booth was the little one-page bus schedules. I know that you can get the info online, but the printed page had the times and along one side all the stops - so you could read along and get a sense of where you were. It was also very helpful to see the timing of the return trip.

We all wanted to see the Maeght museum, so got off the bus the stop before the village (aptly named Fondation Maeght). There is a bit of an uphill slope to get there…FYI, in case you’re not in tip-top walking-uphill shape (which I was apparently not, and made one “wow, look at that view!” stop, fooling no one. Guess we need to do some steeper hills here at home).

It’s an interesting modern art collection. Some of it was, to our minds, a little weird, with strange, discordant music and pieces with lots of war/bleeding/dark stuff. OTOH there were several wonderful, ethereal pieces by an artist named Claudine Drai. She took pieces of flimsy paper and formed them into women, covering a board. Just lovely! We also enjoyed the Miro labyrinth and the Giacometti plaza, with his angular sculptures playing off the tall trees. My husband bought our 5 year old granddaughter a book showing how to deconstruct and copy some simple Picasso drawings, which was a big hit.

From there, we walked into the village, looking for a restaurant I’d made note of called Le Caruso, which had goat cheese profiteroles. Closed! for lunch. Bummer. We went instead to Le Tilleul, and were very, very happy - we’d gone there on our prior visit to StPdeV and knew it would be good. This time we sat inside, at a table with a view of the houses across the hill and the terrace. We split an entree of Pastilla (Bastilla, a Moroccan chicken pie-thingie), and I had THE best farmer’s chicken in a rich broth, which I scooped up with bread. It was delicious. My husband and son had coquilles St Jacques and duck breast. We also had wine, for a total bill of $155.00, and it was worth every penny. The wait staff was so patient and kind, even with our limited French. Merci.

I was surprised to see how many stores were closed - mainly art galleries were open - and was told me that more visitors (“the Italians”) would be there the following week. The linen store had moved and was closed. Oh well. We walked all around this delightful village, peeking down the cobbled streets and looking down on the cemetery. I imagine it would be a beautiful place in the snow (if indeed it snows there, I don’t know). I just love this village, and we basically had it to ourselves. What more can you ask for - an atmospheric old village lit up for Christmas, good food and wine, crisp temperatures, a warm coat, and your favorite people. Ahh.

On a hunch, I looked at the stores near the bus stop and found one open, and bought some quilted boutis placemats and a table runner for a client. Yay, success! We hot footed it over to the bus stop, only about six of us waiting, until five minutes before the scheduled arrival there was an onslaught of passengers - probably twenty or more. I can’t imagine the crowds in the summer to get the afternoon bus, yikes. But the buses are scheduled to come every 15-30 minutes, and this was only the second stop, so I guess it’s the people down the hill who’d be standing.

Back in Nice, the guys were exhausted, but for some reason I was energized, so I made the rounds for a nice eat-in dinner. In the Old Town, to Lou Fromani on rue de la Prefecture for some chevre, around the corner to the pasta shop, Maison Tosello on rue Ste Reparte for some gnocchi and sauce (11E !!), Lac on rue Giofreddo for some macarons - pistachio, vanilla, salted caramel, and coconut - finishing my quest with some olive oil at Alziari and greens at the local market. (I list the street names because I know some of you are walking with me. Isn’t it wonderful?!).

So the menfolk were suitably impressed with the spread, and we chatted and hit the sack early for the next day, which was a train trip to Menton.
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Old Dec 29th, 2014, 04:06 PM
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The next morning we went back to the train station and got a ticket (at the counter, cash) for Menton, right before the Italian border. We originally wanted to see Eze, but were advised that there had been a landslide, closing off the buses from Nice, so made plans to see the Jean Cocteau museum in Menton instead.

It’s interesting how people have different traveling styles… I tend to be somewhat more scheduled (well, at least as far as knowing in advance which days and hours places are closed, and admittedly, where the good food is); my husband likes a more free-wheeling approach - though he doesn’t want to miss things; and our son’s approach was, let’s do everything we can! Yeah! It was great to have him along to goose us (meaning, my husband) into doing more. We should take him more often. He’s on board with that.

At any rate, we were walking along trying to find the Cocteau museum, and I realize that his murals at the Marriage Hall at the Hotel de Ville are right along the way. So I made a turn, hoping to see them. Too bad, it’s 11:45 and they’re closing in a few minutes, out of luck. So we continued on to the Museum, which is a really cool architectural setting for mainly drawings and sketches, right across from the beach. We also saw his pieces at the Bastion down the street (one ticket includes them as well). It was interesting, but I imagined we would see more large-scale murals or mosaics - which were in the Marriage hall and also in Villefranche-sur-Mer, at the Fisherman’s Chapel. Win some, lose some, unprepared for some. It was still worth it.

We stopped for lunch at a delightful little restaurant called Saveurs d”Eleanore, having a simple meal of salads and wine, cost about $50.00. They also had tins of Godard’s foie gras, so we got some of those to bring home.

We’d hoped to see some of Monaco up close from the train, but it runs in tunnels throughout that whole area, so nothing there. We got off the train in Beaulieu-sur-Mer to see one of our favorite places, the Villa Kerylos. Built in the early 1900s by an archeologist, it was designed to recreate the atmosphere of a Greek villa. The mosaics, the frescos, the fabric wall hangings! Oh my gosh, it is just beautiful. We had a quick visit (we’d discovered it on our last trip), I bought a scarf, and we ran back to the train and Nice.

