Trip Report: " Je suis desole, je ne parlez pas francais, parlez vous anglais?” helped get me a long way during my 3 weeks in France.
Nov 14th, 2008, 06:08 PM
#83
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Day Fourteen: Wednesday, Oct. 1st, 2008
We left Arles with our final destination being Roussillon. We stopped for the morning in the hilltop town of Les Beaux. This is a cute little town with winding streets and the remains of a chateau at the top of the town. Fortunately we arrived early and avoided the throngs of people that descended upon the town later in the day.
We roamed around the chateau ruins and took lots of pictures, it was an incredibly clear day, but very windy.
Lunch was a group meal at a terrific restaurant, which I failed to get the name of. We were served a BIG salad and I do mean big. This “salad” included roasted chicken (a huge piece), proscuitto, melon, a whole tomato, and mixed greens. The salad would have been plenty to feed two people but then there was dessert, another molten chocolate cake, since I didn’t get enough from the night before!
After lunch we left Les Beaux and drove to Roussillon to see the ochre cliffs. The colors in this town were simply incredible, so vibrant! We walked through the cliffs and got to see them up close, really breath taking.
We stayed at the cute little Hotel Reves d’Ocres and had a room on the top floor over looking the countryside which offered a great view during sunset. We were on our own for dinner tonight and decided to walk up the hill to the little restaurant call Le Bistrot and we had a light dinner. Mom had a terrific salad with mini ravioli, haricots, and balsamic dressing. I had Le Bistrot tarte, which was a piece of puff pastry with tomato, mozzarella and basil with a little salad it was the perfect light meal. We had a bottle of wine and dessert all for €47.
After dinner we took a leisurely walk back to the hotel and settled in for the night in anticipation for our drive to Nice.
We left Arles with our final destination being Roussillon. We stopped for the morning in the hilltop town of Les Beaux. This is a cute little town with winding streets and the remains of a chateau at the top of the town. Fortunately we arrived early and avoided the throngs of people that descended upon the town later in the day.
We roamed around the chateau ruins and took lots of pictures, it was an incredibly clear day, but very windy.
Lunch was a group meal at a terrific restaurant, which I failed to get the name of. We were served a BIG salad and I do mean big. This “salad” included roasted chicken (a huge piece), proscuitto, melon, a whole tomato, and mixed greens. The salad would have been plenty to feed two people but then there was dessert, another molten chocolate cake, since I didn’t get enough from the night before!
After lunch we left Les Beaux and drove to Roussillon to see the ochre cliffs. The colors in this town were simply incredible, so vibrant! We walked through the cliffs and got to see them up close, really breath taking.
We stayed at the cute little Hotel Reves d’Ocres and had a room on the top floor over looking the countryside which offered a great view during sunset. We were on our own for dinner tonight and decided to walk up the hill to the little restaurant call Le Bistrot and we had a light dinner. Mom had a terrific salad with mini ravioli, haricots, and balsamic dressing. I had Le Bistrot tarte, which was a piece of puff pastry with tomato, mozzarella and basil with a little salad it was the perfect light meal. We had a bottle of wine and dessert all for €47.
After dinner we took a leisurely walk back to the hotel and settled in for the night in anticipation for our drive to Nice.
Nov 14th, 2008, 06:41 PM
#84
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Day Fifteen: Thursday, Oct. 2nd, 2008
Today we are on our way to Nice…ahhh…the French Riveria. We stopped in Antibes just after 12noon for a lunch break and to poke around the town.
Instead of running around trying to see a bunch of sites mom and I took a short walk through the old town and then sat down for a leisurely lunch. We found Le Jardin restaurant at 5, rue Sade, and were seated outside in the pretty back patio, which was filling up quickly. Mom had the Thai crab salad which was another big delicious salad. I had the tomato and goat cheese ravioli salad, also delicious. With two lemonades the total for lunch was €40.50.
After lunch we had some time before we had to meet the group so we walked around the harbour and ogled all the expensive yachts. We were back on the road at 3pm and were at our hotel in Nice. We stayed at the Nice Marche aux Fleur hotel (a Mercure hotel), that is right on the Promenade Anglais. It’s a great location and a clean and comfortable hotel.
About an hour after checking into the hotel Patrick took us for a short, one hour orientation tour of the old city. Around 7pm mom and I took Patrick’s advice and had Nice street food for dinner. We stopped at Lou Pilha Leva for pissaladiere. We got one slice of pissaladiere and a piece of quiche. The pissaladiere was so good we each got another piece. Including a carafe of wine and 2 espressos the total was €19!!! Now that’s a bargain meal!
We loved the pissaladire, this is a Nicoise speciality and the only way I can describe it as an carmelized onion topped foccacia, as a carbohydrate junkie, I LOVED it!
