The French Riviera was everything we expected.
I would visit again tomorrow if I could!
We spent most of our time at the beach, which is the entire reason we went, but we did see some cool stuff, too.
We flew to Nice from Rome on July 16th, and I can admit, it was a little unnerving. Less than two days before, Nice had endured a terrible tragedy: The Bastille Day Attack.
When we had learned of the attack, it was only the day before our flight; July 15th. My phone went crazy. My family and close friends knew Nice was part of our vacation plans, but most of them did not know exactly when we would be in the city. Our last day in Rome was spent not only visiting the Vatican, and answering frantic phone calls, but wondering if we should go forward with our plans.
After keeping an eye on the media, receiving emails from our airline (Rome to Nice) and hotel in Nice, we decided to go. My grandmother thought I was nuts, but I knew something that some of our friends and family back at home did not...
The airport in Rome was in full vigilant force, and our small aircraft flight was missing roughly 30 people. When we landed in Nice, we took notice to their airport security right away. Everything was business as usual except for the added large police presence.
When we arrived at our hotel (aparthotel), we were greeted with the most warm welcome I think we have ever received in all of our travels. The manager assured us that the city was trying its best to get back to normal even though everyone was shaken. She made us promise to have a good time, regardless.
And we listened.
Our first order of business was jumping in the sparkling blue water of Côte d'Azur! We hadn't even checked in to our hotel but maybe 15 minutes before we tore off to the shore.
I had read many upon many blogs, websites, forums all preparing me for this particular beach. Thanks to previous visitors, I knew it was a pebbled shoreline, so we had brought water shoes and bamboo mats, thank goodness. The pebbles and rocks are not jagged, but smooth. They are hard to walk on, though.
The weird thing about Nice's shoreline that I didn't see coming is that it does have waves. They're not surfing quality, but they were happily accepted by us. There's nothing like laying in the sun with your eyes closed while hearing waves crashing.
Why did I think this was weird?:
Because after visiting Barcelona, Tossa de Mar, Spain, and Lido de Jesolo in Italy, we figured the greater Mediterranean wasn't a wave producing body of water. None of those places had waves! I thought maybe the sea was a bit less angry than the ocean.
After spending about an hour in the water, we decided to get changed and explore the famous Promenade. Our hotel was located on the Promenade, so we set off on foot toward one of Nice's main squares: Place Massena. We could have rode the bus, but I adore site seeing on foot in any new city.
The next day I had a few randoms on our travel agenda. First, I wanted to make our way to the Port of Nice so we could have an understanding of just how much time was involved in getting there for our isle excursion later in the week. It's one thing getting to a train station, where chances are your train runs at least every half hour. But if we were to miss our call time for our boat ride, there was no waiting for another.
We headed to the port by way of city bus, found our boat's docking area, then trekked on foot to the next thing on my list that was close by: La Reserve.
La Reserve. Or at least that's what some folks call it because of the nearby restaurant. Other's refer to it as the Cocoa Beach area.The area of La Reserve is not a popular tourist attraction, but is loved by locals. It's a place where the locals get away from tourists! Knowing my kids and husband would most likely want to get in to the clear water to explore the coves, I advised them to wear their swimsuits under their clothes. I had zero desire to have soggy under garments for the rest of our daily adventures, so I sat with my camera content with watching them have fun.
My children didn't last long in the water of this place; everyone complained the rocks were slippery! But had we let him, my husband could've stayed all day. He's somewhat of a
Mer-man. The boy does love water.
It was time for lunch and to move on. We began to make our way back to the Old Town area of Nice; where food and shopping are easily found.
The vote was unanimous. We all decided to call it a day around 3pm and walked back to our hotel. I had promised the kids we'd spend every day in the water, and they held me to it!
Officially, we only spent two full days in Nice. Did we visit to see every church, building, museum, and famous landmark? Heck no! We came to the Riviera for the beach. Anything else was a bonus.
We did see some cool stuff here and there in Nice during our travels in and out of the city, but not much to write home about.
Now, I want to touch on what happened on Bastille Day because although you don't notice anything in the above photos, the attack was a VERY HUGE part of our trip. I took it as an opportunity to explain the sad yet real issues of the world to my children.
