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Nice is the fifth most populous city in France, after Paris, Marseille, Lyon and Toulouse, with a population of 348,721 and it is located on the south east coast of France on the Mediterranean Sea.
Nice is believed to be among the oldest human settlements in Europe. The first known hominid settlements in the Nice area date back approximately 400,000 years. One of the archaeological sites, Terra Amata, displays evidence of a very early use of fire. Construction of houses and flint findings are dated as around 230,000 years old. Around 350 BC, Greeks of Marseille founded a permanent settlement and called it Nikaia, after Nike , the goddess of victory. Throughout the centuries Nice has bounced back and forth from being a part of Italy and a part of France. The story is long and tumultuous, but since 1861 it has remained a part of France. As the war broke out in September of 1939, Nice became a city of refuge for many displaced foreigners, notably Jews fleeing the Nazi progression into Eastern Europe. From Nice many sought further shelter in the French colonies, Morocco and North and South America.
We arrive at Nice in the early hours of the morning, just after sunrise. This must have been
the view seen by the Barbary pirates just prior to attacking the city on many occasions.
Later, after we'd had breakfast on board the ship, we head for the mountain city of Eze, built high up and away from the coast,
as a protection from the constant raids by the pirates. You can see why they call this the French Riviera.
This Internet photo shows it in summer, when the beach is heavily populated with sunbathers.
It looks like there might be only one person in the water. Perhaps it is too cold for swimming.
Our guide took us on a crazy walk through this interesting part of city of Nice, the Old Town where the streets
were very narrow, and the architecture was very unique. She knew a lot about it, but too much to recall now.
The outdoor market was especially tantalizing. The fresh fruits were perfect, and I wanted to buy some, but
we had so much food on the ship that it would have been a total overkill. So I just let my eyes do the feasting.
I have never seen watermelons with such a thin rind, and I could have
gone crazy buying spices for cooking, but I managed to restrain myself.
I'm a real bear when it comes to honey, but I had to pass it by this time. And the cheeses, you just can't get
really good cheeses in Argentina, so I was sorely tempted. As for the sting ray, has anyone ever cooked one?
Our guide told us an interesting story about this mansion. A wealthy Russian bought it, and put 10% down, $100,000.
He later changed his mind and asked for his deposit back, but was refused. He went to court, and the court sided with
the owner, and the poor Russian was out his $100,000. I'm sure it was just a drop in the bucket to him though.
As we approached Eze from Nice on our way to Monte Carlo, we get a nice view of the village
Eze is truly a small village built on a hilltop, and as you can see from the population chart below, it's pretty small.
We did a lot of walking through the village of Eze, and I finally got to the point where
I simply had to sit down and rest my weary bones. Getting old is not all that it's cranked
up to be, but the alternative is slightly more disappointing. I think I'll tough it out for a bit more.
Time to stop for now. I'll resume with a few more shots of Eze, and then on to Monte Carlo in the next chapter.
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