On the way back to the hotel we stopped for gelato at Fennochi, we were told this is the oldest gelato stand in Nice. It was pretty good, but we would have better in the next few days. We took our time wandering back to the hotel exploring some of the nooks and crannies of the old town.
Today we are on our way to Nice…ahhh…the French Riveria. We stopped in Antibes just after 12noon for a lunch break and to poke around the town.
Instead of running around trying to see a bunch of sites mom and I took a short walk through the old town and then sat down for a leisurely lunch. We found Le Jardin restaurant at 5, rue Sade, and were seated outside in the pretty back patio, which was filling up quickly. Mom had the Thai crab salad which was another big delicious salad. I had the tomato and goat cheese ravioli salad, also delicious. With two lemonades the total for lunch was €40.50.
After lunch we had some time before we had to meet the group so we walked around the harbour and ogled all the expensive yachts. We were back on the road at 3pm and were at our hotel in Nice. We stayed at the Nice Marche aux Fleur hotel (a Mercure hotel), that is right on the Promenade Anglais. It’s a great location and a clean and comfortable hotel.
About an hour after checking into the hotel Patrick took us for a short, one hour orientation tour of the old city. Around 7pm mom and I took Patrick’s advice and had Nice street food for dinner. We stopped at Lou Pilha Leva for pissaladiere. We got one slice of pissaladiere and a piece of quiche. The pissaladiere was so good we each got another piece. Including a carafe of wine and 2 espressos the total was €19!!! Now that’s a bargain meal!
We loved the pissaladire, this is a Nicoise speciality and the only way I can describe it as an carmelized onion topped foccacia, as a carbohydrate junkie, I LOVED it!
On the way back to the hotel we stopped for gelato at Fennochi, we were told this is the oldest gelato stand in Nice. It was pretty good, but we would have better in the next few days. We took our time wandering back to the hotel exploring some of the nooks and crannies of the old town.
Nov 14th, 2008, 07:21 PM
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cigalechanta....
OH YES...we had a fabulous socca experience which I will post in the Sunday installment. Let's just say that after we had it (twice) we went in search of a socca pan so mom could make her own.
We didn't find the pan, but a pizza pan will also work, now we just have to find the chickpea flour...not a popular product here in the SC Low Country!
OH YES...we had a fabulous socca experience which I will post in the Sunday installment. Let's just say that after we had it (twice) we went in search of a socca pan so mom could make her own.
We didn't find the pan, but a pizza pan will also work, now we just have to find the chickpea flour...not a popular product here in the SC Low Country!
Nov 14th, 2008, 09:29 PM
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Pissaladiere is made with bread dough and easy to make at home. Socca is tricky. You can bake it in the oven but it doesn't taste the same as the "real" thing. (I tried!).
Socca copper pans can be found in Vieux Nice (there is a store in Place St François) and are very expensive (€100 and up).
I have both recipes if you are interested.
Socca copper pans can be found in Vieux Nice (there is a store in Place St François) and are very expensive (€100 and up).
I have both recipes if you are interested.
Nov 15th, 2008, 01:34 PM
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Pvoyageusa...
Thanks for the recipe offer. We actually have a socca recipe from the market/cooking tour we did in Nice, more on that in a later post. We did try to find the store with the socca pans but must have been walking in circles because we never could find it.
Travelgirl2...
The bull, at least the way it was prepared where I had it was what I would call very mild tasting and very tender. Almost similar to a beef stew consistency and it was served in pastry...I would not hesitate to have it again. I know there is also bull sausage that we saw in the market in Sarlat, but I did not have it so can't comment on the taste of it.
Toucan2...
Yup, I tend to mutter "a good reason to come back" ALOT in my travels. My trouble is there are so many new places I want to explore too. Although I never turn down return trips to Italy for some reason! It's probably the food
Thanks for the recipe offer. We actually have a socca recipe from the market/cooking tour we did in Nice, more on that in a later post. We did try to find the store with the socca pans but must have been walking in circles because we never could find it.
Travelgirl2...
The bull, at least the way it was prepared where I had it was what I would call very mild tasting and very tender. Almost similar to a beef stew consistency and it was served in pastry...I would not hesitate to have it again. I know there is also bull sausage that we saw in the market in Sarlat, but I did not have it so can't comment on the taste of it.
Toucan2...
Yup, I tend to mutter "a good reason to come back" ALOT in my travels. My trouble is there are so many new places I want to explore too. Although I never turn down return trips to Italy for some reason! It's probably the food
Nov 15th, 2008, 03:58 PM
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Day Sixteen: Friday, Oct. 3rd, 2008
Today was another picture perfect weather day. We had breakfast, at the hotel, which was sufficient, but not spectacular and were out the door by 9:30am and on the bus to Monaco by 10am.
We took the #100 (Nice-Menton) bus from the Nice Gare Routiere. The bus fare was €1 one way. The bus was packed with people, but we managed to find seats for the approximately 45 minute ride to Monaco. This bus route goes along the Low Corniche which hugs the coastline from Nice to Monaco.
