Intro Part II (Liguria & Lake Como) Part III (Villages & Friends) "From Napoleon to the Riviera II" Thursday, 16 September. The Marriott provided a lavish breakfast buffet, all we needed to complement the other two big meals we were eating every day. We tried to go easy, but ---! We also had a sedentary morning ahead, a two-hour lecture on the history of Monaco. The bus took us to the Abela Hotel where the lecture started at 9:00. The history was quite interesting. It started in 1215 when the Genoese built a fortress on The Rock. In 1297 Francesco Grimaldi, an Italian, captured the fortress by trick. His men wore monks' robes over their armor to get inside behind the defenses. The Grimaldis have ruled Monaco ever since, although not always as a separate country. Much of the time Monaco has been a French or Spanish protectorate, sometimes under military occupation. It was formally annexed to France from 1793-1814, first during the French Revolution, then under Napoleon. After the lecture we were rushed by bus to The Rock to see the changing of the guard at the Prince's Palace at noon. We arrived at the last minute, and the square was very crowded. Surprisingly, though, (because we had never seen it happen before) the people in the front were very accommodating, inviting those of us in the rear to come forward to take a picture. The changing of the guard was a fairly small and simple ceremony. Monaco has no army, so these were members of the Caribiniers (paramilitary police) rather than soldiers.
After an excellent three-course lunch at Da Sergio (tuna topped salad, veal and potatoes, tiramisu), Claude guided us on a walking tour of Monaco-Ville. (Denis was now our Tour Director.) We saw a special exhibit of religious art in the Museum of the Chapel of the Visitation, housed in a baroque 17th Century Jesuit chapel. (Many of the religious buildings seized during the revolution were never returned to the Church.)
We passed the Oceanographic Museum and learned that the Grimaldis were very active in that science. Just past the Museum, we followed a lovely promenade through St. Martin Park with beautiful views of the coast and the sea.
We saw the huge Cathedral where the Grimaldis traditionally are buried, and we went through the slow-moving line to view Princess Grace's crypt behind the main altar in the apse. The picturesque Palais de Justice (law court) is adjacent to the Cathedral.
A tour of the inside of the Prince's Palace followed. We started in the Court of Honor, built around the graceful Grand Staircase and flanked by the Gallery of Hercules. We must have visited a dozen rooms, each more lavish than the other.
Next to the Palace entrance was the Napoleon Museum, especially interesting as Claude explained the significance of many items on display. After the tour, we had about 40 minutes to walk around Monaco-Ville before meeting at the bus at 5 p.m. and returning to our hotel. A little before 7 p.m. the bus took us back into the city to the Astoria restaurant for another excellent three-course dinner (onion soup, baked fish, and nuccioli with raspberry sauce). Back at the hotel, the two of us went for a walk along the Cap d'Ail marina, then sat on our balcony enjoying the night air and the view. Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 |
