Cruisin'

Florence

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.

Palma de Mallorca

Second stop on the cruise tour, Palma de Mallorca. Palma is the capital and major port city of the Spanish Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean. It's a popular vacation spot for many Spaniards and other Europeans alike. I had heard, and after visiting there confirmed, that it's a major destination for Germans.


Here's a view of Palma and Bellver Castle on a hill north of the city from the window of our cruiseship; I think we were having breakfast at the time.

Here's Palma's port and bay seen from the hilltop Bellver Castle.


La Seu, or the cathedral, of Palma is a massive gothic structure. The pillars inside were especially towering although slender at the same time. Next to the cathedral is the Palace of the Almudaina which used to be a Muslim palace which was later converted over to a Christian palace after the Muslims were expelled.

Here's a view inside the Palace of the Almudaina.