Since the bus was so full, and I was on the left side of the bus, it was difficult to see the names of all the bus stops, but the scenery along this route was stunning. I did manage to get off at the right stop (Place d’Armes stop) and after taking a wrong turn, we managed to find our way to the Palace and Old Town.
We could not have asked for a more ideal setting, the clear blue sky, the sparkling blue water, the sun shining. The only crimp in this otherwise perfect weather was the wind, it was blowing so hard our hair was just about standing up on end…but a small hassle to put up with in a near idyllic day!
By the time we arrived at the palace area the changing of the guard was about 30 minutes away, we could see the crowds of people already starting to form. We decided to not stay for the event but rather wander around and go into the cathedral. We then walked through the lovely botanical gardens and all the way down the hill to the harbour. In spite of the “breezy” conditions, it was great walking weather!
We stopped for lunch along the harbour at the Hotel Miramar, where we most likely paid way too much for 2 sandwiches and 2 oranginas, €35 but we enjoyed a leisurely lunch watching all the activity in the harbour.
After lunch we continued our walk and went to the Monte Carlo Casino. All I can say is WOW! In my opinion, definitely OTT (over the top). The Casino is opulent, and we did get to go inside and check out the entry area. If I wanted to play some video poker there was a room to the right of the entrance where “mere mortals” could play, but I’m not the gambling type, so we just had a look around, peeking into one of the gaming rooms, where I could only dream of getting entry into, even if I was a gambling kind of gal.
The park area in front of and around the casino was immaculately manicured and there was a vintage car show going on in the front of the casino which added even more people milling about and gawking, but hey, we were part of the gawkers too.
When we were finished being “wowed” by the casino we walked through the park area to the Boulevard Princess Charlotte where there is a bus stop for the #112 bus that goes to Eze le Village. This bus is not very frequent; I believe the schedule indicated in runs something like every 1.5 hours give or take. We did wait about an hour but this is the first stop on this line and it was right on time. It was only a 15 minute ride to Eze and this route goes along the Middle Corniche, so we were able to get some great views of the Mediterranean.
Eze le Village is a tiny hill top village and mostly filled with artist’s shops. But there were some spectacular views which meant great photos opportunities for me. We did find an interesting artist’s shop where her paintings were on pillow covers. Many of the paintings were of doorways and windows in the village and other were of areas of Provence. They were really quite lovely and mom and I succumbed to a little retail therapy at this particular shop! But now as we sit at home and gaze at the pillows adorning our sofas, we think back to this great trip!
By 5pm we were ready to get back to Nice and walked down to the bus stop to wait for the bus. The bus arrived at about 5:30pm and we were back in Nice shortly after 6pm. The public buses were great for getting around and at €1 a ride the price couldn’t have been better!
Once back at the hotel we got ready to meet the group for our farewell dinner (last supper sounds too ominous!). This was another good meal (but not great). It was at a restaurant in a hotel on Avenue Felix Faure (I can’t remember the name). Mom and I had the goat cheese salad for our starter and our main dish was veal with vegetables and mashed potatoes. We finished with fig tarte, which was just so-so and espresso. It really did pale in comparison to the meal at Corazon in Arles but all group meals won’t be perfect.
After dinner Patrick had us meet on the Promenade Anglais in front of the Med and we all toasted with sparkling wine to a good trip. It was nice way to end a great tour. After saying our goodbyes we went back to our room knowing we could sleep in tomorrow and look forward to experiencing a new hotel!
Today was another picture perfect weather day. We had breakfast, at the hotel, which was sufficient, but not spectacular and were out the door by 9:30am and on the bus to Monaco by 10am.
We took the #100 (Nice-Menton) bus from the Nice Gare Routiere. The bus fare was €1 one way. The bus was packed with people, but we managed to find seats for the approximately 45 minute ride to Monaco. This bus route goes along the Low Corniche which hugs the coastline from Nice to Monaco.
Since the bus was so full, and I was on the left side of the bus, it was difficult to see the names of all the bus stops, but the scenery along this route was stunning. I did manage to get off at the right stop (Place d’Armes stop) and after taking a wrong turn, we managed to find our way to the Palace and Old Town.
We could not have asked for a more ideal setting, the clear blue sky, the sparkling blue water, the sun shining. The only crimp in this otherwise perfect weather was the wind, it was blowing so hard our hair was just about standing up on end…but a small hassle to put up with in a near idyllic day!
By the time we arrived at the palace area the changing of the guard was about 30 minutes away, we could see the crowds of people already starting to form. We decided to not stay for the event but rather wander around and go into the cathedral. We then walked through the lovely botanical gardens and all the way down the hill to the harbour. In spite of the “breezy” conditions, it was great walking weather!
