Nice in Nice

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Geo: 43.7034, 7.2662

Liberty sails into the small bay at Villefranche just as the rising sun lifts above the horizon and throws its light over the pine clad hills that surround the small town. The bay is dotted with small fishing boats that bob gently as Liberty's bow thrusters churn up the tranquil waters. We are soon anchored in place and tender boats are quickly alongside and taking guests ashore for their excursions.

We breakfast again in the main dining room before returning to the room to gather our things and heading out. We take the lift down to Deck 1 and board one of the tender boats. It only takes 10 minutes before we are docked in the small harbour. We walk the short distance to the small train station to catch the train to Nice-Ville station. There a number of people on our platform but there seem to be 10 times as many on the other side all headed to Monaco it would seem.

It's only a short distance into Nice itself and we are soon walking down what seems to be their version of London's Oxford Street, a busy thoroughfare full of large department stores and boutiques. We carry on for a mile until we come to a large open plaza called Place Massena. From there we head into the old town of Nice. Full of narrow winding streets it is very picturesque and there seems to be a surprise around every corner. Small shops selling souvenirs that are not tacky, art shops, shops selling candied fruit (a specialty of Nice). We take pictures of the impressive Opera House before entering the Cours Selaya. This is the famous open air market that is held daily except for Mondays. We gawp at the amount of fresh produce on display, it all looks so delicious. Magnificent flower bouquets are on show at some stalls with prices a fraction of what you would pay for similar back home.

We head out onto the broad avenue that runs along side the beach in Nice. Slightly disappointed that the beachfront of pebbles rather than sand and so it does not compare to Cannes lovely beachfront. We head eastward to the Hotel Suisse. I had read about a lookout point above the hotel that gives really good views over Nice and the coastline. Most people climb the gruelling steps to the top but I knew there was an elevator that would take you there but it's not very prominent and most people miss it. We found it and we emerged at the top to a magnificent view of the city below us. We had cold drinks at a small cafe at the top before walking back down (much easier going down than up). The pathway led us down past small waterfalls and through sun dappled woodland before reaching another corner of the old town.

By this time we had walked miles and so we found a small restaurant where we ordered toasted Paninis/Baguettes before walking back up to the train station to head back to Villefranche. Once there we explored the small town itself, stopping to order beers and use the wifi at a small bar. We caught the tender back to the ship mid afternoon and relaxed in the Solarium for a while. Peter then headed to the gym and me to the cabin where I spent late afternoon on the balcony.

Pre-dinner drinks were in the Diamond Lounge. No one we knew were there and so we went to the Schooner Bar where we find Joyce and Jerry and their friends. Just as we sat down they start an Abba Music Trivia Quiz and so we formed a team and joined in. We started well but fell down on some of the later ones that we should have known. We scored 17/20. A Swedish couple won with 20/20 Surely they should have been handicapped? Their national anthem is Dancing Queen isn't it? We were slightly less miffed when they were handed their prize. A book containing 4 walking tours of the ships artwork.

We all split after this. After the time delays at dinner the first night we have switched back to My Time Dining and so we have a table for 2 where we find service to be much better. Our head waiter is great and takes time to explain the menu and make his recommendations. His assistant waiter is a little glum and we make it our goal to illicit a smile out of him before the end of the week. We are still trying. I order Thai Chicken Salad to start and follow it up with Sea Bass for my main. Both very good. I don't recall Peters exact choices but I know he enjoyed.

We try our hand in the casino without much luck before going to the Catacombs. This is the ships nightclub and tonight they are having a silent disco. We tried this for the first time on Brilliance of the Seas back on February and really enjoyed it. There is a lady handing out headphones at the entrance and explains there are 2 channels to choose from by flicking a switch on the side of the headphones. One channel is Pop/RnB and the other is Rock. No guessing which we choose. We are soon dancing around with other guests. All perfectly normal until you take of the headphones to a room silent except for people singing along themselves. After an hour we head to Sorrentos for some Pizza and some glasses of water before retiring for the night. Tomorrow La Spezia in Italy.

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