Villafranche & Monaco

The next stop on the cruise was the little French port city of Villafranche, located on the French Riviera coast between Nice and Monaco. Travelers were given the opportunity then to visit either of the famous cities, or both if they dared to spend the day rushing. We opted to just visit Monaco, and we had plenty to see as it turned out.

Here's a view of Villafranche from our cruise ship which was docked in the bay. Villafranche is quite small, and so we ferried into the town center.

I was surprised by how beautiful little Villafranche was, especially from the bay, where you can see the nice line of colored houses that make up the first row of the little port village. It's very touristic, with lots of cruises and other travelers coming through all the time, but it's pretty, and the streets are filled with little shops and restaurants, nice flower decorated terraces, and quaint little rock beaches.

Perhaps the most famous place in Monaco is Monte Carlo, a residential and resort area of the city, and the Monte Carlo Casino. Monte Carlo of one of several municipalities within Monaco, a city-state that is also the world's second-smallest country after Vatican City. It is, however, the world's smallest monarchy, or principality.

Monaco is surrounded by France is French-speaking, although a great majority of its residents are wealthy people from all over. It's also fairly close to Italy, about 16 kilometers away.

Here's a close up of the Monte Carlo Casino with a few flashy cars in front. The building was constructed by architect Charles Garnier, who also did the Paris Opera house. We went into the nearby Cafe Paris and also the room for the slots.

Another famous feature of Monaco is the Circuit de Monaco that hosts the Monaco Grand Prix of Formula One racing. It's one of the most prestigious events in the sport, and it's tight, narrow, and tunneled passages makes it one of the most challenges courses also.

Here the girls are in front of the main port.

We visited some botanical gardens that specialized in great varities of cacti.

The gardens also had some spectacular caves that we visited. They were a great relief because it was a really hot day.


The old part of Monaco lies atop the Rock of Monaco. This is where the palace of the Prince of Monaco is located and also a church where he and Grace Kelly were once married.

Marseille

The next stop on our cruise brought us to the French Riviera, or Côte d'Azur. Marseille is the France's largest port city and third largest metro behind Lyon and Paris.

The center of Marseille is really beautiful, with views of the Old Roman Port and the hills surrounding it, like the one with the famous basilica Notre-Dame de la Garde on top, visible for miles around.

This is the inside of Notre-Dame de la Garde. The church was finished in 1864 and was done in a Neo-Byzantine style.

The inside of the basilica is really ornate with gold, marble, and porphyry, and mosaics and murals adorn all the walls. There are many decorations dedicated to football teams, soldiers, captains, pilots, etc. That's why you seen the model planes and ships hanging from the ceiling.


Here's the view over Marseille from its tallest point, right next to the basilica. You can see the Old Port in the center.

Here we are with a few of our friends we met on the cruise. They are Venus and Arturo from Puerto Rico. They were really nice people, and it was great to hang out with them. I even got to practice my Spanish a bit while I was out of Spain.


Just off the coast of the city is the little island of If. If is famous for its castle-fortress later turned prison the Château d'If. This was one of the settings for Alexandre Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo. In the 1844 adventure novel, the Count is sentenced to prison on If. After a daredevil plan gets him off the island, he is the first prisoner ever to escape.

In reality no one is known to have escaped. It's France's version of Alcatraz in California.

Here we are at the municipal park Palais Longchamp. There are several big museums there, as well as the large spectacular fountain staircase monument we're standing in front of.

Paris, France

The first weekend of May we took our first venture into France, and I'm not sure there's a better place to start off than Paris. We were very fortunate, and though the weather forecast called for chances of rain all four days we were there, it was sunny and warm.

Here first is a common sight if you're touring Paris. Atop the highest part of the city (the neighborhood of Montmarte) is the Basilica of Sacre-Coeur, or the Sacred Heart. This neighborhood was also my favorite in the city. There were many cafes and shops and art dealers of all kinds. It was a really lively sector also, and more decently priced than the rest of the Paris.

Here is the Cathedral of Notre Dame. It was large and Gothic, but it did have some really unique features that made it quite special. I loved the gargoyles that hung from the walls and perched on top of the roof. We were able to climb the stairs and sit right beside them as we looked out across the city.



The stained glass inside the cathedral was also very impressive.


Here is the Pantheon of Paris, which is basically like a big famous funeral home.


The Louvre Museum is perhaps one of the most famous in the world, and perhaps if you saw everything inside its massive five levels you could make it through in less than a day. We did not stay there all day, and I still enjoyed the exquisite hallways and decorated rooms of this palace-turned-museum. It is the home of the Mona Lisa (yes, it is small) and also the Venus de Milo and many other works of art.


Climbing the Eiffel Tower was a treat. There are several levels before you get to the top. The first level is probably not even halfway up. Though the view from the top of the tower was breathtaking, I especially liked the views of the tower from other parts of Paris.

There are several popular parks nearby the Eiffel Tower, and many people like to sit and wait for night to fall and the tower to light up at night. For about fifteen minutes or so, the tower actually sparkles with twinkling white lights. The best part is when they first turn on and everyone watching gasps at once.

This is the view from on top the tallest building in Paris, the Montparnasse Tower. Being so high up, it's of course a great place to see the sun setting behind the Eiffel Tower. I don't care who you are, it's quite the romantic spectacle.




One of the most modern areas of Paris is La Defensa. There are many tall commercial buildings, and there was a monument built to mimic the classical Arch of Triumph, located on the same street just minutes away. The gigantic white arch, the Grand Arch, is over twice the size of the other.


The original Arch is nonetheless impressive though, as it remains the center of a huge roundabout that spins out into twelve major avenues.



The tomb of Napolean Bonaparte is located inside this building with the golden dome, called Les Invalides. The complex has the tomb and chapel, another military chapel, housing for retired militants, and also military museums.

This is the chapel near Napolean's tomb.

Here is the famous Paris Opera house, the Palais Garnier. This palace/opera house is renowned for its monumental staircase and fantastic showroom lined with chandeliers, columns, and paintings.

Though I loved the Louvre, my favorite museum in Paris has to the the d'Orsay. It's not as large, nor is the interior as impressive as the palace of the Louvre, but I really liked the mix of classical and modern artwork in the Musee d'Orsay, by painters such as Van Gogh, Monet, & Renoir.

One of Van Gogh's most famous works in the museum is his self portrait.


The Moulin Rouge is Paris's biggest and most lavish cabaret house. It's located near Montmarte in the city's red light district. It's a truly interesting area of town, to be sure. The shows' prices were a big high for Abby and I to entertain, but I'm sure that they're top notch.

Last is a shot of the Centre Georges Pompiduo, which houses a large public library and also the National Museum of Modern Art. The escalator is located on the outside wall of the building, which adds a cool effect to its industrial style. Located right in the center of Paris, the Centre also has a nice plaza surrounding it, with many interesting cafes and restaurants.