When I was growing up, cable TV had just made its entry to Indian television. Star TV was a revolution and most of us were hooked on to it. One of the soap operas at the time was based in the French Riviera. I had heard about the lovely Mediterranean coast before, but it was in this TV serial, that I first saw lovely, scenic views of the south of France.
After Barcelona, we took a day train and headed to Nice, in the southern coast of France. Apparently, all of France heads down to the beaches during the summer and I can see why. The place is everything that I saw on in that TV show and more. The Cote d’ Azur (local name for the French Riviera) is very very scenic. The water looks a calm blue and is overlooked by amazing castles and mansions. Many resorts have sprung up on the coast - some exclusively for the rich and famous.
The first couple of days were spent on the coast, taking in the breathtaking scenery.
There are several small towns to the east and west of Nice, each with their own beaches, resorts, restaurants and views. The place really makes you want to relax. And thats what I did. I had planned to stay in Nice only for 3 days. But the Cote d’ Azur in combination with our hostel, the Villa Saint Exupery were excellent to relax. The hostel had a great atmosphere, amazing all-you-can-eat breakfast and free wi-fi. And you could head to the beach when you felt like it. To me it was like a vacation from a vacation. After traveling in big cities, walking a lot, seeing touristy things I needed a break. It does get tiring - sometimes you have to remind yourself that you are on a vacation. So I decided to extend my stay in Nice..day by day…just never wanted to leave…And so I ended up in Nice for 10 days 
See more pictures of Nice in the flickr photo set . I really chilled out in Nice, reflected on a lot of my past and thought about the future. It was time well spent.
Rohit and me joked that we went to Barcelona in the wrong decade. In complete contrast, it seemed that we had hit Nice in the perfect week ! We could catch the Monaco Formula One Race, the Cannes Film Festival and a French soccer league match.
3 Comments
That looks exactly like my town!
… okay, I mean, my dream town.
checked out your flickr stream. wonderful pictures.
Bhatta,
Super proud that you did this. Something I can only dream of doing I think. Really. Brilliant.
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