Nice, Genova and Florence

We have been so lucky of late with the weather. It has been continuously hot and sunny.
The last couple of days we spent in Nice were fantastic beach days and we have tanned up somewhat. Suprisingly, skin cancer awareness appears to be quite low in this part of the world. . .as we were the only family on the beach wearing rashies and boardies. In fact, most people looked at us quite strangely as speedos and bikinis are standard attire on the beaches (and in some cases, not even that!).
Last Tuesday (17th August), we decided to tour Cannes, Monaco and Monte Carlo. The kids wanted to see the beach Mr Bean went to great efforts to find - so we travelled about an hour south of Nice to find Cannes beach. It was sooo hot and there were so many people crowding the beaches, but the kids were really keen to swim - so we joined the crowds and found a spot on the beach. Unfortunately, the water was FREEZING and the boys couldn't stay in the water for longer than an hour and Zoe wouldn't even dip her toes in the water! So, after a home-packed lunch on the beach, we headed into town to check out the Palais Des Festivals - where they hold the annual Cannes Film Festival each year. There were lots of multi-million dollar yachts and boats in the lovely harbour. . .so you can certainly see why this is a playground for the rich and famous. But, for my money, nothing is more bautiful than our harbours at home. . .
Back into the car for our drive back to Nice and onto Monaco. After a quick snack, we walked up to the royal palace to take some pictures and admire the fantastic view over Monaco from the clifftop location. Back down into town and we spotted a childrens' carnival and the kids were keen to go on a few rides. We spent a couple of great hours down there before walking further along the marina, spotting some amazing yachts and highpowered vessels and having a delicious dinner. We got back into the car for the short drive over to Monte Carlo and the famous casino and then through the tunnel which forms part of the circuit for the Monaco F1 Grand Prix. A delightful moment for Steven as he realised his dream of driving on an F1 circuit!!!
Wednesday was our last day in France and we left Nice via the clifftop castle in the Old Town. The kids played in the playground there for a little while and enjoyed the fresh air and sunshine before getting into the car for our drive to Genova in Italy.
We arrived in Genova in good time and checked into our lovely hotel. We decided that after our busy days in Nice, we'd have a quiet night in. We ate a really lovely meal in the hotel restaurant (which had fabulous views over Genova), but it took us the best part of 2 hours to finish our meals as the service was exceptionally slow. . .
Unfortunately, the best part of Genova seemed to be our lovely hotel - as there really was not that much to see in the city. The next day, we toured as much as we could (and wanted) before we headed back to the hotel for a movie (I finally saw "Avatar") and room service (as we couldn't bear to sit in the hotel restaurant for 2 hours again!).
The next day we left Genova early for a drive down the Ligurian coast to Portofino. To our amazement, it was raining quite heavily there and parking was exceptionally difficult so we decided to continue straight through to Pisa on our way into Florence.
Pisa was a great stop. We were all amazed to see the Leaning Tower! In particular, for Steven and I, the last time we were here 13 years ago, it was not permissible to climb the Tower as there were some works being done to stablise the structure. Obviously, these works were now complete as there were queues of people lining up to climb to the top. We weren't keen!!
Arrived in Florence about 3pm and were met by our host, Simon, who escorted us up to our apartment and showed us around. WOW!! What an amazing apartment! It was huge - with 3 large bedrooms, and eat-in kitchen, laundry, 2 bathrooms and a private roof-top terrace with 360 degree views of Florence and direct view to Il Duomo (the most famous building in Florence)! We all felt like we were in heaven and as there was a supermarket directly across the road from the apartment building, things were very convenient.
Although we've recently enjoyed quite good food in France and in Genova, we all decided we'd like a home-cooked meal, so I made a simple pasta and salad and we all enjoyed our dinner up on the terrace with our perfect view of Il Duomo and later a beautiful sunset.
Saturday 22 August, we toured Florence and did some shopping at the famous leather markets - picking up some choice buys. Sunday, more of the same, though we were all craving crepes again and we decided to give it a go ourselves back at the apartment. Dean and I made the mixture and Steven cooked them. Yummy! Steven couldn't cook them quick enough for the troops! Afterwards, we took some snacks and our bottle of Chablis up to the terrace to watch the sun set again. We even endured the mozzies to stay up there as long as we could. Finally came down as the moon was high in the sky. . .another day gone!