10/4/23 Ile St Margarite, Mouillage du Portel, France
It was a bit overcast in the morning, just patches of blue
sky. We gave each other haircuts on the swim step and then went for a snorkel
swim. Not much to see, a lot of sea grass and not much wild life, but the water
was warm, calm and clear.
We skipped a stop in Cannes, we had been there before and I
was unable to secure a spot in a marina. I wanted to stop in Nice, but again no
room in the marina. We ended up with a reservation in a place called Beauliea
sur Mer, not to far from Nice. With 10 to 15 knots of wind off our starboard
bow we clawed our way to our destination tacking back and forth. The wind was
supposed to clock to the east in the afternoon, but it never did. The swell and
chop built to an intolerable state so we furled the sails and motored. The boat
was slamming down pretty hard so I had to work pretty hard to steer through the
waves and minimize the beating. There was no relief until we turned inside the
jetty leading into the harbor.
It was beautiful little harbor surrounded by mountains that
soured straight up forming cliffs high above us. You could see that this was a
well to do bedroom community with beautiful homes and no apparent industry. We
gave the boat a good washdown as we took a lot of salt water over the bow, good
for the teak decks, but not the stainless and fiber glass. We checked in with
the Capitainerie , very helpful and well organized. The French ports are much
better at receiving visiting yachts then they were in Spain. We walked the
waterfront and found several groups playing Bocce Ball. It turns out it is a
game called Pétanque. The small target ball is called a Cochonnet (piglet) and,
like Bocce, the goal is to get your balls closest to the Cochonnet. Another
significant difference is that your feet must remain planted when tossing the
boule and everyone shoots from the exact same spot. Looks like we may need to
pick up some boules.
The night was calm, but warm at about 74 in the cabin with all the hatches open.
10/5/23 Beaulieu sur Mer, France
The day was clear and warm with a lite breeze and a high of about 77. We called up an Uber, here it is a Bolt, and rode into Nice. It was a pretty spectacular climb as we left the little town and quickly found ourselves with a spectacular view of the sea. The roads were narrow and winding as we made our way through small towns and into Nice. The road into Nice provides a great view of the city and the small harbor. We landed at the edge of Old Nice. Nice dates back to 300 BC, though we saw very little Roman ruins as the city developed over top of them. We walked the narrow streets and found the Market where they sell mostly fresh and artisan made food and a few odds and ends. The Market spans a grand boulevard that parallels the sea affording glimpses out to sea through arched openings on the long narrow sea front buildings. A woman was selling a French version of the Spanish Membrillo that we love so much. It is a sort of thick jam made from various fruits, but it is semi solid and you slice off pieces from the cake of jam. She had many flavors so we bought a few different kinds.
We walked the narrow streets of the Old City and took in the shops and houses. So many restaurants and cafes. We stopped for lunch at La Storia, a Brasserie on the boulevard where the market is held. The food was delicious, fish soup for me and a zucchini gazpacho for Suzette. We shared a niçoise salad with a beautiful selection of fresh vegetables, anchovies and tuna. Nothing like lingering over a two-hour lunch and watching the people go buy…in France.
Fortified we walked
up the steep steps to where Le Chateau once was, this was a walled compound high
up on the hill with beautiful foulage and views to the sea. There was an
interesting manmade water fall, significant because of how they channeled the
water to the top and it gave us a cooling mist on a hot day. We walked out to
the edge of the park to Bellanda Tower, a 19th century lookout tower
on the point overlooking Nice.
Making our way back down to sea level we headed to the beach to cool off our feet and lounge for a while. The beach is reminiscent of our beach on Catalina Island, stones rather than sand. There were a good number of people on the beach considering it was a Thursday in October. We walked along the beach to the Promenade du Paillon, A wide park that starts at the sea and meanders NE through the city culminating at the Modern Art Museum. The park is beautifully landscaped, some areas seem to be available for events, others have fabulous play areas for the kids, bike paths and walking paths. This took us to the north end of the Old City and ready to head back to the boat. It occurred to us they might have a sporting goods store here in Nice to buy a Pétanque set, we found a Decathlon, our favorite sporting goods store, and they had what we needed. With six 700 gram balls in my back pack it was definitely time to call a Bolt and get home.
Replete from our lunch we had a light dinner and a cocktail as we contemplated our next anchorage in Italy!
10/6/23 Beaulieu Sur Mer, France
All that exercise yesterday made for a great sleep last
night. We were up and ready for another beautiful day. We ran up to the super
market for a few fresh items and found a huge Utile Supermarche with just about
everything you could imagine. Since we were walking and only had our knap sack
and insulated bag we were fortunately limited. As we were shopping, I received
an email saying that they had a birth for us in Monaco. “Suzette, change of
plans for today, we are going to Monaco.”
We departed about 1130 for a slow 5-mile motor east to
Monaco. Another city built around several small harbors and rising up into the
steep mountains. We had a first-class reception at the marina and settled in.
