Lauterbrunnen, Nice, Monaco – Sept 14 to 19

~Lauterbrunnen~

Leaving Cinque Terre was difficult for me only having spent one full day there.. it was even tough for the others that had been there for 5 nights. A few hours on the bus and we were in Nice.. not for long though, just 1 night. We will be coming back here after Switzerland. A full day on the bus up to Lauterbrunnen, a beautiful mountain village, the views of the mountains (even from village level) were amazing. Snow covered peaks are quite a familiar sight for me having lived in Whistler, but still spectacular.

We did an easy hike (if you can even call it a hike) on Schilthram from Grutscnalp to the next village. We had discussed the previous day going up the Jungrau (tallest mountain in the Alps) but with a price tag of 140 Euros and having seen many a mountain view – I opted against it. The NZ Trio were thinking along the same lines – although we all acknowledge the Alps are something else.. we just couldn’t justify the cost. 

We caught the gondola back down – not sure whether it was the fast decent and change of altitude, I went white as a ghost, clammy and woozy! Once back to the valley level, we sat for a while so I could recover while we watched the Base Jumping qualifying finals.. Base Jumping is when people jump off a cliff and glide for a period before pulling their parachute. Apparently, Lauterbrunnen is a Base Jumpers heaven.. the finals of the world competition will be in a couple of days.  A very dangerous sport and many deaths are reported each year - apparently there was one on the day we were watching. Such a tragedy! 

Still not feeling very well – I opted for a quiet day on valley level as opposed to catching more gondolas to view waterfalls. So, I explored through the village of Lauterbrunnen, took a stroll to one of the local waterfalls and got dinner started for the others. On the bus again tomorrow... not looking forward to the windy trip down!! 

~Nice~

The trip to Nice from Lauterbrunnen was ordinary! I must remember to get some motion sickness tablets!

In the hostel, I woke to thunderstorms, and rain falling extremely hard - reminds me of the crazy Victorian storms we have.  We had a relaxed morning until the rain eased a little. We explored the old town and found somewhere for lunch. Someone had recommended that we try Socca, apparently amazing! Hmmm, not sure where that person had been living for the last 10 years.. it was a corn meal pancake with nothing served with it. Maybe we just lucked out, but I won't be ordering it again, thats for sure! We continued on and walked along the shore! A little disappointing that the weather was so overcast as we were very much looking forward to swimming at the beach that imports sand from Australia. Really! !! A touch of the famous Finocchios gelato (over 100 flavours) before calling it a day and returning to the hostel for a home cooked meal and few games of cards! (photo by James Sheldon) 

A new day brings much nicer weather which is ideal for our trip to Ez Village and Monaco. Ez Village was high on the ‘To Do’ list as I very much wanted to go to Fragonard Perfumery where my brother David had bought me perfume on his Contiki trip 15 years ago. The tour was great and the private demonstration/sales speil work on us a treat.. we each left the place with some goodies and of course, we were all smelling devine! We hiked down a very rough trail 45 minutes to Ez Village where we walked along the rock beach – sand is so much easier! 

Now off to Monaco. Such a small place, the grandeur impresses instantly, but the price tag for everything is considerable! The boats in the Marina made our jaw drop and James was getting quite excited by them.. Boys and their obsession with things that go fast, very entertaining!

Of course, the biggest drawcard of Monaco is the Monte Carlo Casino. We didn’t bother going inside as there is such a limited area that you can actually visit without being willing to put big money on the table! 

Some interesting facts about Monaco: (1) The pressure is on Prince Alfred and his new wife.. if they don't produce an Heir to the throne (all existing children of the family are out of wedlock and they're not eligible), the country will be returned to the French. (2) To apply for residency, the applicant is required to pay 1M Euro, if you're declined, you don't get anything back. (3) A private helicopter takes off every 15 minutes. (4) If you're a resident of Monaco, you're not permitted to gamble in the casino. 

The cars parked outside are quite impressive! I did however notice that there was one of each of the big name cars.. it makes me wonder if they are owned by customers (remember they can't be Monacan) or whether they are owned and put on show by the Casino as part of the appeal of the Casino. 

I shared the theory with a guide and a driver a few days later, and they were very intrigued - they're going to suss it out next time they're there.. shame I'll never find out! Back to Nice just as it was getting dark, such a lovely day trip.

  

Still more updates to come!! Spain next! xoxo