just escaping the heat and reliving a little bit of the dream...
The French Riviera, has such a nice ring to it, no?
The truth is that Monaco, Cannes and Nice are crowded and quite touristy.
Glad we decided to stay between Cannes and Nice in picture perfect Antibes.
The beaches are gorgeous with less crowds and the architecture is outstanding.
Saturday morning flea market
There is a daily market here full of fresh produce, cheese and olives.
Perfect place to buy things for a picnic on the beach.
I love this photo.
Look at the intensity of this cheese transaction.
Look at the intensity of this cheese transaction.
Our hotel was straight up Wes Anderson.
Because there was 4 of us, they put us up in the back guesthouse.
It was so nice to be able to stretch out after spending so many days in the small hotel rooms of Paris and Provence.
Two little English kids taught me to play Boules.
I think it'd be fun to make a court at home to play on.
All you need are these balls and a level spot with gravel.
Larry!
I think it'd be fun to make a court at home to play on.
All you need are these balls and a level spot with gravel.
Larry!
Oh la la! What lovely pics and what I noticed first was no trash-anywhere.
ReplyDeletei know, incredibly clean!
DeleteI love the market photographs - I definitely need a French fix soon! And maybe this would help Larry:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.playaboule.com/How_to_build_a_petanque_court.aspx
haha, thanks sharon!
DeleteSuch a treat, Janet. I love these photos- I was staring at that photo of the cheese transaction, thinking 'such intensity', and then saw your comment. What a great shot. And the streets are just impossibly beautiful. How do they do it?
ReplyDeletePlease, if you have more photos, keep sharing. Living vicariously here!
oh i know, it was incredible watching the exchange and i'm so glad i caught the moment.
DeleteNot only really beautiful but extremely clean!
ReplyDeletefor reals steve, so clean.
DeleteWow did I love this post; your photos are always really good, Janet! I wonder why I don't remember Nice as being crowded and touristy; maybe 'cause I was so young and in love, more with the boy than anything else...ANYway, yeah, I was pretty unimpressed with Monte Carlo (can't believe I can say such a thing) and chose not to go to Cannes because I wanted an extra day in Nice which, in my memory, is pristine, light-filled, color-drenched. Also, at that time in my life, I hadn't studied the French Impressionists much and Antibes was lost on me; didn't make a point to go there. Oh, the things we learn and yearn...do'over? More, DO AGAIN. Thanks to you, I am reminded of Antibes; NOT to miss on the second go-'round. And I do think this hotel and yours in England were so nice; elegant and comfortable. Thanks for sharing the photos and words.
ReplyDeletenice probably wasn't all touristy back then. i'm sure it was so amazing. and i love the curtains used to divide the space, so elegant!
DeleteYou know, I find I love that look of separating off the guest house bed with the drapes/curtains at the room entrance rather than with doors. It's so intimate. I'm moving in a few weeks and am trying to figure out how to get creative with my mom's mid-century cookie-cutter house after living in a custom, vintage cottage; it's decorating tricks like that which give pause for thought; I think it could work; LOVE that look!
ReplyDeleteWish all my cheese transactions deserved their intensity.
ReplyDeleteXO T
oh the everyday passion of the french!
DeleteJanet I've so been enjoying your trip recollections! I'm really glad you got to go--you really got to see some wonderful things! AND meet Tabitha and Faux Fushia!!!
ReplyDeleteMy family and I have been able to spend a few weeks every other summer in Antibes and think it is the best kept secret of all those coastal towns. Easy to walk everywhere, beautiful vistas, and of course great markets and shops. We go to la Gravette with the kids in the morning and Le Salis for a swim in the evening and dinner on the sand. If you ever want to know of a lovely and reasonable little fisherman's cottage to stay in, let me know!
oh how wonderful that you spend so much time there. there is just so much to do and see in such a relaxing place. lucky!
Deletedanni it seems i need that info on the fisherman's cottage. Thanks!
DeleteLooks so lovey bathed in that flattering light...
ReplyDeletewith all these gorgeous images of your trip it might be nice to put them all together in a book.
I am still lusting after your new pillows...I can't seem to get that fabric out of my mind.
a photo book is a good idea. i need to get on that.
DeleteThis is so much fun going on the trip with you again. it looks so romantic there....I might have had to break my diet and eat some good French cheese. I hear its wonderful.
ReplyDeleteI'll forgive you since it WAS the trip of a lifetime but since you haven't made it to Nebraska yet...I'll see you in Georgia.
I owe you an email huh....xo
georgia it is!
DeleteYes, that cheese transaction looks intense! :) Such wonderful views of the SOF. The La Passion restaurant looks so lovely! Thank you for sharing more of your trip and thank you for your sweet comment!
ReplyDeletethanks lara. the whole area is just incredible.
DeleteI love these photos so much!!
ReplyDeleteThe cheese snap is Magic xxx
thanks and the whole thing was magical.
DeleteLove this post - the first line sounded so French!
ReplyDeleteAnd I have a friend who is from France, and she always says to go to Antibes, so I am jealous. Looks wonderful!
you'll have to take your friends advice michelle!
DeleteI think the game they taught you was Pétanque? You do use boules. So fun! We have a Petanque club here town.
ReplyDeletehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P%C3%A9tanque
yes, they said the name was interchangeable. it was fun too.
DeleteHello Janet, I have been waiting for another "travel" post from you. As always, your photos always have an affect on me, just something special about them.
ReplyDeleteI like your honesty re the French Riviera thing. Sometimes I think people feel obliged to say it's all beautiful etc., when they have been to some of these well known places. Not wanting to seem ungrateful if they do not quite live up to expectations. More often than not,and as you found, further down the way places are more authentic.
