A musical soundtrack to the weekend in Nice – Part 2

Part 2....

"Blue Skies" (Willie Nelson cover and/or Frank Sinatra's classic)

The weather in Nice was incredible.  I can't imagine a more beautiful day....had me whistling about blue skies smiling at me.  It really was like something out of a movie. I took a stroll down the Promenade to enjoy the scene.  I sat at a bench for a bit and enjoyed the people watching and to take this photo:

 

 

"Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini" by Brian Hyland

The amount of clothing people wore was enough to make the average person blush.  Whilst I was careful to avoid specific places that I knew were of the clothing optional variety, I noticed that even public beaches were not necessarily optional, but super slimmed down on the amount of material required to qualify as a swimsuit, both for women and for men.  I have never seen that many speedos in my life, which led to the next song...

"When you've got it, flaunt it" - included in the score to The Producers (the musical)

All of those lyrics are applicable...."When you got it, let it hang out"; "When you got it, share it. Let the public feast upon your charms." However, most of the people were not of Uma Thurman quality physique (and who is really?).  So there was a lot of sharing going on that was not necessary.  I felt bad about my one piece bathing suit.....and as a result couldn't bring myself to pull it on during the trip.  But that had more to do with....

"You're no good" by Linda Ronstadt

The sun and I have a love hate relationship.   Specifically, I love the sun and it hates me back.  The sun is no good for me.  I decided to enjoy a brunch on the beach under a huge umbrella.  I put on sunscreen, got my book out (Netherland by Joseph O'Neill - my first foray into learning cricket via fiction) and enjoyed a great baguette, jam, tea and orange juice.  I probably sat for 2.5 hours.  When I put my backpack on, I noticed some stinging on my shoulders....definitely burned to a crisp in that short time frame on my shoulders and neck.  Which led to....

"Redneck Girl" by the Bellamy Brothers

I was a true redneck on Monday at work....the pattern continued.  That is the primary reason I couldn't bring myself to do the bathing suit.  I did get this great picture from my breakfast spot on the beach:

 

"Price tag" by Jessie J ft. B.O.B.

After roaming the promenade some more, I strolled on to this:

which is the famous casino in Nice.  I then saw this:

which I know is a display, but I saw these everywhere actually in motion.  Clearly, Jessie J is wrong....it is about the money.  You can put a price on love if you vacation in Nice.  And Nice does need your money. It is seriously pricey in Nice. 

After that wandering around, I headed to the bus stop to catch the bus to Villefranche-sur-mer which was my home base for the weekend.  I did stop to get some ice cream at another location of the 9000 flavor place, which was good.  My feet were feeling it at this point, so I figured a nice rest in the hotel room followed by a dinner in the old town was just what the doctor ordered.

"Going in Circles" by Three Dog Night

Seriously, this will become more pronounced as I continue with blog posts about Nice, but the bus system there is almost indecipherable.  I walked to the spot where the bus for Monaco should have been with a stop in the village I was staying in.  Not there.  I walked all the way back to the TI, got a map and then headed back in the same direction and finally found the stop after wandering aimlessly and in circles for about an hour.  But it showed up...it was packed like sardines, but I pushed my way on and had a standing spot near the listing of stops (key).  Again, the stops were not announced and we just flew by about 2 out of every 3.  Luckily....

"Save Tonight" by Eagle Eye Cherry

I had an eagle eye and caught a short glimpse of a hotel I knew to be close to the one I was staying as we flew by it through about 8 6' tall other bus passengers.  Seriously, I got lucky!  I pressed the button as quickly as I could and then made the short hike back up to my hotel.

"Sittin on the dock of the bay" by Otis Redding

Pictures from my hotel and room:

At that point, I put on my only tube dress and headed down to the pool to sleep and read.  That went well.  Plenty of shade and a great chair.  That's a vacation I don't do, but I did it.  Super proud.

"Je Suis Seul de Coir" from the Midnight in Paris soundtrack

 

I headed to the old town after that and had an amazing pasta dinner overlooking the harbor.  I read some and enjoyed the weather, ambience and the quiet of the smaller bay village life.

 

Part 3, Monaco coming