Unlike all the mornings so far, we did not have to pack today. We ate a nice breakfast and made our way back to the bus for a 45 minute drive to a town called Eze. This small town is known for its Perfumerie, Fragonard, and we got a tour of the factory.
They showed us how they extract the essence of the local flowers, and how they make the perfume and soaps. We then spent some time in their shop, where we all realized that it was a bit more expensive than we thought. I bought a ducky shaped lemon soap for a little kid I babysit and a bottle of lemon verbena cheap perfume. A 1 oz bottle of the good stuff was €35, close to $50 USD. Not happening.
We were then given an hour of free time to hike to the small town of Eze, which was truly a hike. There were decrepit stairs carved into the mountain, and we finally zig zagged our way to the top. We walked through a castle built for defense of the hilltop town, and through a couple small shops built within the caverns of the mountain. It took so long to hike up we had to head back fairly soon, but not before we got some photos of the incredible view.
Once we got back on the bus, we headed to Monaco, which somehow is it’s own country no matter that it is 1 sq mile. Home to the rich and famous and the Monte Carlo casino, we were in for a treat.
We parked the bus in a parking garage and walked to the top via botanical gardens which were stunning. The Mediterranean Sea was finally what I remembered it to be, and I was again mesmerized by the vivid varying shades of blue.
We had 2 hours of free time to shop, eat, and explore. We watched the pomp and circumstance changing of the guards at their parliament building, and then explored a bunch of touristy shops. I didn’t love the stores or the glamour, but there were the best views of the water so far. I got a ham and cheese sandwich for lunch, and a hat for my friend. I caught up with a different group and we tried to get away from the touristy parts and find cooler areas. We found an adorable crepe shop inside this alleyway and indulged in a giant Nutella crepe. We then walked to the park bordering the water for more incredible views, and took our time getting back to the bus. My friends and I found our tour guide and hung out with her for a while on an overlook before heading back. I’m still amazed how much freedom we are given, and even more amazed that we are always able to find our way back to the meeting places, the bus, or the hotels totally on our own.
We left Monaco around 2 and headed back toward Nice. We stopped at Florian Chocolate Factory and got a tour and some time in their gift shop. Like the perfumerie, they use local flowers in some of their chocolates and sweets. I was able to try sugar coated flower petals and violet and rose chocolate. After buying a few goodies, we boarded the bus again back to the center of town. We stopped at the main square, where we could then choose whether or not we wanted to go to the New Town, or the Old Town for 3 hours of free time. The New Town consisted of shows like you would find on 5th avenue, and Old Town were the unique boutiques and cobblestone alleys. We headed for Old Town and ended up finding the beach, which was a natural pebble beach. We collected some cool stones and then hiked the mountain behind Old Town toward a waterfall. We asked for directions in French multiple times and made our way.
We discovered a lot of beautiful lookout posts and a Jewish cemetery with quite a view. We eventually made it to the waterfall at the top and hung out after getting some great photos. We made our way back down the way we came and had a few minutes to shop in Old Town. We then walked a couple blocks back to our meeting place and then headed to dinner as a group. A vegetable quiche was followed by a meat dish and caramel covered sponge cake. We got back to our hotel at a record early of 8:30, and hung out in our room and on our balcony with friends. By 10:30 we all had to be in our own rooms to prepare for the early wake up of 6 to head to the bus for Provence!
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