Jasmine's 2011 Trip: Nice, Monaco...the French Riviera!

Arrived in Nice late in the evening after a day of jumping on and off trains. The hostel I was staying in, the Antares Hotel, is right across the street from the Nice Ville train station, which was a relief. The following day I didn't seem to have more energy than to head to the beach, which was about a 15 minute walk from the hostel on a street called Avenue Jean Medecin. The avenue is the beginning of a major tourist area and is filled with shops and restaurants. There are also a lot of performance artists, musicians, and old school break dancers. It is also a major hub for inner city trains (see pics-very modern and very quiet, they have to sound an alarm to let pedestrians know they are coming up behind them). Another great thing about the hostel's location is that it was very close to a couple of small markets that sell fresh produce, a much cheaper alternative to eating out all the time... not to mention, over the last month I have noticed that finding a veggie heavy option, like a salad, on many of the restaurants's menus is rare and will usually cost you an arm and a leg! So I was eating well for the next few days...
The beach was nice, tall palm trees, but not much sand: the beach was mostly covered in smooth cobblestones. It was really hot, and the water looked fantastic, but too cold for me to get in. From the beach you can see the ruins of an old fortress on a high hill overlooking the city. I found out later that it is called Colline du Chateau and the oldest part of Vieux Niece (old Nice), dating from the 11th century.
Later that night I met some of the people staying at the hostel. Many were aussies traveling on their gap year, some were looking for work on boats. One couple was heading to Cinque Terra. Cinque Terra is a group of five towns that are perched on the coast of Italy between Genova and Pisa. They are so old no one knows when people actually first settled there, three thousand years ago there were records of the towns, and they were already described as ancient. It is also a World Heritage site. You can reach them by train, but no cars are allowed in the towns. The pictures I have seen are indescribably beautiful, and you can either take a train between each of them, a boat, or hike. I decided that night to pass on Milan to go see them. It's not a very direct route, you can't really make reservations to stay online, so the easiest way is to stay in a neighboring bigger city and take a local train in. I had to pick between Genova or La Spezia. I found a really convenient, well-rated place to stay in La Spezia, and planned on spending two days there, hiking between the towns.
The next day I took a bus to Monaco, early in the morning. The bus ride runs along the coast and only took 40 minutes. To the left and above, were these amazing mansions, that looked more like small palaces, and far below to the right were tiny, isolated harbors filled with expensive yachts.
I wasn't really sure where to go, as I didn't have a map, so I got off at Port Hercules. The harbor was filled with gorgeous yachts, and there was a car show being held next to the stop, which also just happened to be located on a street that is part of the Monte-Carlo Gran Prix each year. To my left, and high above, I could the palace, Palais Princier, so I headed in that direction. The palace dates back from the 1200s, and is on top of a hill over looking the city. Once I got to the top, I walked around old Monaco. It is the original part of the city and is loaded with more shops and cafes, a cathedral, and the ocean museum. I still wanted to see more, but Monaco is very hilly, and without a map, I figured the best way to see the rest of the sights was to jump on a train that takes tourists around the city. There were headsets for audio guides in seven languages, to I received a crash course in Monaco's history. Monaco was founded by the Grimaldi family who took over the city by being disguised as monks. Thus the name Monaco, which is the italian name for monks. There were small posters throughout the city commemorating Princess Grace. Sports cars everywhere. It was really lovely, the wealth impressive, but also felt very touristy. Everything was...perfect and clean. It reminded me Disney World for adults. I took the train back to Nice later that evening.
The next day I explored old Nice and went to the beach. Old Nice is very pretty and I spent the day taking pictures, eating terribly delicious food, and climbing to the top of the hill to Le Chateau's ruins (it was purposely destroyed by Louis XIV), and the view was incredible! On the way down I visited an historic graveyard that is open to tourists. As the weather got warmer, I walked down to the beach and enjoyed. Watched some dancers perform to Thriller and Beat it, all the original moves! Went out to old Nice later that night for a bit before getting in early, my first of three trains was leaving at 9:30.

Place Massena