2021 - Fall in France

Saturday morning, there was a fog blanketing Zurichsee (Lake Zurich).  Even though we could clearly see his sailboat on the lake from his balcony, he decided we needed to go up into the hills behind Meilen to see if we could get above the fog and get some views of the mountains.   So, we headed for a place called Pfannensteil.  I had been there before with my other friends who live nearby.  The views were lovely and it was all just so, well, Swiss!  The mountains weren't as clear as I have seen them at other times but it is still a lovely countryside regardless. Later, I had dinner with my friends here with whom I usually stay.  It was lovely to see them and we had a great visit.  I had taken their daughter a Halloween costume called Dark Angel along with a black wig.  She looked spectacular in it and was very, very happy.  It was sure worth hauling it here from Canada.  While I'd seen costumes in some stores in France, none were e...

  Friday, we checked out of our lovely flat and my friends headed for la Gare Nice Centre for their 10 hour train journey back to Alsace.  I headed to the airport - using Uber, my new best friend here in the south of France - for my afternoon flight to Zurich. A couple of things about the logistics.  First off, having the Uber app on my phone has been great.  It works well, particularly when you are sharing the cost with friends.  Also, it was about 22 Euros for my ride to the airport and a taxi would have cost much more.  I used the app with I was in Portugal a few years ago as well.  It sure makes getting from Point A to Point B a lot easier when you don't have time to adapt to bus and train schedules.   Second, to enter Switzerland, you have to fill out a form online ( Swiss Entry Form )  giving information about your vaccination status, where and how long you will be staying in CH, and your passport information.  The QR code tha...

While we had the option of visiting other villages along the coast, like Cannes, Menton or Cagnes sur Mer, we decided to spend the last of our time here continuing to explore Nice.  Again, we started our morning by walking along the Promenade des Anglais east toward La Colline du Chateau (Castle Hill).  It was another nice day about 20'.   One of the things you notice as you walk along the promenade are all the bolted down rows of blue chairs.  We had heard there was a history to them so I checked out the Internet and this is what I found. Like the Tour Eiffel of Paris or Big Ben of London, la Chaise bleue  has long been considered the symbol of Nice.   The iconic chairs, as blue as the rippling Bay of Angels they overlook, are wedged in rows of 20 along the famous Promenade des Anglais . Back in the 50’s, these chairs were wooden, white, and spread along the promenade. They were mostly used by families and elderly people as a place to relax....