We are in our last week here in Provence and have yet to visit the actual famous part of the coast, the Cote d’Azur. It is a bit of a drive away from where we are, so we decided to make an overnight adventure of it. I booked a hotel near Nice, we packed our swimsuits and beach towels, and took off.

Driving into Nice we had the feeling that we may as well be in Los Angeles. The landscape and the traffic reminded us both of Southern California. Way too crowded. Way too developed. We both counted our lucky stars that we didn’t end up renting an apartment closer to the coast. We’ve been so much happier where we are. We got to Nice in time to grab some amazing Italian food in the old town and walk along the famed Promenade des Anglais, catching some of the local street performers along the way. The air down there is much more humid than where we are. Steamy!

After spending a couple of hours in Nice we got back in the car to drive East along the coast to Monte Carlo, passing through the towns of Villefranche-sur-Mer and Beaulieu-sur-Mer (which we promptly dubbed Beaumont-sur-Mer in honor of one of our favorite movies), bypassing St.-Jean-Cap-Ferrat and the medieval cliff town of Eze.

I had visited both Nice and Monte Carlo back when I was doing an exchange program in Switzerland during college, but that was many years ago. They are almost exactly how I remember them, including the crowds and over-touristed way of Nice and the true-to-life James Bond glamour of Monte Carlo. Monte Carlo, despite being miniscule in size, makes up for it in flashiness.

The post-stamp size principality lives up to its 007 reputation, particularly the area around the casino where one can find numerous Ferraris, Lambourghinis, Bentleys, Rolls Royces, and other vehicles that cost more than the house I grew up in, just lying around in the parking lot while their owners throw away who knows how much money in the famed casino. It’s great fun to see and experience in person. Unfortunately we couldn’t go in the casino because the one dress code they have is pants, and Larry was wearing shorts. Oh well, maybe next time.