We stopped for lunch along the harbour at the Hotel Miramar, where we most likely paid way too much for 2 sandwiches and 2 oranginas, €35 but we enjoyed a leisurely lunch watching all the activity in the harbour.
After lunch we continued our walk and went to the Monte Carlo Casino. All I can say is WOW! In my opinion, definitely OTT (over the top). The Casino is opulent, and we did get to go inside and check out the entry area. If I wanted to play some video poker there was a room to the right of the entrance where “mere mortals” could play, but I’m not the gambling type, so we just had a look around, peeking into one of the gaming rooms, where I could only dream of getting entry into, even if I was a gambling kind of gal.
The park area in front of and around the casino was immaculately manicured and there was a vintage car show going on in the front of the casino which added even more people milling about and gawking, but hey, we were part of the gawkers too.
When we were finished being “wowed” by the casino we walked through the park area to the Boulevard Princess Charlotte where there is a bus stop for the #112 bus that goes to Eze le Village. This bus is not very frequent; I believe the schedule indicated in runs something like every 1.5 hours give or take. We did wait about an hour but this is the first stop on this line and it was right on time. It was only a 15 minute ride to Eze and this route goes along the Middle Corniche, so we were able to get some great views of the Mediterranean.
Eze le Village is a tiny hill top village and mostly filled with artist’s shops. But there were some spectacular views which meant great photos opportunities for me. We did find an interesting artist’s shop where her paintings were on pillow covers. Many of the paintings were of doorways and windows in the village and other were of areas of Provence. They were really quite lovely and mom and I succumbed to a little retail therapy at this particular shop! But now as we sit at home and gaze at the pillows adorning our sofas, we think back to this great trip!
By 5pm we were ready to get back to Nice and walked down to the bus stop to wait for the bus. The bus arrived at about 5:30pm and we were back in Nice shortly after 6pm. The public buses were great for getting around and at €1 a ride the price couldn’t have been better!
Once back at the hotel we got ready to meet the group for our farewell dinner (last supper sounds too ominous!). This was another good meal (but not great). It was at a restaurant in a hotel on Avenue Felix Faure (I can’t remember the name). Mom and I had the goat cheese salad for our starter and our main dish was veal with vegetables and mashed potatoes. We finished with fig tarte, which was just so-so and espresso. It really did pale in comparison to the meal at Corazon in Arles but all group meals won’t be perfect.
After dinner Patrick had us meet on the Promenade Anglais in front of the Med and we all toasted with sparkling wine to a good trip. It was nice way to end a great tour. After saying our goodbyes we went back to our room knowing we could sleep in tomorrow and look forward to experiencing a new hotel!
Nov 15th, 2008, 05:39 PM
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Day Seventeen: Saturday, Oct. 4th, 2008
We slept in a bit today and enjoyed a leisurely breakfast and checked out of the hotel at about 10am. We took the 15 minute walk to our “new” hotel. When planning this trip I knew we wanted to stay in Nice a few days after the tour ended and we could have stayed in the perfectly fine Nice Marche aux Fleur hotel, but I wanted to try another hotel while we were in Nice. After lots of research on the Fodors message boards, Le Hotel Grimaldi rose to the top of my list.
When we arrived I was very happy to find out we were getting a room upgrade! For €115 per night we had a 3rd floor room that looked out the front of the building with a pretty church across the street. The room and bathroom were spacious, clean and very comfortable.
After settling in we decided to go to Ville Franche sur Mer for the afternoon. We walked over to the bus station and got the #100 bus and took the 15 minute ride to Ville Franche sur Mer.
We arrived at just after noon and we walked around the Old Town and harbour and found a little outdoor café to have lunch. We each had a pain bagnot, which is basically a Nicoise salad on a huge round loaf of bread…it was good!
After lunch and walking around a bit more we got the bus back to Nice. In the early evening we stopped for an aperitif at La Civetta du Cours right in the Cours Saleya. This café was packed and appeared to be the “place to be and been seen”.
We decided to go to Nissa Soca, a Pudlo restaurant recommendation, for dinner. We got there just before 7:30pm and we were lucky to get the last table!
I was all set to have the eggplant main dish. We ordered the fried beignets for our starters and then had major disappointment when the server told me there was no more eggplant left, ok, I’ll have the lasagne. Halfway through our starter our server became my angel, because she came over and said they had one more eggplant dish left and did I want it? Of course! So I had the eggplant main dish and mom had the lasagne main. Both were terrific. We both had the apple tarte for dessert, it was light and delicious and we followed that with espressos. With a bottle of wine the total was €50. We went home very satisfied.
We slept in a bit today and enjoyed a leisurely breakfast and checked out of the hotel at about 10am. We took the 15 minute walk to our “new” hotel. When planning this trip I knew we wanted to stay in Nice a few days after the tour ended and we could have stayed in the perfectly fine Nice Marche aux Fleur hotel, but I wanted to try another hotel while we were in Nice. After lots of research on the Fodors message boards, Le Hotel Grimaldi rose to the top of my list.
