One year on!

Sunday 1 Dec  - It is a year today since we flew out of Brisbane for our time abroad.  Looking back it has been many things; exciting, exhilarating, fun and then the other not so good things like feeling scared, anxious and apprehensive at times.

Obviously, being together every day with very little time to ourselves, has not always been easy.  Jim can suffer from anxiety in situations where he feels he doesn’t have control and that is a lot when travelling.  My dreamy attitude as he puts it makes his anxiety worse – difficult at times to find a balance for us both but we have survived this far – experiencing occasional days of quiet times, both needing our own space also difficult to achieve when having to share the same house or hotel room where outdoors for me to walk and get away on my own has very rarely been an option.  Jim is happy so long as he has TV and his IT gadgets to play with.  I am so grateful I can practise yoga anywhere well, almost anywhere.  It has not always been easy but here in Eze it is a joy to practise overlooking the ocean.  It helps to keep me balanced both emotionally and physically.  Enough of that emotional stuff most people don't like discussing it.  I’ll put you off reading the blog I just felt like being honest about how we are coping during our time away.  

Looking towards the marinara on our walk for lunch

Mussels for lunch

After a wet and windy day yesterday (Saturday) today was brilliant sunshine.  We walked along the roadway between the mountains and the coastline into Beaulieu Marina for lunch.  A promenade of restaurants line one side of the marina and the boats line the other.  We walked along and ooh(ed) and aah(ed) at the impressive boats docked side by side, so many, so much money – typical of marinas the world over.  Forgot to mention the apartment has a set of binoculars that are great for looking at the cruise ships, sailing boats and other craft sailing by.  It is quiet at this time of year but I can imagine how busy it is out there over the peak summer months of July and August.

For lunch I had mussels cooked in white wine with French fries – moules & frites with a Belgian beer Grimbergen.  It goes together really well.  There were so many mussels; there must have been half a kilo.  I did this for you – Peta and Frank.  They were great.  Lucky we walked to and from the marina to walk off the meal.  Jim had a hamburger, salad and fries.  He said it was good.  He finds it amazing he has been asked the few times he has had a burger in Europe ‘how would he like the burger cooked’ – that doesn’t happen in good old Oz.

Jim admired the cars which drove past while we were having lunch: Porsche, Bentley, Maserati, convertible this, convertible that.  Our convertible mini would have been right at home here.  They are as common as muck as the saying goes but mind you we haven’t seen a burnt orange one yet.  Stu, would love it here with all these beautiful cars – we even saw a few ‘new’ rangas.

Tuesday 3 Dec

Today we caught the train into Nice, only fifteen minutes along the coast.  For a large town the city centre had a good feel.  In a large park near the beach there is a Christmas village of sorts set up with stalls selling all Christmas paraphernalia; food, gifts rides and even an ice-skating rink.  We had a ride on the ferris wheel.  It was fantastic value for 7 Euros each ($10) and the views were spectacular.  You must look on Flickr for the views – you’ll work out which photos they are.

Beautiful Christmas decorations along the streets of Nice

The ferris wheel

View from the ferris wheel

In the Christmas village we had ‘Socca’ a traditional Nice dish for lunch.  It is made of ground chickpeas and olive oil cooked in a super large pan in a wood oven.  Looks like a pancake or flat bread or pizza base, you get the idea.  It was yummy.  It would have gone well with olives and cheese.  

Needing a toilet we decided to venture into McDonalds, always a good toilet stop if you see a McDonalds that is.  Anyway, this McDonalds you had to buy something to get the code for the toilet door – they are obviously sick of people abusing their toilets so Jim bought a thick shake and I bought a hot chocolate and a macaroon.  Yum! The French are very good at hot chocolate and McDonalds is no exception, it was real chocolate.  A bit embarrassed to admit being in the home of the macaroon we hadn’t had any (as yet) they always looked a bit sweet, I know that sounds rich coming from me who loves cakes and biscuits but I don’t like overly sweet things.  Anyway I chose a rose one and it was delicious.  A bit of worry really because know I won’t hesitate to buy more.  I would like to try one of each colour before we leave France.