Sunday 10 June Cote d’Azur

Got on the “Peage” (toll road) first thing this morning, and zoomed over to Grasse, about 200 km away, in about 1.5 hours (averaging 110km/h. The speed limit on the Peage is 130km, and that is pretty much what the middle lane does. The fast lane zips by at about 20km/h faster than that. Fantastic roads, make getting from place to place quickly a breeze. Toll costs are around 4-5 euros per hour.

So, we arrived in Grasse late morning. Grasse is the historical centre of the perfume industry in France (if you have not read the book ‘Perfume’, by Patrick Suskind, you should do so immediately, or at least watch the (very good) film version of it). Jeremy’s cousin Jenny is a perfumier here, employed to construct new scents for clients. Grasse itself is an ancient town, clinging to the edge of a steep steep hill, with little tiny narrow streets (like so many of the other towns we have come across in our travels). Kind of scary when you are piloting a bus like this Mercedes we have rented. We found our way to our hotel, a converted nunnery with truly spectacular views over Grasse and out to Cannes on the coast, and we eventually managed to catch up with Jenny, and collect her for a guided tour of the area. 

First stop was Monaco. Well, it was meant to be, but we missed the turnoff and had a brief foray over the border into Italy - didn’t think I would be back in Italy this quickly! - but managed to do a U-turn just before the toll station that wanted to collect an arrival tax or something. Back along the coast, and then we dropped down, down, down the hill into Monaco. Another little country-within-a-country, like the Vatican, but slightly bigger, and here they worship the great god money, rather than just the great God. It is not really what I was expecting - well, I didn’t know what to expect really, but what I saw was a tiny concrete jungle of high rises, most with lovely gardens on their roofs, a couple of big marinas full of fabulously expensive looking superyachts, and more Ferraris, Porsches and Maseratis than you can shake a stick at. We walked up to the palace, a very unassuming big house on the top of a hill overlooking the whole place, and took in the view. While we were there, the guards got all excited, whistles blew, and then a sleek black car swept out of the palace. We caught a brief glimpse of the back seat occupants, and Jenny and I looked at each other and said “Was that really ...?”, “Yes, I think it was” - it was Prince Albert (I think he is actually King now), and Queen (princess?) Charlene. I’m sorry, but I simply cannot say Princess Charlene with a straight face. I mean really!! Anyway - royalty spotting ticked off the list of things to do!

Next stop was Cannes, and a quick drive along the waterfront to spot the theatre where the festival takes place, the pavement where all the stars plant their handprints, and the hotel that Madonna usually stays at until she got banned this year for trashing her room and causing 30 000 euros worth of damage. 

OK, enough celebrity spotting. Back to Grasse for a delicious Indian dinner, and a tour of Jenny’s apartment, and that was another day done.

Monaco - this is the view as you walk out of the parking building

Jenny and Danae in Monaco

Monaco

The mian marina at Monaco

Looking from the palace into the other bay of Monaco - we thought this was
 probably the more exclusive part of the town

The Grimaldi's place, Monaco

The Casino - how many songs can you think of that feature this place? We could think of two - Abba's Money Money Money (I'd have to go, to Las Vegas or Monaco), and whoever sings The Man Who Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo.

The red carpet, at Cannes

View out over Grasse, from the main square (where Jean-Baptiste Grenouille met his grisly end in Perfume)