Return To Monte Carlo!
Today
2016
We arrived in Monte Carlo early this morning and on tap today was a day-long adventure. We were to meet in the theater at 8:30 am and we didn't return to the ship until a little after 5 pm. One of the highlights for Kim and I was that we would spend part of the day re-visiting Nice and Monte Carlo, which we had visited in March 2016 as a pre-cruise stay prior to a Viking River Cruise on the Rhone River....the photo above is us overlooking the harbor at Monte Carlo today and in 2016.
Eze
On the day that Kim and I had visited Monte Carlo from our hotel in Nice we had only seen Eze from the road, and that day our guide remarked to us that it was really too bad that we had not had the chance to visit there because it was so wonderful. So when we booked this cruise and saw that today's option included a visit there I knew I wanted to book it. Kim and Sue were originally going to spend the day in Nice shopping on another excursion, but yesterday they found out that nearly all shops in Nice would be closed today so they switched to the excursion Dan & I were on. We met our guide Corrine at our bus and drove about a half an hour to the mountain-top village of Eze. We parked the bus at the bottom of the village and then climbed the narrow "donkey path" to the top. The village has a permanent population of just fifteen people! It was a LOT of climbing, but the views and the experience were truly amazing. A great start to our day!
In the church courtyard at the top of the village of Eze
Nice
We made the descent to the bus and headed out to Nice for the second part of our adventure. We got off the bus and walked around part of "Old Nice" and then Corrine dropped us off at the Flower Market. We had an hour to explore so Kim and I took Dan & Sue down to the Promenade des Anglais along the beach and posed for a photo with Castle Hill in the background. Then we headed to the main square which was adjacent to our hotel in 2016. Then we walked along a couple of the streets we remembered - passing by the Opera House and the restaurant where we'd had dinner. We took a selfie with the Opera House in the background. We then came to a stand in the market selling a popular local dish, socca. There was a long line so Kim and Sue said that it "had to be good" here. They waited patiently for more than twenty minutes before being rewarded for their patience and we all enjoyed the tasty treat before re-joining the group and boarding the bus to head for Monte Carlo. Along the road on the way out of town we stopped at the same outlook we'd been on in 2016 which had a panoramic view of the Nice bay - the colors in the water was stunning! (again!)
Monte Carlo
The plan for the afternoon was to take a short walking tour of Monte Carlo and then have time for lunch on our own. Then we would re-hook up with Corrine and finish seeing Monte Carlo in the palace area and head to the casino for the final stop of the day. When we were being shown lunch options the four of us knew immediately we wanted the place that served crepes because Dan had been in search of one for two days :) The lunch was delicious! We met back up with the rest of the group and Corrine and after seeing the palace and the marina (both of them) we were headed to the bus when we passed some security, and then three more. And then around the corner who comes walking by our group? Prince Albert of Monaco! WHAT! Had two body guards with him as he strolled by and said hello! Well who says Viking cruise excursions don't go to all lengths to get us the best experience. We congratulated Corrine on being the best guide ever to arrange that :)
Finally we got in the bus and climbed some 90+ steps to the casino. Went inside the lobby and walked around. The "highlight" came when a fellow guest lost her balance on a photo-op stage, grabbed the poker table and toppled it over as she fell to the floor. Of course security came running from everywhere! She was embarrassed and had a bruised knee but was ok! On the way back to the bus Corrine sang us a song and it topped of a great day!
We made the descent to the bus and headed out to Nice for the second part of our adventure. We got off the bus and walked around part of "Old Nice" and then Corrine dropped us off at the Flower Market. We had an hour to explore so Kim and I took Dan & Sue down to the Promenade des Anglais along the beach and posed for a photo with Castle Hill in the background. Then we headed to the main square which was adjacent to our hotel in 2016. Then we walked along a couple of the streets we remembered - passing by the Opera House and the restaurant where we'd had dinner. We took a selfie with the Opera House in the background. We then came to a stand in the market selling a popular local dish, socca. There was a long line so Kim and Sue said that it "had to be good" here. They waited patiently for more than twenty minutes before being rewarded for their patience and we all enjoyed the tasty treat before re-joining the group and boarding the bus to head for Monte Carlo. Along the road on the way out of town we stopped at the same outlook we'd been on in 2016 which had a panoramic view of the Nice bay - the colors in the water was stunning! (again!)
The plan for the afternoon was to take a short walking tour of Monte Carlo and then have time for lunch on our own. Then we would re-hook up with Corrine and finish seeing Monte Carlo in the palace area and head to the casino for the final stop of the day. When we were being shown lunch options the four of us knew immediately we wanted the place that served crepes because Dan had been in search of one for two days :) The lunch was delicious! We met back up with the rest of the group and Corrine and after seeing the palace and the marina (both of them) we were headed to the bus when we passed some security, and then three more. And then around the corner who comes walking by our group? Prince Albert of Monaco! WHAT! Had two body guards with him as he strolled by and said hello! Well who says Viking cruise excursions don't go to all lengths to get us the best experience. We congratulated Corrine on being the best guide ever to arrange that :)
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