First stop was the Casino, which was closed, so we began our walking tour of Monaco instead.
Headed off towards the centre and the port, then found a suitable hill to start our ascent to the old town. We zig-zag up the hill to the first stop which was the Oceanographic Museum. This place is built on a rising cliff sheer and is very impressive if you walk through the St Martin Gardens to the view point that gives the best full frontal you'll get without going to the port wall in Fontvielle.
Pause for drink and a visit to Les Toilettes. I should point out at this moment that we are ultimately heading for the Palace to watch the changing of the guard at 11.55 - it is now about 11.15 and plenty of time in hand. Just off the gardens is the Cathedral and behind that the old town and its narrow streets and souvenir shops, which we amble through because as Val tells me there is lots of time to 11.55.
At 11.50, in good time to watch the changing of the guard, Val is surprised to see a large crowd of people also waiting to watch the changing of the guard - she had this notion that if we got there at 11.50 then we would be the only people in Monaco who would be interested in watching this event and so would have the pick of positions. As is was we got as best a place as possible and waited 'till 11.55 when, on the dot, the bells played a quite unrecognisable tune to indicate the start. It is quite interesting, as are most ceremonial guard changings.
We had a look around the ramparts, which gave good views over Monaco, then went for some lunch and walked around the old town some more.
We had seen some nice stamps celebrating 700 years (1297 - 1997) of the Grimaldis so we fancied to buy a sheet of them, plus a nice 3Fr stamp of the Grand Prix, so we were quite pleased to find a philatelic counter in the post office in the old town. We asked about the 3Fr motor car stamp, well I say asked, it was more a case of pointing at the stamp and saying "vous avez?". Unfortunately she didn't "avez", or rather not without buying the full set of 3 sport stamps (I forget what the other 2 sports were). "Oh well, never mind" we sighed as we pointed at the 700 year anniversary set to buy. This was not a cheap item, and to our surprise she suddenly remembered she had a couple of the car stamps left.
By the post office was the bus terminus and the next place on our itinerary was the Exotic Gardens, and guess where the bus was going - wrong, it was going to St Roman, but the one after it was going to "Le Jardin Exotique".
The gardens are built on a hillside and are a series of terraced gardens of succulents and cacti plants from all over the world, with some older than the gardens itself. You also get a good view of the back side of the Old Town and Palace rock .
Also at the gardens is a "Grotte de L'Observatoire", what we would call a show cave. Stalactites and stalagmites adorn this cave which is 60m down into the rock and stays a steady 18 degrees C. It takes 300 steps to get to the bottom. The cave is very well presented.
We wandered around the gardens a bit after the cave before getting the bus to the Casino, where we paid the 50Fr each to get in and admire the interior decor and watch people with money lose some of it - one chap bet at least 15000Fr spread across lots of numbers on the roulette table only to lose it all.
We had a go on the 1Fr slot machines and lost 9Fr despite being 1Fr up at one point. After having a drink in the Rose Room we left and took the lift down to sea level finding ourselves in the bit of the Grand Prix circuit that goes through the tunnel.
Before having something to eat, and perhaps going up to the old town to take some night pix of Monaco, we thought we had better find out where Ed Broch stops his busses going back to Nice - no mean feat. Whilst getting there all his bus stops were labelled, getting back they are not so well distributed. We must have walked half way back to Nice before we decided to ask someone (of course I exaggerate about the half way to Nice bit, but it was a long way). We decide to skip the Monaco by night and get the next bus back.
We ate in traditional French style again, I had spaghetti bolognaise and Val had a Tuna salad (in fairness this was described as a Salade Nicois (Nice salad)). For drinks I had a beer and Val had a Kir. We guessed the waiter though we were a pair of heathens - I had main course and beer, Val had a starter and an aperitif.
Went out later for some night pix of the fountains (illuminated) in "Espace Massena", then just before having a go on the big wheel, we had to go back to the hotel to spend a penny, sorry 2Fr (which would be a very good exchange rate of 200Fr to a pound).
The big wheel ride was great fun.
A most enjoyable outing to Monaco/Monte Carlo, the most impressive thing being the noticeable absence of dog turds in the streets.
Go to Day 4
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Copyright © 1997 Andrew J White