When we arrived I was very happy to find out we were getting a room upgrade! For €115 per night we had a 3rd floor room that looked out the front of the building with a pretty church across the street. The room and bathroom were spacious, clean and very comfortable.
After settling in we decided to go to Ville Franche sur Mer for the afternoon. We walked over to the bus station and got the #100 bus and took the 15 minute ride to Ville Franche sur Mer.
We arrived at just after noon and we walked around the Old Town and harbour and found a little outdoor café to have lunch. We each had a pain bagnot, which is basically a Nicoise salad on a huge round loaf of bread…it was good!
After lunch and walking around a bit more we got the bus back to Nice. In the early evening we stopped for an aperitif at La Civetta du Cours right in the Cours Saleya. This café was packed and appeared to be the “place to be and been seen”.
We decided to go to Nissa Soca, a Pudlo restaurant recommendation, for dinner. We got there just before 7:30pm and we were lucky to get the last table!
I was all set to have the eggplant main dish. We ordered the fried beignets for our starters and then had major disappointment when the server told me there was no more eggplant left, ok, I’ll have the lasagne. Halfway through our starter our server became my angel, because she came over and said they had one more eggplant dish left and did I want it? Of course! So I had the eggplant main dish and mom had the lasagne main. Both were terrific. We both had the apple tarte for dessert, it was light and delicious and we followed that with espressos. With a bottle of wine the total was €50. We went home very satisfied.
Nov 15th, 2008, 06:08 PM
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Day Eighteen: Sunday, Oct. 5th, 2008
Today was an early morning for us. We booked a market tour and socca breakfast with Rosa Jackson of Petits Farcis (www.petitsfarcis.com/) and (www.rosajackson.com) who is a local food and travel writer who conducts food tours and cooking classes. This was not an inexpensive venture, but in our opinion it was worth it because we had a great time. The tour we chose was the market tour and breakfast at Rosa’s apartment and it was €120 per person.
At 8am Rosa met us at the Cours Saleya market and we sat down for coffee and a bit of history at Le Civetta du Cours café. By 9am we were walking through the market like locals, tasting olives and buying ingredients for breakfast. We also stopped at a local bakery for some mouth watering treats!
We then made our way to Rosa’s apartment in the Old Town where her husband had been doing the prep work to help make our breakfast. The main feature was socca that Rosa made for us, with a little of the fresh rosemary we bought at the market.
Socca is a local speciality. It’s a chickpea crepe-like treat. It was delicious. Along with the socca we had a couple different types of goat cheese, olives, baked eggs, fruit bread, ciabatta, a local sweet pastry made with chard (which I can’t remember the name of, but was wonderful) and for dessert (as if all that food wasn’t enough!) we had fresh berries with fromage blanc. All this before 11:30am!
This was a fun way for us to spend the morning and see a bit more of the local side of Nice, Rosa shops the market daily and knows almost all the vendors, so it was interesting to see the personal interaction.
After leaving Rosa’s (or maybe I should say, rolling out of Rosa’s apartment!) we walked along the Promenade Anglais for a little while and then decided to go see the Russian Cathedral. We caught the tram (€1) to the train station and from there is was about a 15 minute walk to the cathedral.
What a neat building, as we turned the corning we saw the onion shaped domes peeking out above the trees. For as elaborate as the domes outside were, I was surprised it was rather small inside, just one large room, but some exquisite art work.
When we left he cathedral I could tell from our map we could walk back to the hotel using a different route. It took us about 30 minutes, but we got to see more of the new town of Nice.
After taking a short rest we set out for our evening aperitif. Tonight we had drinks at Antonia café on the square where the church of St. Reparte is. By 7pm we decided to take Rosa’s recommendation and had dinner at Casa Mia at 4, rue du Pontin. Our meal here was excellent. When we arrived we were the only ones in the restaurant, but it filled up quickly.
For starters I had what they called October salad; it had Parma ham, fennel, and apples, just delicious. Mom had the polenta with gorgonzola cheese, it tasted like heaven! I had the veal scaloppini with gorgonzola and mom had the veal saltimbocca for our main dishes. Both were excellent. I had the molten chocolate cake that was almost like pudding and mom had espresso. With a bottle of wine the total was €75.
We walked leisurely back to the hotel through the Old Town and fell asleep with full bellies.
Today was an early morning for us. We booked a market tour and socca breakfast with Rosa Jackson of Petits Farcis (www.petitsfarcis.com/) and (www.rosajackson.com) who is a local food and travel writer who conducts food tours and cooking classes. This was not an inexpensive venture, but in our opinion it was worth it because we had a great time. The tour we chose was the market tour and breakfast at Rosa’s apartment and it was €120 per person.
