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Published: April 29th 2011
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Art installation at entrance of MAMAC Today was the day that I would be leaving Marseille and making my way to Nice. The TGV takes you straight to the centre of town and would be a stone's throw from my hotel (Hotel Riviera). The reason that I picked this hotel was because of how close it was but also because they also give you a packed lunch every day (on top of a buffet breakfast!).
I have always had visions of Nice as being sun-kissed. I came in to a Nice on a day that was unfortunately grey and a little chilly. Thankfully it was not raining. There is definitely a luxury factor that exists here especially in comparison to Marseille. Marseile (or at least what I was able to see) is a little bit more salt of the earth. Nice is a vacationers paradise and definitely a bit more high brow.
I was heading towards my first stop that I came upon the Théâtre de la Photographie et de L'Image. A small museum dedicated to photography. How did I not know about this??? And it was free to top it all off! The entranceway is lined with glass casings filled with 96 antique cameras.
I got a kick out of seeing the Kodak Instamatic 100 ... the camera that my parents had and the first camera I ever used. Back in the day when you had to buy flash bulbs!
The collection that was on display was by photographer August Sander. His work was simply amazing and definitely inspiring. Definitely someone that I will have to read up on more.
From there I would move on to the Musée d'Art Moderne et d'Art Contemporain. Again this is a museum with a free entry and houses a large collection of modern art. The draw for me was the fact that I had seen that they had the Andy Warhol of the Campbell Soup Can. I don't know why but I love that work. Sadly, it was no longer there. I did manage to see another Warhol though ... and shoes at that! The lovely discovery was Niki de Saint Phalle. In looking over her biography (that was laid out on the wall leading into the room where her work was displayed), I recognized her as being the one that I had designed the Stravinski Fountain in Paris so it was interesting to see
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Pop Art - Marilyn Monroe some of her other works.
By that time I was famished. I stopped in at a small creperie. It was literally a whole in the wall that was owned by a husband and wife. The husband was behind the counter making coffees, washing dishes and tending to things around the kitchen. He noticed my accent so that started a lively conversation. He was dead on with his imitation of the Quebec accent!! They were such a lovely couple and definitely welcomed me warmly to Nice.
I managed to walk through many small streets, stopped in at the Basilique-Cathedrale Sainte-Marie Sainte-Reparte and ultimately ended up on the beach off the Promenade des Anglais. The sky was still grey but there is still something incredible about being by the sea. The air different. The view that surrounds this area of the city is stunning and idyllic. I would literally stay there just looking out at the water and being entertained by the tourist and locals that are doing just as I am.
My day in Nice would end with a walk back to my hotel and with a small stop at the Nicolas wine store for a lovely bottle
of wine. This time I chose "Les vins de petites récoltes" from the Orange region.
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JFFournier
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That reminds me, if you ever get the chance to see the Blue Man Group, you should. They're quite cool.