Life Through American Eyes

Before returning to Oklahoma, we decided to visit a small part of France near Nice. We had to return our car to the airport in Nice and fly back home from there too. So we wanted to be close to Nice for that. We found an affordable studio apartment in Grasse, the perfume capital of France and less than an hour from Nice. Grasse is also a short bus ride from Cannes so that was another reason for visiting this part of France. I’d seen and swam in the Adriatic Sea and now I wanted to do the same in the Mediterranean!

One of the beach areas in Cannes

Huge fields of lavender, roses, and jasmine are grown near Grasse for the perfume industry there. Perfume factories and museums in Grasse are open to the public so you can learn as much as you want about the perfume industry there. We particularly enjoyed the Fragonard Perfumerie and their perfumes. As with all of Europe, there is much history to absorb in Grasse too. The Cathedral of Notre Dame du Puy has 3 amazing Rubens inside, along with so many other things worth taking the time to view in this Provencal Romanesque style cathedral.

We enjoyed walking around this small city and being surprised by what we found. And the views were just spectacular. You could see all the way to the coast from some places. There are a few resting places in Grasse where you might be lucky enough to find an empty seat and feel the mist cool you that is sprayed every few seconds, along with the breeze. What a great find that was as it was hot the week we were there.

One of the sculptures in Grasse

The only problem with Grasse is parking. Arrive early to find a spot and leave the car and walk until you leave Grasse. We arrived around 3:00 PM and drove around for half an hour before finally finding a spot for our car in one of the car parks. We left the car there all week and took the bus to Cannes. It was a great deal. For only one Euro each we could ride to Cannes and not have to deal with parking the car there. It looked like parking was at a premium in Cannes too.

This is a car park in Grasse!

In Cannes, we enjoyed the beach and swimming in the Mediterranean. We also walked along the famous for shopping Boulevard de la Croisette and the Rue d’Antibes among other streets. Along a side street we found a Chinese restaurant and took a chance…it was a wonderful meal. One reason we chose it was that you could eat inside in an air conditioned room! We wanted to explore the old historic part of Cannes, but it was just too hot to do all that walking so we found this lovely restaurant, had a great lunch and took the bus back to Grasse. This was after we spent the morning at the beach.

The Beach in Cannes

So, which is better – the Adriatic or the Mediterranean? That depends on what you’re looking for. The Adriatic has beautiful crystal clear water but mostly rocky beaches. The Mediterranean in Cannes had nice sandy beaches but the water was not as clear or blue. Maybe sometime I’ll get to other parts of the Mediterranean to see more and have more to compare…

We had a fantastic send off from France. On our last night in the country, we got to watch a spectacular fireworks display in Grasse, complete with music. This was to celebrate France’s Bastille Day which is observed on July 14^th.

Almost time to return to the USA.

Enjoy more photos at the following link.

https://picasaweb.google.com/100390625521976559356/France2011

So many thoughts and emotions running through my mind while packing up all the last minute things. I will write more next week about all that and our week in France. I just can't do it now. I need a few days to sort through my emotions and the laundry! ! ! And time to write it all down for you. With photos of course.

In Cannes, France. There is one for almost every country you can think of.

Thank you all so much for sharing your thoughts on this trip. I was very surprised at how many people read this blog regularly. And encouraged by it too! I hope you'll continue checking in here for further posts.