Though small at a distance, don't let this yacht fool you. It comes fully equipped with a swimming pool, motor-ski dock at the back and it wouldn't surprise me if it had a helicopter landing....
Walking around the island was lovely and warm. So much so, that we decided to take a little dip in the blue waters that give the coast its name.
That was just a foot tester. We brought our bathing suits and swam out to some of the boats that were docked near by. God I love Mediterranean water! So warm!
Anyways, after we were cooled off, we went up to the little castle on the island and took in the nice view of Cannes' coast.
The way back down to the port was very cute, with cobble-stone roads and old little stone houses...
Upon our return to Cannes, we decided to go for a little snack. Now, this whole trip so far has been undoubtedly inspiring, fun, delicious....but nothing had prepared me for the new obsession I was about to develop...That is, the obsession for the French Macaroon
Specifically, the macaroons from Jean Luc Pele, a bakery with locations in Cannes and Paris.
To our astonishment, the man working there gave us a free macaroon to sample their new caramel creme brule. My soul died and went to heaven. Fortunately, I was reborn, only to die again when I tried the "Framboise" (raspberry) and then, my so far favourite, "Chocolat 80%".
Once I found my balance again, we headed back home where Elliot and I made dinner for the household of nine: Elliot's father, grandparents, aunt, uncle and two cousins plus us. I became very close friends with his four year old cousin Amelie, who accepted the role as my personal French tutor
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| Indiana, Amelie and me |
Wednesday, in search of a bit more of rich glamour, we took the train to Montecarlo, Monaco. We walked around the Casino, which is so fancy that you cannot take pictures, but imagine high ceilings, plaster carvings, mosaics, stained glass windows.... A much more classy, rich, European version of a Las Vegas gambling spot.
On the other side of the city (but only about a 15 minute hike), the Montecarlo Palace had some amazing views of just about the entire country of Monaco
One of the yachts we saw from there actually did have a helicopter landing....
On our way down we found a little amphitheatre whose perfectly circular shape makes your voice bounce right back at you when you stand in the middle. It was super cool.
For my last day today, we visited Grasse, a town located right on a hillside just about 10 minutes away. Grasse is mainly known for its perfume factories. We visited Fragonard, one of the factories that is open to the public.
The tour through the little building was quite insightful. I never knew how much went into making perfume.
The difference between perfume and eau de toilette is the concentration of ingredients. Perfume has up to 40% concentration of aromatic essence, while eau de toilette only has about 10%. Hence, perfume is the more expensive. The real difference isn't the potency of the smell though, it's how long it will last on your skin.
Those are different essences or smells that are mixed to make one perfume. The perfume makers have to go through ten years of training which ends in a test where they have to identify 250 unique smells. Then, if you want to become what is called a Nez or Nose, which are the masters of perfume making, one would have to take another test, where 3,000 smells must be correctly identified. There are only 50 in the world, and they are the ultimate perfume assemblers.
After being enlightened and pleasantly scented with good perfume, we made our way, once again through old, narrow streets....
...on our way to a little Patisserie that Elliot had stumbled upon in the past, to have some tea and pastries.
Once again, good Lord! Just the menu was mouth watering...
Of each of those little desserts, only one is made each day from scratch, and they are all served with its' perfect pair of home-made ice-cream.
After much torment, I was able to settle on one...The Cara Blanco: Fondant chocolate blanc au caramel salé, coeur coulant caramel salé aver glace chocolate noir.
What does that mean? It means White chocolate fondant (meaning that the little cake would be gooey and delicious) with a heart or centre of salted caramel, served with dark chocolate ice cream.
......very little time after.....
It took all the effort and strength that I had not to lick that plate clean.
For my last dinner here in France, Elliot and I went to, what I now have heard from several people, is the best pizza place in all of Cannes (and according to the very rich seeming lady sitting next to us), possibly the best in the world.
I ordered Le Neptune, with tomato, garlic, parsley and tuna.
The pizzas are made in a huge stone oven that you can see if you peak in, and I must admit, it was amazing.
Of course, I had to go by and indulge one more time in my new favourite food item.....Yes, you guessed it.... I bought more macaroons
But they were the small size, and I promise they will be my last ones for a very very long time, so shush.
It's hard to believe that I'm already leaving tomorrow. This has been such a different, fun part of my trip.
So much good company, good food, good weather...and I must say, I have learned a new word or two in French, which is an added bonus.
Alors au revoir la France. Jusqu'à la prochaine fois!
P.S. I am now heading off to Spain, where I will be staying in Cabo de Palos, a small beach town near Cartagena, Murcia. Now, one of my favourite things about this place is how disconnected I feel when I go there....Translation: I am probably not going to have access to internet, therefore the blog may be stagnant for a few days. I'm doing pretty well so far though, so stay tuned! I'm planning on being back!
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