On our first day in Nice, we realized there no getting around any of the aftermath. Our hotel was next door to the Children's Hospital. Media was camped out front (well, the entrance is in the back depending on how you look at it) for the entirety of our stay, along with truck loads of police and military.
I had known ahead of time where the terrible event of that night took place, but walking the stretch of it was such a different measurement than the news gave.
It. Felt. Longer.
Even before we approached the main scene, we were seeing dry pools of blood, flower memorials, people gathered in small groups; crying out for their loved ones. We all had a knot in our throat on our first evening's stroll through town.
We saw newscasters from all of the big networks from home; ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, MSNBC, you name it. There were media from all over the world reporting.
At first it was strange, but then we became used to it. Walking by a Japanese news reporter, and then a few feet later hearing another from India, England, Australia, etc,. Every meal we ate was with reporters editing footage at the table next to us. Kind of odd.
The question my kids continued to ask: "Why would someone do this?"
For them, seeing the aftermath was unsettling. And as many times as we tried to explain the "why" in it all, we couldn't. There isn't a good reason as to why anyone would do this to innocent people.
But the reason I am glad they were able to experience a city so soon after a tragedy is because they are our future. They can be the change for the next generations to come. Some people are scared to show their kids the harsh realities in this world, but I believe it really can make a difference.
As for one of my first paragraphs in this post: People back home thought we were making a terrible decision to go ahead with our plans after what had happened. But I knew something that they did not from previous travels of ours...
When shit hits the fan in the most unfortunate of ways, people come together.
There was so much love, acceptance, and kindness in the air in Nice during our visit.
I hate to say it, but I attribute most of that feeling to the tragic events of Bastille night. That's usually how it goes. It's that way in every single city after something bad happens. I also knew the police and military would be beefed up; lurking in every corner, and actually paying attention.
There was a huge difference in visiting Paris last year just weeks before the attack than there was visiting it after the attack happened.
After, people were vigilant. Forces were on their toes. It's a bummer that it takes a tragedy for people to start caring or the police to start paying attention, but it's how it is. Not just in France, but all over the world.
Nice was one of my favorite ever places to visit in Europe despite everything that unfolded right before we arrived. It was a super clean, more contemporary version of Barcelona, with hints of Paris weaved throughout the city. It really reminded me of some beach cities in Southern California. One blogger describes it as "California on steroids", and that would about sum it up!
If anything, Nice confirmed just how much I am in love with France as a whole. Unlike many countries in Europe, France has that certain Je ne sais quoi that others don't. You can visit every corner of this country and experience different people, architecture, culture, religion, and an overall different way of life. It's pretty darn neato.
I've been all over Germany, too, and though I adore Deutschland, it all began to melt together after a year of adventures. Cities started to look and feel the same (yes I know there are difference between each region/state, but still... My blog, my opinion).
Though, I do have to wonder if France would feel that way were I living there instead of here? Hmmm. I might never know.
Overall, Nice delivered. Many people asked if we regret choosing it as our beach destination knowing what we know now.
Nope.
We still had a wonderful time.
We came. We saw. We sunbathed.
It was glorious.
I shall return, but next time I am definitely hitting up the world famous flower market!
Next post: The second smallest country in the world~ Monaco
I would visit again tomorrow if I could!
We spent most of our time at the beach, which is the entire reason we went, but we did see some cool stuff, too.
We flew to Nice from Rome on July 16th, and I can admit, it was a little unnerving. Less than two days before, Nice had endured a terrible tragedy: The Bastille Day Attack.
When we had learned of the attack, it was only the day before our flight; July 15th. My phone went crazy. My family and close friends knew Nice was part of our vacation plans, but most of them did not know exactly when we would be in the city. Our last day in Rome was spent not only visiting the Vatican, and answering frantic phone calls, but wondering if we should go forward with our plans.
