The Ancient Village of Eze

The village of Eze is located, well I think perched or clinging is more apt, upon a rocky outcrop overlooking the Cote d'Azur. One of the things that i find so amazing about this area is the price of travel. It only costs 1.50 for a tram pass or buss pass for a single trip, but you can swap from tram to bus and use the same ticket as long as it is within 74 minutes of the first validation. So, all in all travelling distance is great value, unlike the UK where it costs me £5.00 to travel 7 miles to my local town on the bus. 

Looking up to Eze from the Fragonard Perfumery Factory

I decided to hop on the bus, which not only was cheap but took 20 mins. On my short travels here I have already realized that it's more luck than judgement knowing when to get off public transport at the right spot. Unless, of course, you get kicked off as it is the last stop. Anyway enough boring travel talk. From the bus stop, which is basically behind the rocky outcrop upon which the old Eze is perched, it does not look overly impressive. Just any old village upon a hill. I decided I wanted to go straight to the highest point. The village itself is solely for pedestrians. The streets are windy with narrow with high stone walls, and cobbled. So if you ever visit, Do Not wear heels! I saw several glamorous women struggling. A few times I took a few wrong turns but eventually I reached the entrance for the Cactus Gardens. This is the only way to get to the highest point, but because I cheekily still had my student card I enjoyed a discounted rate of entry for 2.50 euros. 

The garden instantly grabbed my attention, it's very similar to an outside theater built into a cliff, called the Minack. Albeit we were higher up, and full of Cacti but something made it feel like I was at home. The view was stunning I could see right over to Antibes and the mountains behind, and to my left was a peninsula in my way of Monaco. 

After a while it began to get chilly and a bit too windy. So i descended back to the little village which really is enchanting. Most of the tourist shops and cafes were ground floor and had been used in the past as holdings for small farm animals or cellars. Watch out if you enter one of the tourist trap shops, the assistant will grab you and try to sell you anything they can. 

This is the view from the top of the Cactus Gardens

Dilemma

I am currently facing a dilemma. I worked late last night, and got home after 1am, albeit I did have dinner with my boss (female). Tiredness is in my mind and I don't really have conversation, but going out is on my mind. However, I am not quite up for going and drinking, that and my wallet screams in pain at the thought of any more money being spent. My whole day has been spent staring at a computer screen and right now it's difficult for me to even write this!

But what does one do after work when they are weary and too poor to go and drink? How do people meet people outside of work? I just do not understand. I need ideas to do something that is cheap and not alcohol related! HELP ME!!!

Cannes Film Festival/ Exploration

Sorry it's taken a little while to write this post. As you can imagine I've been busy settling into my new job and making new friends. Also the weather has been pants so I have not been able to go out much to explore.   However, since last Tuesday evening the Cannes Film Festival has been running (hence the bad weather). I had planned an amazing trip to gorge myself on the glitz and glamour of the festival but also to hop on a boat to the Ile St Marguerite which is about 20mins from Cannes.

My day began with thinking I had work, but no one turned up in the office by 10am. I was extremely confused by this, even though I know they're normally late, but usually someone is there earlier. But no, then I remembered that it was a bank holiday and last time that meant no one was in. So, i packed my bags and upped to Cannes for the day... But by the time I had caught the shuttle to the tram, bought some lunch, caught the train it was almost 1pm! 40 minutes later I arrived in sunny Cannes. Not quite what I was expecting. Not the instant glamour, just another normal city train station with normal city streets. Until I reached the Boulevard de Croisette.... This is where things changed! So many people everywhere. Many dressed in smart suits, the smell of expensive aftershave lingering in the air. Then there were the ordinary Joe Bloggs mingling in trying to glimpse someone famous.

Sadly no, I did not see anyone famous when I walked past the red carpet on leading up to the Palais des Festivales. I quickly gathered the information I needed from the Office de Tourisme cleverly located inbetween two red carpets and headed in the direction of the old port. The main aim of my day really was to visit Ile St Marguerite.

This is one of the Lerins islands which are located just off the coast of Cannes, this island in particular is most famous for it's fort, Fort Royal. Incarcerated within this fort during the 17thC was the original Man in the Iron mask. Now the film with Leonardo di Caprio does this island no justice! It's beautiful at only 3km in width. Easily to walk in an afternoon.... Unless like me with a bad ankle that's strapped up, causing me to determinedly hobble most of the way!

