Three Diamonds in the Cote d' Azur

St-Paul de Vence, Cote d' Azur.

Amost magnificent forty-mile long, wide and curved, palm tree-lined road by the Mediterranean Sea in Nice is called La Promenade des Anglais. In the Eighteenth century, prosperous Englishmen would leave their cold and damp cities in England in the winter months and come to the French Riviera to enjoy the beautiful sky blue sea by the rugged Alps mountain range. It is the Alps which protects Nice from the cold northern winds and gives it its temperate climate. Some Englishmen even lived here for a good part of the year. They built impressive mansions by the sea and its stony beach. They would stroll on the wide sidewalks of this road, with the sea on one side and shops, restaurants, hotels and fine houses on the other-hence, the name Promenade des Anglais. Nice, Monaco and Cannes in the south of France are considered as three diamonds of the French Riviera, which the French lovingly call 'cote d' azur'-the blue coast. These are the main cities on the coast but there are numerous nearby ancient ports, forts and small villages in the hills, which are as charming and interesting as the famous three. Just east of the French Riviera, is the beginning of the beautiful west coast of Italy on the shores of the same Mediterranean Sea.

I had visited Nice some thirty years ago and had ever since wished to revisit the French Riviera along with my wife.  Our preferred airline directly connects New York to Nice only in the tourist months from March to October. So we delayed our trip to Dhaka to early-April of 2013 to spend a few days en route in this picturesque area. The weather was mild - during the day when the sun was out, a cardigan would do but in the early mornings and evenings one needed a light top coat and for older people a scarf and a cap. Our hotel was just opposite the sea and we enjoyed a panoramic view of the half-moon like sea coast from the lounge. Some of the palm trees there and in the parks nearby, were uniquely inverted-they are called the parasol pines. The sight of souvenir shops, small bakeries and eating places selling European as well as various ethnic food, spilling onto the middle of narrow roads near our hotel and people moving about and eating there till night, unconcerned by the light local traffic was most interesting and enjoyable.

Within a five minute walk from our hotel and parallel to the sea, we found the quarter of a mile long flower market in the middle of the road amidst ancient buildings painted in yellow and pink, restaurants and souvenir shops. The Municipal Building of fine old architectural style was there on one side with a small town square in its front. It was spring time and hundreds of local people and tourists from all over the world were strolling there.  The shops were overflowing with beautiful flowers of various colours and shapes-so pleasing to the eye. The small restaurants were loudly inviting passers-by to sit on the road side where chairs and tables were laid out in the sun for an enjoyable lunch at a 'discount'!

La Promenade des Anglais, Nice.

The mountains at a distance still had a snow cover. The white clouds floating by the mountains with the blue sea water at the feet had an ethereal feeling and must have been an inspiration to the impressionist painters and writers who did justice to the scenery in their works. Attracted by the ambience and weather, painters like Matisse, Monet, Picasso and Toulouse-Lautrec and writers like Maupassant, Maugham and many other artistes and celebrities were regular visitors to the area or took up residence there.

One experiences a feeling of colour all around - as wide and intense as you can take it. It is the mostly blue of the sea, the mildly red-brick hue of the large stones near the coast reflecting the sunlight and what seemed like a decorated lighter blue sky dome covering the sea that make the place so pleasing to the senses. I do not know how to compare the French with the Italian sea coasts. With the sea, mountains, colourful tiled houses and beautiful plants and flowers amply decorating these, both the coasts are picturesque and serene beyond imagination.

In order to efficiently take in as much as possible within the limited time, we undertook a conducted tour. The only other person, a young Chinese student from England, who had joined us in the tour was more interested in the beautiful town of Monte Carlo, famous for its casinos, hotels and as the site for the Grand Prix.  He got down there to explore more and left us after about two hours. We went to see the palace in the Principality of Monaco, where the flag was flying, signifying that the reigning prince (son of Prince Rainier and Princess Grace Kelly) was present there. Having the monopoly of the comfortable transport and a fine guide, we spent most of our time visiting Fragonard in Grasse, St. Paul- a quiet small village perched on a hilltop with a smooth cascade of streams over solid rocks and parasol pines clinging to the rocks and Cannes. The latter was high on our list as we had been hearing for many decades about the annual International Film Festivals held there.

In 1926, a perfumery was opened in Grasse in honour of the famous painter, Jean Fragonard. There were plentiful aromatic flowers, which continue to be a source of wealth for this small town. With many local factories (the word “factory” is considered poetic here) processing raw materials for fragrances and flavours and having the age old know how, Grasse is considered as the world's Perfume Capital.

Flower market in Nice.

The small Principality of Monaco is known for its casino, hotels and riches. It is a famous tourist centre. We walked through a beautifully maintained park by the Mediterranean. We visited the administrative square where all the imposing and ancient buildings including the large Oceanographic Museum were located. Then we went through an alley with small and very old buildings in the old town of Monaco. It had numerous restaurants, cafes and souvenir shops. We had lunch at a cave-like sunken restaurant where the floors and walls were rugged old stones and ancient wood beams. The seating on what seemed like logs of wood was also equally rugged and uncomfortable.

We had to rush from there as we knew that about 500 yards away down the alley there would be a changing of the guards at the Palace Square in front of the Grimaldi Palace. At the right moment, out came from the palace guards in a colourful, shiny uniform accompanied by a band. Simultaneously, from the other end from the Guard House came marching a fresh group of guards to assume their duties. The two columns faced each other, saluted and each went in different directions. The whole ceremony took no more than twenty minutes but it was worth watching and the tourists were happy. The palace on one side had a small fort-like stone structure, a relic of ancient times, adjoining was a more modern yellowish building in the newer part of the palace. In front of the older part was a statue of a monk in black.  It was of Francois Grimaldi, who became the ruler of Monaco. In the 13th century, he had attacked the palace dressed as a monk. We were not very impressed with the palace viewing as it was from outside only -it was not as grand or beautiful as the palaces we had seen elsewhere in Europe.

At Cannes, the stairs at the festival building where film festivals take place were under repair. We did not get the opportunity to walk on them nor get into the building like we had seen on TV and magazines famous film personalities do, year after year, on the red carpet. Standing in front of the building, we could only imagine the pomp and splendour of such occasions.

For those who enjoy scenic beauty of many varieties and colour, fine architecture and cuisine, a visit to the French Riviera in late spring and summer would certainly be worthwhile.