First Day In Villefranche

Started my day by popping out of bed at the ridiculously early hour of 6:30, having slept fairly well in my fancy apartment, and yet adjusting to the lack of air conditioning, one of the few real creature-comforts I had in my cottage in Florence. I was also unused to the liveliness of being in a village, which was pretty hoppin' on Saturday night. And this I totally loved after the kinda-eerie quiet that I had in Florence. Everything's new again.

Waited until 7:30, when I knew the boulangerie would be open, then popped across the street to get a baguette, which was still warm from the oven. Oui oui! Back in the apartment I enjoyed brewed coffee (no more wrestling with the stove top espresso, though should I cross its path again I'll be armed and ready), baguette and strawberry jam:


Oh, I should document the digs I'm in -- spacious, light-filled and pretty much equipped with everything you could want:

the back of Eglise St Michel as seen from my window:


huge dining table and art-filled living room:


serious kitchen:


bedroom:


luxurious tub (there's a second half-bath w/laundry machine, too, but that's where my cello flight case gets to live for the week):


spacious living room:


After breakfast I thought I'd take a stroll around town to start getting a feel for things, as I hadn't ventured past the little grocery the night I got here. I pretty much just wandered around without purpose other than being sure to obtain something to eat before all the shops close mid-day on Sunday. This town is really cool -- there's kinda three separate areas, each at its own altitude, so to speak: the waterfront area, where the beach and waterfront shops and restaurants are, plus the old harbor a little further down; then uphill a little bit from the waterfront is the old city, which is mostly narrow little pedestrian-only streets, which is where I live; then higher up from that is closer to the main roads and a little more "city-like".

a little fountain square in the vielle ville:


view of the waterfront and beach:


flea market on the Riviera:


Chapel St Pierre, decorated by Jean Cocteau (I will explore the inside this week -- you can see more about it and somebody else's pictures of the inside here, though: http://andrewgough.co.uk/lastmessage.html):


along the Citadel:

(note the huge cruise ship in the background -- Villefranche's harbor is really deep, so the big cruise ships park here then ferry passengers to Nice, which is right next door)

park near the old harbor:



soap store recommended by Shelley -- they make it right there:

(so I picked some up even though I was supposed to be getting food)

It was nearly noon, and I knew the shops would be closing, so I followed the intoxicating scent of roast chicken, which led me to a cute little store where I picked up a whole (but little) poulet roti, some Brie, and a tomato. Back to the pad for a sandwich and a nap.


Then I did some serious cello playing, surfed the web looking for music concerts in the area (boy is it nice to have wifi here!), and found that the final concert of the music festival in Menton was that night. I wasn't necessarily up for another driving adventure after the 8-hour ordeal from the day before, and yet I couldn't find a single other concert that I might be able to see this week, and so I resolved to hit the road to check it out. Got on Google maps to get directions from here to Menton, only about 25km away. The directions involved about 25 different roads and turns. I decided I would get in the car and follow the signs instead. And now I know that, at least while cruising the Riviera (but also effective in Chianti), all you need to do is know the name of the town you want to go to, learn the names of the towns between that town and where you're starting from, and just follow the signs that point to those towns. Worked like a charm. I followed the lower Corniche (there are three parellel-ish roads that follow the coast and varying altitudes) to Menton, passing through Monaco (didn't stop, but here's a kodak while whizzing by):

(and here's a zoom of that couple in the photo -- I kinda love this shot)


Made it to Menton about an hour before the concert was supposed to start (classical concerts start LATE here -- 9:30). This was good, as it took awhile to find parking. Found a good spot and strolled along the waterfront:


I didn't exactly know how to find the concert location, which was in front of the Basilica of Saint Michel, which I knew to be a tall old church (but that doesn't necessarily narrow it down 'round these parts). I saw an older couple who totally looked like they were going to a classical music concert, so I just followed them. Bingo. And they walked through this really cool and utterly lively pedestrian-only old street with loads of shops and restaurants. I don't know why I didn't get a kodak...guess I was just too busy stalking the classical music couple.

Arrived at the concert location and bought myself a ticket. A pretty nice place for a chamber music concert!

view of the beach from up there:


concert right up here:


stage was right in front of this:


mountains behind me:


The concert was really great. Conducted by Maxim Shostakovich, son of Dmitri (cool!), performed by the Sinfonia Varsovia, a Polish chamber orchestra. They did works by Stravinsky, two pieces by Shostakovich, and the Schubert Unfinished Symphony (in which the oboe player missed and entrance, so Maxim just started singing his part until he caught on). Maxim was a lively and entertaining conductor, and my seat was along the side, kinda behind the violins, so I had the same view of him that a player in the orchestra would have, so I could see the facial expressions and hear all the vocalizing he did (sometimes grunting, sometimes singing along). At one point he even did a 360-degree turn, going from cueing the cellos to flipping around via facing the audience to cue the violins. I don't think I've ever seen a conductor do that before. Rad moves, Maxim!

The concert ended around midnight, and I feared a dark and lonely walk back to my car (which I smartly wrote down the location of in my little notebook just in case I forgot where it was). Boy, was I wrong -- the streets were hopping on Sunday night at midnight, with not just young adult partiers, but families and little kids still licking ice cream cones. Old people, young people, people on dates, people pushing strollers...amazing. Not sure if it was some kind of special day, or if that's how things always are in Menton. There were even people discoing, complete with disco-lights, right on the sidewalk along the beach:


Found my car and followed the signs back to my town, making it home around 1am, very glad to be safely tucked back into my apartment and proud of myself for going on an adventure on day one on the Riviera!