The French Riviera

Marie made us a lovely breakfast before we left Puyricard, we also had a half hour chat with Remi where he showed us Marie's gallery. She sculpts the most lifelike busts. She also makes them in bronze. We talked a little about his life, his work and his family. I was hoping to catch one last glimpse of our squirrel neighbours but they made themselves scarce this morning.

Again our trip on the Tollway went without a hitch. We left the main road and took a beautiful detour through Saint Raphael and Theoule-sur-mer. Great coastline, fun winding road driving, expensive boats and houses. The NavGirl took us on a crazy detour of the outskirts of Nice and through some narrow back streets to the place where we finally said goodbye to the car and hello to the French Riviera.

How does it get any better than this? Afternoon drinks on the the balcony of our 5th floor apartment overlooking the beach and the bay of Juan-les-pins. My schoolgirl dream. I can see the street lights of Cannes in the distance and huge boats anchored in Gulfe Juan for the night (one has a helicopter on board). The sun is setting and the rain has washed the wind away. Music coming from a restaurant nearby. There is a little traffic as we are located on an intersection with a roundabout, but we seem oblivious to it unless we take the time to notice it. Ian is taking twilight photos and loving how the lights are

changing with each new photo.

Already from our balcony we have seen so many convertibles and smart cars, been witness to an altercation on the roundabout between a mini and a moped and we have even seen a guy walking his 2 ferrets down the main street.

I am sitting here sipping my red wine, watching the sun set over the Mediterranean Sea and pinching myself. "Yes this is real...yes we are in France...yes this is the French Riviera." I guess up until now the trip has been a whirlwind and we haven't really had the opportunity to sit outside and reflect. (Outside and in Nature is where my best reflecting is done) It has been great having a car but now I feel like it is time to slow down, take time to relax, unwind and enjoy every moment.