At 8am Rosa met us at the Cours Saleya market and we sat down for coffee and a bit of history at Le Civetta du Cours café. By 9am we were walking through the market like locals, tasting olives and buying ingredients for breakfast. We also stopped at a local bakery for some mouth watering treats!
We then made our way to Rosa’s apartment in the Old Town where her husband had been doing the prep work to help make our breakfast. The main feature was socca that Rosa made for us, with a little of the fresh rosemary we bought at the market.
Socca is a local speciality. It’s a chickpea crepe-like treat. It was delicious. Along with the socca we had a couple different types of goat cheese, olives, baked eggs, fruit bread, ciabatta, a local sweet pastry made with chard (which I can’t remember the name of, but was wonderful) and for dessert (as if all that food wasn’t enough!) we had fresh berries with fromage blanc. All this before 11:30am!
This was a fun way for us to spend the morning and see a bit more of the local side of Nice, Rosa shops the market daily and knows almost all the vendors, so it was interesting to see the personal interaction.
After leaving Rosa’s (or maybe I should say, rolling out of Rosa’s apartment!) we walked along the Promenade Anglais for a little while and then decided to go see the Russian Cathedral. We caught the tram (€1) to the train station and from there is was about a 15 minute walk to the cathedral.
What a neat building, as we turned the corning we saw the onion shaped domes peeking out above the trees. For as elaborate as the domes outside were, I was surprised it was rather small inside, just one large room, but some exquisite art work.
When we left he cathedral I could tell from our map we could walk back to the hotel using a different route. It took us about 30 minutes, but we got to see more of the new town of Nice.
After taking a short rest we set out for our evening aperitif. Tonight we had drinks at Antonia café on the square where the church of St. Reparte is. By 7pm we decided to take Rosa’s recommendation and had dinner at Casa Mia at 4, rue du Pontin. Our meal here was excellent. When we arrived we were the only ones in the restaurant, but it filled up quickly.
For starters I had what they called October salad; it had Parma ham, fennel, and apples, just delicious. Mom had the polenta with gorgonzola cheese, it tasted like heaven! I had the veal scaloppini with gorgonzola and mom had the veal saltimbocca for our main dishes. Both were excellent. I had the molten chocolate cake that was almost like pudding and mom had espresso. With a bottle of wine the total was €75.
We walked leisurely back to the hotel through the Old Town and fell asleep with full bellies.
Nov 15th, 2008, 06:38 PM
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Day Nineteen: Monday, Oct. 6th, 2008
We had entertained the idea of taking the train up into the mountains and exploring some of the little towns there. But that would have required and early start to the day and at this point we were enjoying being in “vacation mode” and instead chose to make today a museum day.
We had breakfast at the Hotel Grimaldi today and by 10am we took the #15 bus to the Matisse Museum. We were lucky again and entry was free to the museum today, we never did find out why. It took about an hour to see the exhibits and then we hopped back on the #15 bus and took it to the Chagall Museum.
The Chagall Museum was &euro:17 for the 2 of us. We spent about an hour walking through. I didn’t really know anything about Chagall before going to the museum and found that I liked several of his pieces more then I thought I would. When we were finished with our museum day we got back on bus #15 and took it back to our morning starting point.
When we got off the bus we were right in front of the Galleries Lafayette. We went in and I looked at all the beautiful hand bags. My tongue was really wagging at the variety of Longchamp bags. Before the trip I jokingly said I wanted to come back home with a Longchamp bag, to my disadvantage there was one particular bag that I was really taken with. I hemmed and hawed over the price and then decided I needed a coffee break to think over if I really should splurge.
We found a café and sat for about an hour with our coffees. And, yes, I did go back and buy the coveted bag. Yes, it was a major splurge, but I absolutely love this bag. After my credit card stopped smoking, we went back to the hotel for a short rest.
At 6pm we went out for our evening aperitif, this time we went back to the café at the Cours Saleya and had a few drinks. For dinner we chose a restaurant that was both a Pudlo and Rosa Jackson recommendation. The restaurant was Le Merenda and from the outside it does not look like much. Inside was tiny, it seats maybe 25 people, but it was one of the best meals on this trip.
I started with beignets of zucchini flowers and mom had ratatouille, both were excellent. Mom and I both had the daube de beouf which is a beef stew provencal. It was so tender we didn’t even need a knife. For dessert we both had a local dessert, which is a pie of chard, but it was a bit different then the one we had with Rosa. Actually this one was much better; it had a slight lemon flavour. With 2 espressos to finish things off and a bottle of white wine the total was €89.
This was another terrific ending to a great day. Tomorrow will be our last full day in Nice before heading home.
We had entertained the idea of taking the train up into the mountains and exploring some of the little towns there. But that would have required and early start to the day and at this point we were enjoying being in “vacation mode” and instead chose to make today a museum day.
