Nice and Eze

The next morning at 6am we were going to be leaving for our long 25 hour expedition back to the United States. Today was our last day of cruising and enjoying the temperate climate in the Mediterranean. The French Riveria! Home to the beautiful towns of Nice and Eze both completely different. Both so amazing in their own ways.

Our first stop was Nice. I remember my french teacher telling me about the town and how amazing it was. She said that the beaches here are very popular during the tourist season and that they have the second biggest Mardi Gras celebration in the world here.

It was early and we were still a bit tired but they told us we would have some time to shop and wander around an amazing farmer's market while we were here.

Now this was no standard Missouri farmer's market with a few tents scattered around a parking lot and a cotton candy booth for the kiddies. This was a full fledged supermarket under tarp. The smell of spices and fresh fish and flowers permeated the air. It was alive with people everywhere gently haggling prices in french. Laughter and friendliness were alive here. The people were doing their normal morning shopping and taking the time to smell the flowers and to chat with friends as they walked from booth to booth.

As always I was amazed at the selection of fresh fish. Everything caught that morning and brought straight to the table. There is no fooling the people in this coastal town. There wasn't a creature on the table that didn't look ready to hop back in the sea for a swim.

I didn't know this but the french have developed some sort of performance enhancing drug for their mushrooms. A Fungoid Steroid if you will. Look at these things!

One thing we just had to have while we were here were strawberries. There is something about the strawberries in France. They are made to be eaten that day. Maybe even that minute. If left over night they will be a soft fuzzy mess by morning. They are so bright, so red, and so bursting with flavor you will devour boxes of these sweet, tart, berries before you know it.

It was a bit chilly here and Jessi stumbled on a very nice coat/poncho/sweater thing that she absolutely loved. She looks so happy in the picture I decided it needed to be included in the blog.

We scurried to the bus and hopped on for our trip to Eze. On the way we stopped and snapped some pictures.

It's in the low 60's but a gropu of crazy people are swimming down there.

Eze is amazing. They basically built this town as it's own fortification. It is built into a rock hill overlooking the coast. The town is a twisted maze of super skinny streets.

If you marched an army in here, the townspeople would know about it for days before you figured out how to get to the houses. That and the entire army would have to take a breather at the top. This town is STEEP. And of course we had to carry the stroller all the way up. No elevators, ramps, or easy ways up in Eze ;).

There are little shops and gardens winding all the way through the town. It is the model of a medieval city and the autumn season here is an explosion of color.

One last happy picture before we end this life changing journey and head back to parts more familiar.