March 31st, Monaco.
A beautiful sunny day that did not start as well as we
thought due to the clocks going forward an hour and we had forgotten. Normally
this would not have mattered but it meant we had to get the 10.32 train and not
the 9.32 to Monaco. The train was very busy but we were able to get glimpses of
the beautiful Cote D’Azur as we moved along. We arrived in Monte Carlo at about
10.30 which gave us 25 minutes to get to the Palace du Prince to see the
changing of the guard. 
We made it with minutes to spare. After watching the
guard change with the crowds we decided to take our time and slowly wander through
the gardens, cathedral, old town etc. and just enjoy the atmosphere, the sea
views and the very wealthy display of boats in the harbours.
We ate our smoked
salmon sandwiches overlooking the sea and felt very privileged. We continued to
wonder eventually reaching the Monte Carlo Casino late afternoon. The whole area
around the casino is magnificent. We both enjoyed looking at all the cars, 2
yellow Ferrari’s, 5 Aston Martins, numerous Bentley’s and Mercedes, etc., etc.
We walked into the European Room intent on having a flutter only to find the
lowest minimum bet we could find was 25 Euro and we had limited ourselves to
only spending 100 but we had wanted more than 4 goes. Eventually we sat down at
a Black Jack table and handed over our money. We stayed there for 6 hands,
winning the first then losing the subsequent 5. It was very exciting and easy
to see how addictive it could be. A couple of guys on our table were playing a
minimum of 100 euros at a time winning some and losing more. After our flutter and very entertaining (but short lived)
experience we walked back down to the main port for a drink in the sun and
watch the boats and super rich. One boat came in while we watched. It had a
small helicopter on the back. Later we saw that it also carried within its boot
area a motor launch, speed boat for skiing and four jet skis all ready for
immediate use. How the other half live!
It had been a lovely day in Monaco and we caught the 6.30
train back to Villeneuve Loubert. As the shop had closed early last night we
decided to end a wonderful day by going for a meal at the marina. We found a
lovely place run by a Tunisian where Jacqui could have lamb tagine, which was what
she was yearning for and I had mussels, steak and chips, Tiramisu and we both
enjoyed a nice bottle of Beaujolais. We were both very full as we walked home.
Monday 1st April. Villeneuve Loubert.
As planned, it was a wet day which allowed Jacqui to work
and complete her marking while I managed to clean the van between showers and
catch up with our washing. In the
afternoon Jacqui did our weekly shop allowing me more time to finish the
planned route and stopovers in Italy and Greece. Despite the rain and strong
winds, Jacqui also went out for a brisk
walk along the seafront to get some exercise. In the evening we worked on the
blog and felt ourselves ready to leave France and head off to Italy in the
morning.
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