We had breakfast at the Hotel Grimaldi today and by 10am we took the #15 bus to the Matisse Museum. We were lucky again and entry was free to the museum today, we never did find out why. It took about an hour to see the exhibits and then we hopped back on the #15 bus and took it to the Chagall Museum.
The Chagall Museum was &euro:17 for the 2 of us. We spent about an hour walking through. I didn’t really know anything about Chagall before going to the museum and found that I liked several of his pieces more then I thought I would. When we were finished with our museum day we got back on bus #15 and took it back to our morning starting point.
When we got off the bus we were right in front of the Galleries Lafayette. We went in and I looked at all the beautiful hand bags. My tongue was really wagging at the variety of Longchamp bags. Before the trip I jokingly said I wanted to come back home with a Longchamp bag, to my disadvantage there was one particular bag that I was really taken with. I hemmed and hawed over the price and then decided I needed a coffee break to think over if I really should splurge.
We found a café and sat for about an hour with our coffees. And, yes, I did go back and buy the coveted bag. Yes, it was a major splurge, but I absolutely love this bag. After my credit card stopped smoking, we went back to the hotel for a short rest.
At 6pm we went out for our evening aperitif, this time we went back to the café at the Cours Saleya and had a few drinks. For dinner we chose a restaurant that was both a Pudlo and Rosa Jackson recommendation. The restaurant was Le Merenda and from the outside it does not look like much. Inside was tiny, it seats maybe 25 people, but it was one of the best meals on this trip.
I started with beignets of zucchini flowers and mom had ratatouille, both were excellent. Mom and I both had the daube de beouf which is a beef stew provencal. It was so tender we didn’t even need a knife. For dessert we both had a local dessert, which is a pie of chard, but it was a bit different then the one we had with Rosa. Actually this one was much better; it had a slight lemon flavour. With 2 espressos to finish things off and a bottle of white wine the total was €89.
This was another terrific ending to a great day. Tomorrow will be our last full day in Nice before heading home.
Nov 15th, 2008, 07:04 PM
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Day Twenty: Tuesday, Oct. 7th, 2008
We had a very leisurely day today and didn’t get started until 10am. We walked through the Old Town and flower market making a few last minute purchases. We then spent some time walking along the Promenade Anglais.
It started to get close to lunch time and we decided we couldn’t leave Nice without having some more socca. We went back to Lou Pilha Leva, where we had the pissaladiere the other night and had 2 orders of socca. For the socca and a pitcher of lemonade the total was €10.50. We sat outside on the benches and enjoyed our lunch and the sunny weather.
The rest of the afternoon was low-key. We walked back to the hotel and started to pack our bags for our departure tomorrow.
By 5:30pm we were ready for our daily aperitif and we walked over to the café at the Cours Saleya. We had a few drinks before going to dinner. Tonight’s restaurant was recommended by Rosa and we were very glad we took her advice. As a matter of fact, we actually met the restaurant owner at the market on Sunday.
The name of the restaurant is L’Oliviera at 8 bis, rue du Collet (www.oliviera.com). The owner could not have been more accommodating. His speciality is olive oil, but also, everything on his menu is fresh from the market.
I started with a cold eggplant and cheese puree with roasted red peppers which were out of this world, the flavours were amazing. Mom had the feta wrapped in phylo dough, also excellent. Prior to the starter we tasted fresh Nice olive oil, like no other olive oil I’ve tasted, really light.
My main dish was linguini al pesto with diced fresh heirloom tomatoes, it was just delicious. Mom had roasted white eggplant stuffed with meat and topped with fresh tomato sauce and served with a vegetable gratin, both main dishes were great.
We tasted another local olive oil that once we tried it, left the slightest hint of unripe banana, I know it sounds weird, but it tasted great.
We decided to share the tiramisu dessert which was good, but when the owner poured some olive oil on the side and said to try it on the tiramisu I was a sceptic. Well no more! This olive oil was specially aged with no air (I don’t get all the science behind this, something about this no air process stops the oil from going rancid?), the olive oil with the tiramisu made this dessert the most unbelievably delicious tiramisu I have ever had, and believe me, I’ve tried a lot of tiramisu!
We ended the meal with 2 espressos. With a bottle of wine the total for this meal came to &euro:83. It was a wonderful way to end our trip to France. And the owner (Nadim) was just delightful. He took the time to explain everything on the menu and all about the different olive oils.
We walked back to the hotel and did a final pack for our impending departure.
We had a very leisurely day today and didn’t get started until 10am. We walked through the Old Town and flower market making a few last minute purchases. We then spent some time walking along the Promenade Anglais.
It started to get close to lunch time and we decided we couldn’t leave Nice without having some more socca. We went back to Lou Pilha Leva, where we had the pissaladiere the other night and had 2 orders of socca. For the socca and a pitcher of lemonade the total was €10.50. We sat outside on the benches and enjoyed our lunch and the sunny weather.
