Monte Carlo

On Sept. 2nd, we took a 1 1/2 hour ride from Rome to where our ship was docked. Our ship was new--it's maiden voyage was in April. We took a tour of the ship. Right after we sailed, we went to the salon where they were giving away free massages, etc. Arlene won a facial, and Claire won a massage! On her way to get to the free drawing, Brenda hit her hand on a deck chair, dropped her camera and really, really hurt her hand. Her camera worked fine that day, but the next day (in Eze) was a different story. Phyllis had just "happened" to throw in an extra camera into her luggage that Brenda used for the rest of the trip. Our first stop on Sept. 3 was in Monte Carlo. I love Samantha Brown's "Passport to Europe" on the Travel Channel. When she was in Monte Carlo, she went to Eze (in France). We decided to follow in her footsteps. First of all, Monte Carlo is only 1.5 x 1.5 miles and is it's own country. It's very expensive to live, visit or eat there unless you are native Monegasque. Then you have first dibs on jobs and housing, free cable. You can buy housing at 10% of what outsiders pay. It's very prosperous due to its casinos and being known as the place to be seen by the very rich. While we were there we saw the yacht of the Fayed family (son was Princess Diana's boyfriend; they own Harrod's in London; I think they're Saudi royalty). The yachts in Monte Carlo make the one's in Fort Lauderdale look like fishing boats. Anyway, we went to Eze. It's a medieval village on the top of a mountain overlooking the ocean. I don't know when it was built, but I did see a gate where the Moors came through in the year 900 to invade the village. It was very quaint. Now it is home to 6 year-round residents. There are 100 or so in the summer. We had a fantastic time running around taking pictures. It would be a wonderful place to spend a couple of nights. There was a perfume factory at the base of the fortress. Some of us went there, but those of you who really know me know that I was doing other things (see below).

A view overlooking Monte Carlo:





Around the streets of Eze:

If you look closely at this picture, Eze is only at the very top of the mountain. The peach-colored church is at the back end, with the rest of the village sitting mostly to the left. If you double-click the picture, you should be able to see it better.
This day was one of the hightlights of our trip. We had gorgeous weather and the scenery was awesome!