One of the things I definitely wanted to see was Monte-Carlo in Monaco. It was similar to when I was one of the few people who was enthusiastic about going to Las Vegas. Both cultural phenomena fascinated me even though I had no idea about gambling.
My original plan was to stay in Monaco. When I looked at accommodation, the prices started at about £700/€700! After some searching online, I discovered that the most popular way of seeing Monaco was to find accommodation outside of it then travel in for the day.
There are a few ways to get to Monaco from Nice. One is by train, which can be 20 minutes from Nice Ville, the central station.
On the day, I tried to pick up the train a stop after Nice Ville, at Nice Richior. A bus went directly to the station from my apartment. It was a rush getting there because of delays. When I got to the station, I ran up the stairs and the train was waiting. Unfortunately, so were many people. The train was jam packed. It was busier than the London Underground during rush hour. I couldn’t get on.
Time for Plan B. I had read that a bus goes along the coast. It’s slower but the journey is more scenic than the train. The train goes through some tunnels, obscuring your view for the journey.
The bus stop was about a 15-minute walk from Nice Richior station. On the way to the bus stop, I saw a barber’s shop. I’d needed a haircut for a week! So I popped in. I kept an eye on the clock because the Monaco bus would be leaving in about 45 minutes.
There was a man having his hair cut. Then he had a shave. It was taking ages. Even after he finished, he continued talking to the barber. The barber tried to say goodbye several times without success! Paying also took a while because of uncertainty over how much cash the man had already handed over.
Eventually I sat down. Fortunately, I don’t have enough hair to warrant a long session. The barber performed a competent head shave in about 10 minutes.
I then walked to the bus stop. The bus was waiting and I ran to get it. My seven-day Nice pass was valid for the journey.
The route was, indeed, scenic. We arrived in Monaco in about 35 minutes, earlier than expected.
After a short walk, I found myself in a pretty park. This woman sat next to me with her dogs and said a few things to me in French. After reaching the limit of my vocabulary, she switched to English. A passing dog-walker said something to her. She translated that the dog-walker was telling her to be careful because some dogs had been stolen! I was surprised that even in affluent Monaco there is crime.
Monaco is a country built on a hill. At some point, someone realised this makes moving around difficult and they installed outdoor escalators.
In Nice, on my first day, I had noticed an escalator at street level that went down to the metro. Half of it was uncovered. I wondered what would happen when it rained. Wouldn’t it eventually rust?!
In Monaco, there was a section with eight escalators. They were all outside and took you from the bottom of Monaco to the top.
The central, glamorous, square in Monte-Carlo was full of tourists. There were sports cars everywhere. Everyone wanted to go into the casino, which had featured in many films, including James Bond.
The gambling tables weren’t open but the atrium and cafe were. I went in the casino building and looked around. There was a sign about the dress code to go to the gambling tables. You had to dress smart casual: no shorts, ripped jeans, sportswear, trainers, flipflops/sandals (for men), or rucksacks. I would definitely not have been allowed in if the gambling den had been open!
Although I don’t follow Formula 1 racing any more, my nephew suggested getting a photo of the course. I walked to the famous Fairmont hairpin bend and took some photos. Lots of people had the same idea.
Since the race hadn’t been that long ago, a lot of the railings, stands, and other equipment were still in place. You could even see the tyre marks on the road. It’s strange to think that normal roads are used for the Monaco grand prix.
Whilst taking photos, I saw a young Chinese man scouting the area. When we found ourselves next to each other, he used Google Translate to speak to me. He spoke at one end of his phone and the translation appeared upside (to him) for me to read. He told me that he’d looked all around and this was the best spot to take photos. He wanted to create a GIF of him standing with his back to the track and cars going around the Fairmont bend. After he was satisfied with the GIF I captured from his phone, he insisted taking one of me from my phone! I stood where he’d posed. After the first attempt, he was not happy with where my hands were and changed my pose! Eventually we created a GIF for me.
For the return journey to Nice, I thought I’d try the train. Again, I cut it fine. As I stepped on the platform, I could see the train 100m further way. The platform was much longer than the train. I ran to get to the train, as did a few others. I got on. The train was jam packed when it left. At each successive stop, just when it seemed there wasn’t enough room for anyone else, more people got on. I was relieved to get off.
In Monaco, I’d picked up some veg for tonight’s dinner. I returned to my apartment and made a simple meal consisting of vegetables, red haricot beans in a tomato purée. I added a dash of the mushroom soy sauce someone had left in the apartment.
At one point I was looking for cafes in Nice. I asked ChatGPT. It replied that, in the evenings, cafes are generally shut in Nice. Instead, people walk along the promenade, especially the Promenade de Anglais. So I decided to do the same after dinner.
I reached the coast around sunset. The promenade was lively. The water and sky looked beautiful.