The rest of the afternoon was low-key. We walked back to the hotel and started to pack our bags for our departure tomorrow.
By 5:30pm we were ready for our daily aperitif and we walked over to the café at the Cours Saleya. We had a few drinks before going to dinner. Tonight’s restaurant was recommended by Rosa and we were very glad we took her advice. As a matter of fact, we actually met the restaurant owner at the market on Sunday.
The name of the restaurant is L’Oliviera at 8 bis, rue du Collet (www.oliviera.com). The owner could not have been more accommodating. His speciality is olive oil, but also, everything on his menu is fresh from the market.
I started with a cold eggplant and cheese puree with roasted red peppers which were out of this world, the flavours were amazing. Mom had the feta wrapped in phylo dough, also excellent. Prior to the starter we tasted fresh Nice olive oil, like no other olive oil I’ve tasted, really light.
My main dish was linguini al pesto with diced fresh heirloom tomatoes, it was just delicious. Mom had roasted white eggplant stuffed with meat and topped with fresh tomato sauce and served with a vegetable gratin, both main dishes were great.
We tasted another local olive oil that once we tried it, left the slightest hint of unripe banana, I know it sounds weird, but it tasted great.
We decided to share the tiramisu dessert which was good, but when the owner poured some olive oil on the side and said to try it on the tiramisu I was a sceptic. Well no more! This olive oil was specially aged with no air (I don’t get all the science behind this, something about this no air process stops the oil from going rancid?), the olive oil with the tiramisu made this dessert the most unbelievably delicious tiramisu I have ever had, and believe me, I’ve tried a lot of tiramisu!
We ended the meal with 2 espressos. With a bottle of wine the total for this meal came to &euro:83. It was a wonderful way to end our trip to France. And the owner (Nadim) was just delightful. He took the time to explain everything on the menu and all about the different olive oils.
We walked back to the hotel and did a final pack for our impending departure.
Nov 15th, 2008, 07:31 PM
#98
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Day Twenty-One and Twenty-Two: Wednesday, Oct. 8th & Thursday, Oct. 9th, 2008
We were up early today for the shuttle van pick-up at 8am. We booked the shuttle service through the hotel and the price was &euro:30 for the 2 of us. The shuttle arrived right on time and we had one other pick-up before going to the airport. We arrived at the airport in plenty of time and had no lines at the check-in desk. We made it through security and immigration/passport control and we were at the gate with an hour to spare. The flight left on time and we landed at JFK on time.
To our pleasant surprise we were off the plane, through passport control, retrieved our bags and through customs in less then an hour! Once we were in the arrivals hall I called the car service I had reserved and within 10 minutes we were on our way into NYC to spend the night.
We arrived in the West Village at the Washington Square Hotel (103 Waverly Place) right around 3:30pm, just 2 hours from touch-down! I planned our trip with this stop in NYC to try and help combat jet lag and it really did help. We went to dinner at 6:30pm at a terrific new restaurant in NYC called Apiary (it was excellent! And involved a goat cheesecake for dessert…hey, why abandon the goat cheese just because I’m not in France!).
We got to sleep early and were up early the next day to catch a direct flight from LaGuardia to Savannah and were back home by 4:30 Thursday afternoon. And for the first time in my life, my suitcase was the very first on the luggage carousel! A happy ending to a Faboulous French vacation!
Thanks again to all the Fodorites who posted helpful informatin that enhanced my trip. And thanks to all for hanging in with me on this lenghty report!
We were up early today for the shuttle van pick-up at 8am. We booked the shuttle service through the hotel and the price was &euro:30 for the 2 of us. The shuttle arrived right on time and we had one other pick-up before going to the airport. We arrived at the airport in plenty of time and had no lines at the check-in desk. We made it through security and immigration/passport control and we were at the gate with an hour to spare. The flight left on time and we landed at JFK on time.
To our pleasant surprise we were off the plane, through passport control, retrieved our bags and through customs in less then an hour! Once we were in the arrivals hall I called the car service I had reserved and within 10 minutes we were on our way into NYC to spend the night.
We arrived in the West Village at the Washington Square Hotel (103 Waverly Place) right around 3:30pm, just 2 hours from touch-down! I planned our trip with this stop in NYC to try and help combat jet lag and it really did help. We went to dinner at 6:30pm at a terrific new restaurant in NYC called Apiary (it was excellent! And involved a goat cheesecake for dessert…hey, why abandon the goat cheese just because I’m not in France!).
We got to sleep early and were up early the next day to catch a direct flight from LaGuardia to Savannah and were back home by 4:30 Thursday afternoon. And for the first time in my life, my suitcase was the very first on the luggage carousel! A happy ending to a Faboulous French vacation!
Thanks again to all the Fodorites who posted helpful informatin that enhanced my trip. And thanks to all for hanging in with me on this lenghty report!
