Day 2563 (Friday) 14th June 2024

This is the Old Town of Nice

and this is Villefranche sur-Mer – you can just see our flat above the pale green building.

The forecast for today was beautifully sunny all day but when we got up it was a bit cloudy. We couldn’t decide what to do because we had planned on going to Antibes but the weather was iffy. We decided to go to Nice for a coffee first and if the weather settled we’d go. So we had a coffee in the Old Port and it warmed up significantly so off we went. When we got there it was warm but still cloudy, never mind it’s a lovely town anyway.

As usual we went for a walk along the ramparts to have a look at the views and the Picasso Museum.

This statue wasn’t here the last time we came

I found this rather romantic piece about Antibes…

Discover the old town

"Old street of Antibes... The shadow spreads its water on the children's foreheads". Max Jacob

Take the time to discover old Antibes

The old town of Antibes is one of those fascinating cities where, on every street corner, yesterday magnifies today. To visit and appreciate the old town of Antibes, you have to take your time: take the time to stroll through the streets, to observe the details offered by the facades, the doors, to smell the scent of the flowers, to drink a drink on a sunny terrace or eat an artisanal ice cream... and then, around the corner, you will see the Mediterranean... it will only bring out the whiteness of the stones even better.

From Porte Marine, take the ramp des saleurs and enter the old town via one of the small alleys on your right (rue de l'Horloge or rue du Saint Esprit). Let yourself be guided by chance, look up, take the crossings, take turns and detours to the Cathedral. Take the stairs and discover the Grimaldi castle which houses the Picasso museum and this beautiful escape towards the sea (montée Dor de la Souchère). Cross Place Mariejol and take Rue du Bateau, then Rue Barques en Cannes to the wash house and find the faces hidden in the wall. Enter the Free Commune of Safranier which is located between rue de la Tourraque and rue du Haut Castelet. There, there are artist's studios, the house where Níkos Kazantzákis lived and the Villa Fontaine ... go back towards the Cours Masséna via the rue des pavers then the rue de la Pompe (taste, in passing, a famous pissaladière). Take a break…

The heart of the old town of Antibes

The shopping streets

Discover the workshops and small shops

You can then stroll through the shopping streets and discover the many small shops or workshops which offer gourmet products or objects that will not leave you indifferent (rue Sade, rue Clémenceau, rue Thuret, boulevard d'Aguillon, rue James Close, rue de the Republic). Many restaurants will offer you terraces or hidden gardens for lunch.

Towards the new city

Go back up to Place de Gaulle and its Haussmannian architecture then go down Boulevard Albert 1er. Play a game of pétanque on the Elie Levy square, take a photo on the roof of the Archeology Museum, greet Victor Hugo as you pass, then return to the port using the ramparts. At the end of the ramparts, is the very aesthetic Nomade, a lace sculpture of letters created by Jaume Plensa (open access to the passageways, every day from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. except Mondays). On the other side of the Port, you can see Fort Carré.

The flowers in the Old Town were stunning.

We found the English bookshop and I bought a second-hand book but I’d forgotten my list of books to read about France and we didn’t find any of them. I must remember the list the next time we go.

Some of the shop fronts in the old town are lovely.

We bought some lunch and enjoyed it on the beach admiring the view of Port Vauban.

Port Vauban is a French yachting harbour located in Antibes on the French Riviera. Originally a natural harbour in use since before the Roman Empire, the port was fortified by Sébastien Le Prestre, Seigneur de Vauban, later Marquis de Vauban, King Louis XIV's military engineer.

Port Vauban now serves as the home of the Yacht Club d'Antibes and is the largest marina (in terms of total tonnage of the boats and yachts moored there) in the Mediterranean Sea. Some of the world's largest and most lavishly appointed yachts have Port Vauban as their home port, including Russian oil businessman Roman Abramovich's 86 m Ecstasea and his gift to fellow Russian businessman Eugene Shvidler (Le Grand Bleu). Co-founder of Microsoft Paul Allen's yacht Octopus is a regular visitor to the harbour.

In the early part of the 20th century, Port Vauban also accommodated numerous seaplanes and a seaplane manufacturer.

As of 2012, typical rates for a berth in Port Vauban are between €1m to €1.4m.

Our last stop was British Smith’s where we bought some goodies at ridiculously high prices. 

 This evening we are meeting our French friends on the beach for a picnic – I hope it’s going to be warm enough.

This was Badger up his tree last night – hooray.

Other people’s cats…