Our F1 Visit to Monte Carlo

Cliffs on the winding path up to Eze Village
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Thursday dawned with me feeling slightly better (the flu has migrated to my chest) but Denise was feeling like she was getting a slice of what I had been dealing with.  It was still raining on and off but we decided that we simply couldn't be in Nice and not take the opportunity to have a quick look around and a visit to Monaco.  After breakfast with Jana again (who I might add has spent pretty much every day on the beach or out and about in spite of the weather) we scored a ride to the train station from the chap who was staffing the office at the hostel.  He very kindly took us the whole way, where we would have needed to catch a bus instead.

The manicured gardens of the VERY pricey Relais & Chateau Hotel in Eze
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From the station (not the main Garde Nice Ville but the other one) we hopped onto a bus that took us to Eze Village.  Eze is a medieval village clinging to the top of the mountains overlooking Nice, and it has been frozen in time.  Apart from some incredible views of Nice itself, you also find yourself mesmerised by the impossibly narrow cobbled streets, the ancient homes and shops, and the authenticity of the experience.  Every turn yields a new find, something that the high price boutique hotel chains must have realised some time ago!  The Relais e Chateaux hotel, for instance, with its awesome clifftop aspect and sculptured gardens, charges an incredible 9 Euro for a hot chocolate.  The Golden Goat Hotel had rooms for the princely sum of more than 1200 Euro per night!  Nonetheless the trip is worth it for even us lowly budget travellers since it is so totally unique and feels about as close as it is possible to get to a really medieval European experience.  The fact that it was still raining and cold did take a bit of the edge off however!

Rob on one of the winding streets of medieval Eze Village
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Waiting at the bus stop for the ride on to Monte Carlo, we met up with a Canadian couple from Vancouver (welcome to the blog Bob and Robin!) who we had seen also staying in our Nice hostel the night before.  The chat with them made the long-overdue bus seem brief.  They have been on their own multi-month Round the World trip and had tons of ideas and advice on the Asian leg of our plans which we plan to use to the full!  Thanks guys - and Robin we really hope that your flu was no fault of ours!!! :)

One of the super corners of Eze Village and its narrow alleys
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Crossing into Monaco was, as most guide books warn, a less than overwhelming experience.  The principality is about as small as you expect, and most sights are clustered around the Grand Casino.  It is worth noting that the Grand Casino only opens to the public at 14:00 every day - although the super-flash cars are already parked outside by about noon when the crowds start to gather.  We decided to go into the mini-casino situated outside the Grand Casino - its called Cafe Paris Casino and it requires no ID or entry fee.  You have to leave your bags and cameras at the coat check (free service).  It was really quite small and poky in comparison to our casinos back home, but we spent 15 Euro on some slots and a spin on the electronic roulette - winning nothing but the bragging rights for having gambled in Monte Carlo.  A little after 14:00 we entered the Grand Casino (again all bags and cameras left at the coat check) and looked around.  There was an interesting display of larger than life photos of the royals (the Grimaldi family and friends) and free toilets (always a plus in Europe) but we balked at paying the 10 Euro entry per person to just get into the gambling rooms (that's 10 Euro that you DONT get back in the form of chips like in some other casinos I have been to).  So we left again and walked around the town headed in the general direction of the train station.

Even the shops have the feeling of an authentic Middle Ages tableau
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One of the things that was most evident to us was the scale of the preparations for the 60th Monaco F1 Grand Prix - due to take place in the last week of May.  The fencing and viewing stands (bleachers for the Americans amongst us) were already being erected, the branded flags and banners were already being hung, and it seemed that the city was rapidly transforming into a motor-sport mecca.   The other presence that it impossible to miss is that of Grace Kelly (or rather the memory of Princess Grace) - with the Princess Grace Theatre one of the more attractive buildings en route.  The marina in also worth a look - with some immense private motor yachts that put ocean liners to shame!!  Even the train station is quite different - entirely underground and seemingly fully automated (we never even saw manned ticket counters anywhere) - one thing to note, and it seems to apply often in France - the automated ticket machines and other banking ones seem to reject normal magnetic strip credit cards - we are fortunate that Denise has her German one with its smart chip because mine have been frequently rejected!

An Eze Village local
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So that was Monaco - granted it was in the rain and we were both feeling sick - but it was country number 5 for the trip and we were both glad to have seen it.