That night we had our next special meal, at Le Sejour Cafe, a few blocks from our apartment, which I’d booked three weeks earlier from LA (this is now a Wednesday night). We were warmly greeted and accepted a coupe of champagne to start. Our hostess pulled up a chair next to our table, asked where we were from, and took our orders. I should have written it down! darn it. I see on the receipt soup, ravioli, bar fish, wine, roasted apples, taste citron, something with bananas. And a glass of an amazing noisette amaretto to finish. Total $250.00. Well, what we do remember is that it was really, really good! And the surroundings were beautiful, and the people friendly. We’d go back again, no contest! We walked around a little bit, then home to read and to bed, the following day our last.
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Old Dec 29th, 2014, 09:07 PM
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Our last day was sunny, and since my husband and son wanted to see the Renoir home in Cagnes-sur-Mer and I wanted to do some quick shopping, we split up. I had great hopes for the Christmas Market at the Place Messena, but the booths were not what I expected. I thought they’d have handmade ornaments and things like that, but it wasn’t that great IMO.

They caught the bus, and I headed down the street a block to a little children’s toy shop called Emilie et Compagnie. I found a darling tooth Fairy box for our five year old granddaughter with loose front teeth, a pirate’s spyglass for our three year old grandson, and a plate and cup for our new three month old grandson. Then I went to the Old Town for some small gifts to take home: back to Alziari for olive oil and Maison Auer for chocolate covered almonds, to Galleries Lafayette for a second scarf, and to Nice Pebbles to print our boarding passes.

We met up and walked over to the Port, to sit in the sun and enjoy a lunch at Les Pecheurs. The best dish there was our son’s linguine with seafood, a standout, and the chocolate dessert. The bouillabaisse, which we all had, was ok; with wine, water, and desserts, the the cost was around $200.00. The final consensus was that it was good, but we wouldn’t necessarily walk over there for another meal.

We still hadn’t climbed the hill to see the Colline du Chateau, so walked around the headland. My husband decided to stay down there and take some photos, but my son and I walked up the hill (the elevator was out of service) to see the park. I took some pictures of my own, including one I thought was particularly artistic, with some men silhouetted against the cloudy sky (one of them was wearing a fedora, making it very chic and 1950s). Back through the Promenade du Paillon, a swath of park opened in the last year or so with play structures, water features, and picnic areas. It must be fabulous in the spring and summer.

My husband decided to stay in that night, so I persuaded my son to go to dinner with me (this was not hard to do) at Le Petit Cafe, the sister restaurant of Le Sejour Cafe. We split an oyster entree and each had some ravioli and wine, cost about $70.00. We chatted with a Scots couple joining us on the long banquette, who owned an apartment in Nice. My son and I talked about his job and students (he’s a University math professor), about this trip, maybe going to London someday. We took the long way back, enjoying the festive street decorations.

The next morning we left the apartment at the ungodly hour of 5:00am to catch the 7:10 flight. On the leg from CDG-LAX I sat next to a charming young German man. He told me about Munich. I gave him the website for LA traffic, and a list of our favorite Santa Barbara restaurants.

When we got home, I offloaded the luggage and went to the dry cleaners, market, and to buy a Christmas tree. I was still wired - and preparing for company the next night - so no time to dawdle. On Sunday we rolled grape leaves, went to our big family party, and caught up with everyone.

The next few days I set new sleep records.

If I had to do it all again, these are the things I’d still do: Get the phone plan for internet, texting, and calls. Well worth it. Go to Luc Salsedo, Le Sejour Cafe, and do the food tour. Go to the Cocteau in Villfranche and hang out there, instead of Menton - and if the weather was a bit warmer, walk around the bay near Kerylos. BTW, the last time we saw the Villa Ephrussi, which is why we skipped it this time - but I’d recommend it to someone going for the first time. Definitely go to St Paul de Vence. And the Chagall. And just wander, and have coffee, and relax.

And go with my favorite people!!

Thanks again for all your suggestions, I hope this helps someone else, and Happy Travels!
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Old Dec 30th, 2014, 06:36 PM
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Hi again IWANTOGO2,

What a great trip report - charming, informative, original. Loved your conclusion about Vence -

"I just love this village, and we basically had it to ourselves. What more can you ask for - an atmospheric old village lit up for Christmas, good food and wine, crisp temperatures, a warm coat, and your favorite people. Ahh."

Who needs more? Merci...
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Old Jan 1st, 2015, 06:07 AM
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Great report! The flat rental has some nice options...just in planning stages for a 10 day trip to Paris and Provence in mid-June and now considering Nice for a few nights!
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Old Jan 1st, 2015, 06:28 AM
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Thanks for such a great report about one of my favorite vacation spots.
Good to read about some restaurants I have not tried.
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Old Jan 1st, 2015, 07:15 AM
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Heading to Nice in May next year. Have an apartment booked near yours. Fantastic to read your restaurant reviews and general trip info. I find trip reports a great way to prepare for a place. Cheers
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Old Jan 3rd, 2015, 08:00 AM
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Sounds like a wonderful trip! We were in Nice in May and loved it. We too did the food tour, and thoroughly enjoyed it! Thank you for taking the time to share
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