SUNDAY, JUNE 24, 2012

NICE, FRANCE

Today there was an Ironman Triathalon being held here in Nice and many of the streets were closed and access to the beaches was limited. Our favorite front desk clerk, Francois, suggested it would be a good day for us to check out the beach at Cannes. Good plan.

We got up early and gathered up our beach stuff and off we went to the train station. We are so lucky to be within walking distance of the station! We stopped on the way and picked up our usual pastries for breakfast. We bought roundtrip tickets on the regional train to Cannes. I have to say, the mass transit system in Europe is fantastic! I love riding on trains anyway so this is paradise.

We took the 10:00 a.m. train and the trip took about 30 minutes. We got off the train and headed to the beach. On the way we saw a clothes store I like (there was one in Bayeux too) called Armand Thiery. I bought a pair of capri jeans there when we were in Bayeux and Sheryl found a cute pink t-shirt she wanted but they did not have her size. I checked the store in Cannes and they had the shirt in her size BUT it had stains on it -- someone's makeup, I think. I asked the clerk and she didn't have another one so, sorry Sheryl, I'll keep looking.

I keep meaning to mention that lots of men in France wear capris. Most of them wear white capris. I think they look pretty cool but David wouldn't go for it. Probably a good call on his part.

We knew we wanted to go to a private section of the beach where we could rent lounge chairs and an umbrella. You know I'm the palest person ever (except for Jill) and I burn very easily so I wanted to be very careful. We found the perfect spot and the beach attendants set us up. The beaches in Cannes are even more beautiful than the ones in Nice because they are sandy -- the beaches in Nice are covered in stones. There was a restaurant right there and nice changing rooms. Also you could order drinks and food delivered to your lounge chairs! Really? See why we don't want to come home?

The Mediterranean is aqua blue and beautiful and clear. It was a little chilly at first but you quickly get used to it. When we arrived our beach wasn't too crowded but it filled up as day went on. Lots of topless sunbathers -- all ages, shapes and sizes. Many of the people are sooooo tan you know they really spend a lot of time working on it. I get bored too easily! I did have my Kindle, tho, so I was happy reading and enjoying the beach and the sea.

About 2:00 we decided to take a break from the sun and go inside for lunch. It was still open-air but covered. David and I both had salads -- but mine had delicious ham on it. It was an interesting salad because it was a plate of greens with dressing and then on the side there was a row of fresh tomatoes and mozzarella cheese with olive oil and fresh basil -- so a regular salad and a caprese salad all on one plate. Great!

Around 5:00 we had had enough so we showered and changed for our trip home. No adventures on the way home. Walking back to our hotel neither of us wanted to go out for dinner so we decided to bring dinner home and eat it in the garden. We bought a bottle of wine, a baguette, two kinds of cheese and some crackers and came home. The hotel staff gave us plates, knives, glasses, etc., and we had a wonderful dinner in the beautiful setting of the garden. Very romantic and relaxing -- especially because we were the only ones out there!

Just another incredible day in paradise. I can hardly believe we are lucky enough to be here!