The breakfast at Hotel Chambord could be in *baaaahhhh* category. A continental breakfast cost me 8 EUR. And it was really spartan: a glass of orange juice, a coffee and two croissants. I thought 8 EUR for “all-you-can-it” breakfast, but nope, 8 EUR for a portion. Since I ordered an additional third croissant, I had to order twice, that meant 16 EUR!!! Never ever again!
Actually today’s plan was from Menton to Nice via Monaco and Èze, but from the hotel receptionist I got a tip to visit Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, which was a beautiful mdieval town on the cliff located between Menton and Monaco.
So, arriving in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin
Gorgeous!
The church
The Chateau
Manufacturing method: 100% hand-made by the master
Material: olive wood
Seriously, I saw no difference with Indonesia…
The millenium olive tree (1000-year-old olive tree)
The next stop: Monaco!
Of course, I did the F1 circuit! 3 laps! I would say, no wonder why Monaco always hosts the F1 circuit every year. It’s so charming. And yeah as many said that Monaco was the slowest F1 circuit, I could confirm it. Did 4 laps with the average speed of 25 kmh with the highest speed of about 70 kmh through the casino tunnel. There were so many zebra crosses there. And as a pedestrian, you would be highest respected. Every single sign that you would cross the street, than all vehicles stopped. And there were many zebra crosses. A zebra cross for every 50-100 m. Crazy! It drove me really nuts!
Actually, as I said that the circuit was so beautiful, I would like to do some more laps, but with these stops & gos, thanks.
I parked my bike on a “parking lot with a view” 🙂
*I want all of them!*
The marriage between Prince Albert II and his Charlene was probably the second most glamorous marriage this year (after the marriage of Williams and Kate of UK)
Because every square meter was used for the yachts, there was no beach in Monaco…
The city center
Bertrand, the guy from Horizon Unlimited, once said, that Monaco was one of the safest country / city. As soon as you left your home, you would be get tracked. The “Big Brothers” were watching you.
*flags orgies*
The famous casino of Monte Carlo and just before it the slowest u-turn in F1.
Heading to Èze, a wonderful medieval village. Èze was also famous for its two perfumeries: the Fragonard and the Galimard
The famous Grande Corniche
Got a nice “parking lot” 🙂
The town hall
Walking up…
Yes, it’s a Bugatti Veyron
Place du Planet
The Chapelle de la Sainte Croix
5 EUR for entering the Chateau (and its Jardin d’Èze). AND it’s WORTH IT!
The church
Entering Nice was really stressful. The traffic! Why on earth there should be two roundabouts just 15 meters inbetween??! Of course there would be massive trafficjam!
It seemed that the French people were like the Swiss. They prefered roundabouts. With one big difference. The Swiss roundabouts were designed perfectly. No trafficjam. In France, it was a nightmare.
Arrived in Nice. Checked-in the Youth Hostel
To the city center.
The tram of Nice
😀
Nice Triumph
The city hall
Based on the recommendation of the receptionist at the Youth Hostel, I got a dinner at the Restaurant “La Voglia”
It was the biggest portion of pasta I have ever had! And it tasted soooo goooooddd!!! And the price was also really reasonable!
To the beach…
But unfortunately it’s already closed 😦
The Palais de Justice
Back to the Youth Hostel and a cold beer was really good, especially after such a hot day
Before closing the day, I checked my toe… YAYYYY!!!!
More pics:
Roquebrune-Cap-Martin: http://sanjaya5.smugmug.com/Travel/1106260726-Tour-de-France/110706-TdFRoquebruneCapMartin
Monaco: http://sanjaya5.smugmug.com/Travel/1106260726-Tour-de-France/110706-TdFMonaco
Èze: http://sanjaya5.smugmug.com/Travel/1106260726-Tour-de-France/110706-TdFEze
Nice: http://sanjaya5.smugmug.com/Travel/1106260726-Tour-de-France/110706-TdFNice
Tour de France: Ready to Go!
June 26, 2011
Just less than an hour to go! Sipping my third cup of strong Indonesian arabica (woke up very early today).
The GS had been prepared. All have been packed!
The odo: 16.515 km
Let’s begin the 5734 km journey. Solo riding. 4 weeks long. 6 countries. A journey consists of contradictions. From the Alps to beaches of Côte d’Azur. From Pyrenees to Normandy. From the Jazz Festival of Montreux to San Fermin of Pamplona. From reiligious site of Lourdes to World War 2 sites of Omaha Beach to places of decadence of Monaco. From the Route des Grandes Alpes to the F1 circuit of Monaco. From world’s center of diplomacy and (dirty) money of Geneva to the city of love of Paris. An adventurous 4-weeks of journey.
Following are the stages:
26.06: Ettlingen – Solothurn – Lucerne: 334 km
27.06: Lucerne
28.06: Lucerne – Interlaken: 70,8 km
29.06: Interlaken
30.06: Interlaken – Thun – Bern: 58,4 km
01.07: Bern – Neuchâtel – Geneva: 171 km
02.07: Geneva – Lausanne: 57,1 km
03.07: Lausanne – Montreux – Thonon les Bains – Val d’Isere / Tignes: 292 km
04.07: Val d’Isere / Tignes – Briancon – Barcelonette: 311 km
05.07: Barcelonette – Menton: 209 km
06.07: Menton – d’Eze – Monaco – Nice: 47,9 km
07.07: Nice – Antibes – Cannes: 39,5 km
08.07: Cannes – St. Tropez – Marseilles: 245 km
09.07: Marseilles
10.07: Marseilles – La Camarque – Arles – Avignon – Aix-en-Provence: 349 km
11.07: Aix-en-Provence – Narbonne – Perpignan: 320 km
12.07: Perpignan – Andorra la Vella – Toulouse: 345 km
13.07: Toulouse – Lourdes – Pamplona: 381 km
14.07: Pamplona
15.07: Pamplona – Vitoria Gasteiz – Bilbao – San Sebastian: 259 km
16.07: San Sebastian
17.07: San Sebastian – Bordeaux: 258 km
18.07: Bordeaux – La Rochelle – Nantes: 322 km
19.07: Nantes – Mont-Saint-Michel – Colleville-sur-Mer – Bayeux: 352 km
20.07: Bayeux – Rouen – Paris: 310 km
21.07: Paris
22.07: Paris / Versailles
23.07: Paris – Amiens – Bruges: 346 km
24.07: Bruges – Waterloo – Brussels: 150 km
25.07: Brussels
26.07: Brussels – Aachen – Ettlingen: 499 km
Stay tuned! 😉
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