The second I stepped onto the island, I noticed and eery calm. There was almost no noise save for that of the water and the few tourists that had decided to escape the hustle and bustle of Cannes. My first stop was the Fort, albeit a bit smaller than I expected, it too had an eery presence that no doubt was due to it's turbulent history. During the 16thC the island was owned by monks who then passed it onto the Duke of Chevreuse, who began building the fort. However the island was soon captured by the Spanish and it took 2 years for the French to win it back. But before this the island and its smaller sister island were both raided over the years by Saracens. So, walking through the battlements imagining the bloodshed that had occurred over this small patch of land made me feel, hmmm, I'm not too sure. Potentially insignificant I think.

It took a good 2 hours to walk the island but then this was in gale force wind! It was beautiful covered in eucalyptus and pines with pathways all over the place, and I hardly met another soul walking around. it felt like I had been transported to the island in The Voyage of the Dawntreader (A Narnia book for you non geeks out there).

Anyhow, after a good couple of hours a meandered back to the ferry port, bought a muffin and made my way back to mainland. I decided to walk further along the Promenade de Croisette and this time there were men in Tuxes and women in glamorous dresses in the hustle and bustle, obviously making their way to some exclusive screening or some such. I walked past numerous designer boutiques, Chanel, Gucci, Prada and the list goes on. The only problem was the sheer volume of people. I was being pushed off the pavement barged past and all sorts. But all in all, I got a true feeling of the glamour and glitz with the numerous sports cars going past, the chauffeured vehicles, the diamonds, the security in the shop doorways. However, I never saw a famous person much to my dismay, but I was not so crass as to hang out with screaming crowds until I saw one. I was just hoping to glimpse someone. But hey ho that's the way it goes!

 And this little fella, Paul, I named him/her by Dragon Point, with a bother or sister cat. Very friendly and walked with me for a bit. I could have quite easily brought them both back :)

I'm Back!!!!

I do apologise for my absence! It has been over a year and I have partaken in another ski season in that time. Same place, but different chalet and job. I decided to give cheffing a go. NOT as easy as I had thought it would be but I tackled through it. But a word of warning, I advise in choosing a different resort and not just a different job. It becomes so nostalgic and comparisons will always be made.

Anyway I have decided to resume this blog, as I have continued my French adventures! Through some rather cheeky networking on a popular social network site I managed to find out about a marketing internship with a hostel in Nice, Provence-Alps-Cotes-d'Azur. So after a brief stop in Cornwall to drop off my winter gear and buy some lovely new summer clothes (as let's face it the UK doesn't really do summer) I was jetting off into the sunrise to start a new job in France. 

I arrived in a flurry, expecting instant glamour everywhere I looked. It is definitely a naive view that I had about the city. It was just like any other European city I had visited. The journey from the airport meant a bus ride and a transfer onto a tram. Now I don't like admitting it but I am a country bumpkin, I have never seen a modern tram in my life! A trip to San Francisco introduced me to the old school trams that can be lethal. However, these trams look more like trains and are very smooth and I have already decided that the UK should start making them widespread. My dreams of glamour dissolved after my first full day in the city. It was a day for me to explore and get my bearing. Strolling at a good pace down the Promenade des Anglais minding my own business and an small middle aged man walking in the opposite direction said "Hello" and I gave a nervous smile but just carried on walking, picking up the pace as any smart single female in a foreign city would do. He proceeded to turn around and catch up with me and try and make conversation. Now I was always taught at school not to talk to strangers but it just seems so rude sometimes! In this case I should have just ignored him. And I was being obviously evasive to his attentions. My plan had been head to the Chateau on the hill, however, I did not want this lil Italian man to follow me the whole way. So I had to take a detour to the sister hostel in the town to get rid of him. Along the way he was constantly trying to holding my hand, stroke my arm, etc. Then it turned into asking me to have a coffee or a drink with him. It was a horrific invasion of my personal space! Fortunately I arrived safely at the hostel with no harm and the lil man left. Afterwards, I was speaking to the girls in the hostel and they said this was normal behaviour, it even happens if you're on the beach alone, and even if you're in a group of girls. Now, I was in such a blur at home I never really thought about these kind of things that happen in big tourist cities, especially to single females, and moreover in broad daylight! 

Now that was just a brief introduction to my first day in Nice, do not be put off by my one negative experience. I will update with a new entry soon with good things :)