After keeping an eye on the media, receiving emails from our airline (Rome to Nice) and hotel in Nice, we decided to go. My grandmother thought I was nuts, but I knew something that some of our friends and family back at home did not...
 |
| The flight from Rome to Nice took us along the coastline, and it was gorgeous. The airplane windows don't do the views justice! |
 |
| Monte Carlo, Monaco seen from the plane. |
 |
| Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat |
 |
| Villefranche-sur-Mer |
 |
| The lighthouse of Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat. It looks small, but the light shining from this tiny tower could be seen in our room, nightly. At first I thought it was a flashing police light. |
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| The port of Nice, and Nice's lighthouse. |
The airport in Rome was in full vigilant force, and our small aircraft flight was missing roughly 30 people. When we landed in Nice, we took notice to their airport security right away. Everything was business as usual except for the added large police presence.
When we arrived at our hotel (aparthotel), we were greeted with the most warm welcome I think we have ever received in all of our travels. The manager assured us that the city was trying its best to get back to normal even though everyone was shaken. She made us promise to have a good time, regardless.
And we listened.
 |
| The veiw from our balcony. This angle show the airport side. |
 |
| The Promenade side. |
Our first order of business was jumping in the sparkling blue water of Côte d'Azur! We hadn't even checked in to our hotel but maybe 15 minutes before we tore off to the shore.
I had read many upon many blogs, websites, forums all preparing me for this particular beach. Thanks to previous visitors, I knew it was a pebbled shoreline, so we had brought water shoes and bamboo mats, thank goodness. The pebbles and rocks are not jagged, but smooth. They are hard to walk on, though.
The weird thing about Nice's shoreline that I didn't see coming is that it does have waves. They're not surfing quality, but they were happily accepted by us. There's nothing like laying in the sun with your eyes closed while hearing waves crashing.
Why did I think this was weird?:
Because after visiting Barcelona, Tossa de Mar, Spain, and Lido de Jesolo in Italy, we figured the greater Mediterranean wasn't a wave producing body of water. None of those places had waves! I thought maybe the sea was a bit less angry than the ocean.
After spending about an hour in the water, we decided to get changed and explore the famous Promenade. Our hotel was located on the Promenade, so we set off on foot toward one of Nice's main squares: Place Massena. We could have rode the bus, but I adore site seeing on foot in any new city.
 |
| That famous hotel...meh. |
 |
| Place Massena |
 |
| Fontaine du Soleil |
The next day I had a few randoms on our travel agenda. First, I wanted to make our way to the Port of Nice so we could have an understanding of just how much time was involved in getting there for our isle excursion later in the week. It's one thing getting to a train station, where chances are your train runs at least every half hour. But if we were to miss our call time for our boat ride, there was no waiting for another.
We headed to the port by way of city bus, found our boat's docking area, then trekked on foot to the next thing on my list that was close by: La Reserve.
 |
| Club Nautique de Nice: Boat club for my non-French speaking friends. |
 |
| Dining on the sea at Le Plongeoir |
 |
| Some of Nice's big sea front mansions. |
 |
| Lighthouse of Nice |
La Reserve. Or at least that's what some folks call it because of the nearby restaurant. Other's refer to it as the Cocoa Beach area.The area of La Reserve is not a popular tourist attraction, but is loved by locals. It's a place where the locals get away from tourists! Knowing my kids and husband would most likely want to get in to the clear water to explore the coves, I advised them to wear their swimsuits under their clothes. I had zero desire to have soggy under garments for the rest of our daily adventures, so I sat with my camera content with watching them have fun.
 |
| Yes, there is a pool-like entrance to the sea! I thought it was pretty awesome. |
My children didn't last long in the water of this place; everyone complained the rocks were slippery! But had we let him, my husband could've stayed all day. He's somewhat of a
Mer-man. The boy does love water.
It was time for lunch and to move on. We began to make our way back to the Old Town area of Nice; where food and shopping are easily found.
 |
| Place Garibaldi~ Chapelle du Saint-Sepulcre |
 |
| The best socca we never ate! Or so I have heard. |
 |
| Eglise Saint Jean-Baptiste |
 |
| The clock tower of one of Nice's public high schools. This school was insanely gorgeous for being a public school! Looks nothing like my high school... |
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| Forum Torrin & Grassi in Promenade du Paillon |
Heading towards Chateau Colline, we found lunch at one of the most tasty Indian restaurants, ever. Feeling full and sluggish, we eventually made our way up the torturous stairs of the Parc Colline du Chateau.
