Finally, we are bidding addio to Italy and saying Bon Jour to Nice, France. It is with a heavy heart as Pisa, Cinque Terre and Florence has been a wonderful place to be in, would have loved to stay and explore these location longer next time. However, since we are on the way to another beautiful location, we can only hope that there are more beautiful and exciting places to greet us.
We took a train from Pisa Centrale station to Piazza Princippe and thereon, transfer to another train to Nice. We experienced some misadventure here as we alighted at Genova Brignole instead, you can read the detail here. The scenery along the journey between Piazza Princippe and Gare de Nice is beautiful as you get to see the view of the Italian/French Riviera. A couple of places that I think will be wonderful for a 3 nights stay would be Albenga and Ventimiglia. Will keep these places for future adventures.
We booked an apartment in Nice and it is a 1 bedroom 2 minutes from train station (Gare de Nice). No, really, the name of the apartment is called 1 bdr 2 mins from train station. Although it is very near to the train station, since my entourage packed our luggages for the long 72 days project, we took a taxi instead. There is a washing machine, but it doesn't work... we have to handwash some laundry ourselves. The kicthenette is very well equipped.
There are plenty of markets around the vicinity but most of them are closed on Sundays so you will have to bear with this. The Casino market, Tesco Express is within 5 minutes walk. There are also a wet market and a couple of farmers market nearby. I settled with the wet market for fruits, vegetables, meat and cheese. That pretty much fulfill all my grocery needs. Besides, we are only going to be here for 4 nights with a night to be spent in Provence, so doesn't really need that much. Oh, there are 2 bakeries near where we lived so breakfast is a non-issue.
There are plenty of markets around the vicinity but most of them are closed on Sundays so you will have to bear with this. The Casino market, Tesco Express is within 5 minutes walk. There are also a wet market and a couple of farmers market nearby. I settled with the wet market for fruits, vegetables, meat and cheese. That pretty much fulfill all my grocery needs. Besides, we are only going to be here for 4 nights with a night to be spent in Provence, so doesn't really need that much. Oh, there are 2 bakeries near where we lived so breakfast is a non-issue.
Next day, Monaco! We walked to the station and bought our ticket at the ticket office there. Look for the train heading towards Menton, or pronounced as Mont-thon. While waiting for the train, we have a cuppa at Paul's. There is also a Relay and Carrefour Express at the train station. There is a Monop' or Monoprix opposite the train station which opens till late in the night around 11pm.
Once you reach Gare de Monte Carlo, you can either take a bus or taxi from thereon. I noticed that you can still UBER for a car from Gare de Monte Carlo but you won't be able to do so anywhere else within Monaco. Monaco is a country on its own and the smallest coutry after the Vatican City, so that means you can explore this place within a day. However, to really enjoy the city, you may need an additional day or two. For our visit, we split Monaco into 3 parts viz. Port de Fontvielle, the hill where the Royal Palace is situated and Pointe Focinane where the Casino de Monte Carlo is situated. We visited the Pointe Focinane part first as the weather was too hot/scorching. Its not a big place but we had a walk around and I especially enjoyed the garden behind the casino.
Next, we went to Port de Fontvielle by taking a taxi. When we boarded the taxi, I realised that he has not turned on the meter so I reminded him to do so. The taxi driver told me that in Monaco, all taxis charged a fix fare of €15.00 wherever you go. I was surprised at that, but what he mentioned made sense, that Monaco is only that big, so how far can the taxi goes? They need to make a living too. I hope I am not being tricked and proceeded to check online whether this is true. It seems like I have been dubbed, oh well, expected damage during travel. Port de Fontvielle is a residential community and also as per the name suggests a port for the yatchs owned by the rich and famous/infamous. This location also provides you a view of the Le Palais des Princes de Monaco and the Cathedrale de Monaco from sea level. There is also a Carrefour and McDonalds at Fontvielle. I noticed that the groceries here is close to 100% more expensive than that in Nice. I reckon I should not be surprised since this country has countless number of millionaires and billionaires. There is a tunnel that connects Port de Fontvielle to the hill where the Monaco Prince's Palace is but the walk up the hill is arduous so those travelling with children and/or elderly folks, please just take a taxi or bus up.
At the top of the hill, you will be rewarded with a panoramic view of Monte Carlo. Apart from the palace, you will also find the Cathedrale de Monaco and the Oceanographique Museum here. We did not managed to visit the Oceanographique Museum here so would appreciate some feedback and photos as to how it looked like inside the museum and whether it is worth visiting. I also noticed that there is a garden walkway descending from the hill towards the direction of Port de Fontvielle and again, we did not have the time to walk the garden as it has been very late already and the children are tired and hungry already.
Overall, I had a good time in Monte Carlo. Will I re-visit this place? Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps.
Some photos for the day are shown below. Our next visit, Provence!
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