Travel Info
Anyhing interesting in Nice and Monte Carlo? We're going there for the F1 later.?
Travel Tips
Nice is my favorite French city! Nice is a coastal city on the Mediterranean, and has georgeous views and weather. However, the beach is not sandy, but is made up of smooth rocks and pebbles. The only sand beaches are private beaches. The water is fairly chilly until late summer, and very salty, but it's still fun for messing around in. Nice itself has excellent shopping, but most of the stores in the Old City are very high end. (Remember, Nice is only a few miles away from Cannes, which is a huge draw for celebrities.) Still, take the time to walk around in the old town, and visit some of the street vendors where you can get some discounts. Southern France, especially Nice, is known for its perfume,though. There are multiple perfume factories that you can visit and tour, and where you can shop for discounted perfume. I especially like the Fragonard perfume factory. Additionally, there are some great candy factories and a marvelous ice cream shop on the eastern side of the the Old Town. Make sure you spend time walking along the waterfront and eating in the Old Town cafes.
Monte Carlo is a very interesting, very wealthy community. You can visit the Oceanography museum (and see Jacques Custeau's little yellow submarine) and you may go to the palace and watch the changing of the guard (which is a very popular event), but there are no tours of the palace because the royal family still lives there. Monte Carlo became famous for its casino, which is still in operation, but if you plan to visit it, you will need to have nice clothing (no sandals, tennis shoes, jeans, or t-shirts), One thing you should do while in Monte Carlo is send friends at home a post card. Monocco has its own postal service, so it's very fun to get a postcard with a Monagesque stamp. Also, spend some time looking at the yachts in the many harbors--most of them are absolutely huge! I wouldn't reccommend staying in Monocco, though, because it's very expensive, and doesn't really have much to offer, unless you plan on spending a small fortune. |