Just one question, did you do any of your French trip alone, as I am thinking of doing so later this year and would like your input.
thank you.
thanks linda. the only time i was alone was on the flight there which was very easy. and then one day walking paris alone and another day alone in provence. i think it would be very doable to be alone, esp paris. there is just so much to see and it's all compacted and very easy to walk everywhere. you would never be bored. but i will say that paris truly is a romantic city and i did find myself wishing larry was with me. next time for sure he's going.:) so that is something to consider.
DeleteI so agree. The first and only time (so far) I did Europe I was standing at night in the middle of Grand Place in Brussels and it was so intensely beautiful with the starry lights, vast sky and those stunning guild houses that I felt a great pang of loneliness that I did not have someone to share it with; to make a memory with another person; something I could reminisce over later on. It's hard if you end up in life with no one to share your memories; I'm no psychologist, but I think there's a certain validation in the sharing of a memory...and we're somewhat the pack animal who needs our group. I did make a memory for myself, by myself, that night in Belgium, but I'll never forget that sad feeling. I was very young. Years later, maybe 15 years later, I went with a gal pal to Hawaii after we'd both broken up with our respective boyfriends and we tried to enjoy the romantic sunsets and stuff but we also both kept thinking that we should be there with our "men." I'm not saying that's especially admirable; I think as women we should be comfortable with ourselves and "ourselves" should be enough, but it was just how I felt at the time. What I'm facing now is that my husband doesn't like to travel. He's all "been there done that." Well, I have NOT been there done that, and I want to DO. I gave up one trip to London a few years back when I felt I should be going with him instead of yet another gal-pal or solo. Who wants to live with those regrets? I don't; not now. I'm older; time isn't as much on my side. I will have no problem traveling solo in my future; good thing, or else every vacation would be a staycation, which is fine, except that I feel sometimes you really need to get far away to get out of your space and your skin, learn about something totally new. My experiences in traveling alone as a younger person were that somebody was always "feeling sorry" for me being alone and asking me to join in, insisting I wasn't a fifth wheel; if I wanted companions, I had them. Heck, I even went to an amusement park one time by myself (Janet, Magic Mountain!) and a whole gang of young people "adopted" me that night and we had a heap of fun (I wasn't looking for partners; it's just that other people start getting the drift that you're standing in line alone and they can't stand it for some reason!). But I think also as long as you are in a safe place and not traversing a dark alley at night in a strange city, a woman can travel alone just fine as long as she is comfortable enough with herself and her aloneness, not feeling wistful and sad or intimidated or scared. You have to be cool with your own company and have some confidence. I have known lots of adult women in my life who travel alone (and dine alone) frequently. Some choose to split a hotel room or avoid a single supplement fee on resort vacations or cruise ships by room-sharing. That's a bit odd to me, but I have a friend who's done that for over 30 years; she didn't let a divorce or a subsequent tight budget stop her from her love of traveling. If you want to go-go-go and get out there, nothing will stop you. The desire to travel and see new places and meet new people is very addictive.
DeleteI love that cheese transaction too!
ReplyDeleteAnd as a September birthday, somehow that "Libra" sign felt lovely.
awww, how sweet.
DeleteWonderful photos. The French are so very serious about their food. I've visited some of those gym sock stinky cheese shops and it is a nearly religious experience but they need to relax just a little. The south of France is lovely but you are right - it can be very touristic. We want to do another southern France wine country trip, if I live long enough to get there again. So glad you got to visit all these amazing places and you stayed as such nice places.
ReplyDeleteHow did this trip come about?!
xo Terri
terri the london leg of the trip was put on by janelle mcculloch's blog, library of design. then my friends met me in london and we traveled on to france.
DeleteThat guest house is gorgeous! I've only ever driven through there but never stopped, criminal as Jon's uncle owns a gite there! x
ReplyDeletevix that is criminal. i can so picture you in antibes.
DeleteLove this look in to the French Riviera leg of your trip.
ReplyDeleteIt is good to be able to stretch out in one's hotel room, yes?
The cheese transaction has all the level of intensity that such a transaction deserves! I just wish I knew what cheese was under negotiation. Paula x
thanks paula. the passion is evident in just about everything the french do.
DeleteDear Janet
ReplyDeleteMore wonderful photos of France! So glad you enjoyed Antibes, it is so beautiful and much less touristy and the flea market is great fun - you've really captured it. There are often great bargains. We came home last year with several things I still really love. Did you find any treasures? Agree Nice is definitely touristy and very busy (you need to be particularly careful about wallets and handbags too) - and it has a pebble beach, which is a bit of a turn-off for Aussies! But there are some wonderful museums and lovely old belle époque buildings in the streets back from the beach, a bit further along in the Cannes direction. Also love/love their flea market though it's huge and always very crowded, much more so than the Antibes one. But you probably remember, I do love to shop. If you're looking for a lovely quiet place for next time, Beaulieu-sur-Mer, between Nice and Monte Carlo is wonderful. Some years ago we spent two weeks there and loved walking along the fabulous footpath, overlooking the sandy beach and the boats in the bay, to St Jean on Cap Ferrat. You pass David Niven's former home, a magical pink house with its own little beach and mini boat harbour. It's an easy bus ride to Nice from Beaulieu with stunning views over the water, particularly around Villefranche. I must stop, I'm reliving old memories and pining to go back already. Pamela xx
Hello Janet,
ReplyDeleteI have been eager to know your impressions on my country. I am happy you liked it and spent wonderful time there !
Hello,
ReplyDeleteWe have never realized you published last year some pics of our place and the suite room. Thank you very much ! We are glad you enjoyed your stay with us and we hope to see you again for another trip to Antibes.
Kind regards.
Delphine
oh gosh, thank you for your comment! we loved your hotel! we will be back!
Delete