We probably should've hiked up the stairs first, then ate lunch? Ha.
 |
| The views were worth the hike. |
 |
| We enjoyed watching others parasail, but no thanks! |
The vote was unanimous. We all decided to call it a day around 3pm and walked back to our hotel. I had promised the kids we'd spend every day in the water, and they held me to it!
 |
| This is what I do best at the beach. Sit on my ass. |
 |
| Drying off on the hotel roof, watching the sun set for the night. |
Officially, we only spent two full days in Nice. Did we visit to see every church, building, museum, and famous landmark? Heck no! We came to the Riviera for the beach. Anything else was a bonus.
We did see some cool stuff here and there in Nice during our travels in and out of the city, but not much to write home about.
Now, I want to touch on what happened on Bastille Day because although you don't notice anything in the above photos, the attack was a VERY HUGE part of our trip. I took it as an opportunity to explain the sad yet real issues of the world to my children.
On our first day in Nice, we realized there no getting around any of the aftermath. Our hotel was next door to the Children's Hospital. Media was camped out front (well, the entrance is in the back depending on how you look at it) for the entirety of our stay, along with truck loads of police and military.
I had known ahead of time where the terrible event of that night took place, but walking the stretch of it was such a different measurement than the news gave.
It. Felt. Longer.
Even before we approached the main scene, we were seeing dry pools of blood, flower memorials, people gathered in small groups; crying out for their loved ones. We all had a knot in our throat on our first evening's stroll through town.
We saw newscasters from all of the big networks from home; ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, MSNBC, you name it. There were media from all over the world reporting.
At first it was strange, but then we became used to it. Walking by a Japanese news reporter, and then a few feet later hearing another from India, England, Australia, etc,. Every meal we ate was with reporters editing footage at the table next to us. Kind of odd.
The question my kids continued to ask: "Why would someone do this?"
For them, seeing the aftermath was unsettling. And as many times as we tried to explain the "why" in it all, we couldn't. There isn't a good reason as to why anyone would do this to innocent people.
But the reason I am glad they were able to experience a city so soon after a tragedy is because they are our future. They can be the change for the next generations to come. Some people are scared to show their kids the harsh realities in this world, but I believe it really can make a difference.
As for one of my first paragraphs in this post: People back home thought we were making a terrible decision to go ahead with our plans after what had happened. But I knew something that they did not from previous travels of ours...
When shit hits the fan in the most unfortunate of ways, people come together.
There was so much love, acceptance, and kindness in the air in Nice during our visit.
I hate to say it, but I attribute most of that feeling to the tragic events of Bastille night. That's usually how it goes. It's that way in every single city after something bad happens. I also knew the police and military would be beefed up; lurking in every corner, and actually paying attention.
There was a huge difference in visiting Paris last year just weeks before the attack than there was visiting it after the attack happened.
After, people were vigilant. Forces were on their toes. It's a bummer that it takes a tragedy for people to start caring or the police to start paying attention, but it's how it is. Not just in France, but all over the world.
Nice was one of my favorite ever places to visit in Europe despite everything that unfolded right before we arrived. It was a super clean, more contemporary version of Barcelona, with hints of Paris weaved throughout the city. It really reminded me of some beach cities in Southern California. One blogger describes it as "California on steroids", and that would about sum it up!
If anything, Nice confirmed just how much I am in love with France as a whole. Unlike many countries in Europe, France has that certain Je ne sais quoi that others don't. You can visit every corner of this country and experience different people, architecture, culture, religion, and an overall different way of life. It's pretty darn neato.
I've been all over Germany, too, and though I adore Deutschland, it all began to melt together after a year of adventures. Cities started to look and feel the same (yes I know there are difference between each region/state, but still... My blog, my opinion).
Though, I do have to wonder if France would feel that way were I living there instead of here? Hmmm. I might never know.
Overall, Nice delivered. Many people asked if we regret choosing it as our beach destination knowing what we know now.
Nope.
We still had a wonderful time.
We came. We saw. We sunbathed.
It was glorious.
I shall return, but next time I am definitely hitting up the world famous flower market!
Next post: The second smallest country in the world~ Monaco
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