It was hot with no breeze so we hung out on the boat for a bit to cool off. The
breeze picked up so we headed out to see the Prince’s Palace. On the way we
stumbled on a Bricopro, The Home Depot of France, this place is huge. Always in
need of a few things from a good hardware store we decided we would return in
the morning. The path to the palace is another long climb to reach the plateau
high above the harbor. The palace is rather austere, but the government
buildings and cathedral around it were fabulous. The tourists are a bit over
whelming, I cannot imagine what it is like in high season. We did a little limoncello
tasting in a little shop selling everything lemon, it did not compare to
Suzette’s. We walked down to the Harbor Hercules and Monte Carlo Casino. We are
not gamblers so it did not hold any interest.
Back in the marina the evening cooled nicely and we enjoyed dinner on board as the sunset on Monaco.
10/7/23 Cap d’Ail, France
Up and out for a quick walk to the Hardware store for a few
items that had been on the list waiting for a real hardware store. We had the
boat ready to get underway at about 1130, but the Capitainerie said we had to
wait, there were a bunch of divers in the water doing a cleanup of the harbor. We
waited until about 1230 to get underway. An American couple from another boat
on the quay stopped by to engage us. They had sold everything, bought a new
Amel 50 and were full time cruises. The question among non EU sailors is
always; “how do you stay in the EU for a period of more than 90 days.”
Evidently France will issue a 1 year visa if you jump through the appropriate
hoops. We like our 90 day schedule so no need to run that gauntlet.
It was a great day to be on the water, but not much wind and from behind so we motored along the coast. At about 1300 we crossed into Italian waters and swapped out the courtesy flags. The landscape was noticeably different, small hill top towns with huge churches as their center piece, more farming and what appeared to be huge green houses for year-round growing. As we were coming up to our anchorage we found ourselves under an air show off of Andora. There were 10 jets flying various formations and stunts with lots of smoke. We idled off of Cape Mele and watched as the jets flew low and close over us. It was a great welcome into Italy.
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We dropped anchor in about 6m meters of calm clear water off of the town of Laigueglia. There was one other boat in the anchorage for the night. This is a perfectly protected little hook in the shore for a quiet night.
10/8/23 Scaglio Totonara anchorage, Italy
Woke to a hazy sky, but calm and warm. Went for a swim and
snorkel, but not much to see. The water was clear, but no wildlife. A fisherman
was working between us and the beach with nets, but I can not imagine that he
was doing very well. We got underway about noon and headed to an anchorage just
east of Genoa. Not much of a view on shore, but a calm spot off of the beach
for a quiet night. We spent the evening planning for our next guests who we
would meet in Pisa in a few days.
10/9/23 Vesima Anchorage, Italy
Another hazy day, but again warm and calm. Went for a swim
and I was reminded that the swim platformed needed to be serviced. When we returned,
we cleaned all the stainless and fiberglass associated with the swim platform,
waxed and lubricated the mechanism.
Suzette continued to work on her art project until we got
underway about 1300. It was a short motor to the old harbor in Genoa, Marina
Molo Vecchio. We arrived during lunch, so we received not response from the
Marina when we hailed them on the VHF. They final responded about 1410. The put
us on the east quay by the Aquarium and next to another American boat. Another
couple that sold everything and have been cruising full time for a couple
years. The Capitainerie took us into the office in his skiff and brought us back
to the boat, great service.
Amazing ship!
Talking to our neighbor did raise some concerns about our location. Evidently a boat next to them was boarded by uninvited guests at night while the boat owners were aboard. They called the police and the boarders were caught and arrested, no harm done. We would be extra vigilant in leaving nothing in the cockpit and locking the boat. At night I set out the air horn and preset the security people’s cell phones in my phone. I figured that if someone boarded, we would know it and if I was blasting a horn they would leave, hopefully, I am not interested in a confrontation.
We headed out into the Medieval City of Genoa, said to be the largest in Europe. Long narrow alleys lined with tiny shops and apartments were the norm. This was a city that seemed to be poorer than others we have visited so far, lots of graffiti, litter and somewhat derelict looking people on the street. In spite of this, we encountered single women and older ladies navigating the allies seemingly undeterred. We proceeded with a level of caution, but less concerned.
Suzette had a pair of shoes that she needed repaired so we
made our way to the shoe repair store that said they were open. We were
enthralled by the fabulous old structures along the way, Cathedral os San
Lorenzo, Porta Suprana the ancient Portal to the old city and at every turn
another church. Arriving at the shoe repair place it appeared they were closed,
but would return in 5 minutes. Just then a women arrived and simply walked into
the store and called out for the proprietor. He appeared from upstairs, perhaps
his home above the store. We gave him the shoes, he jotted down Suze on a piece
of tape, applied it to the shoes and said, “Tomorrow”.
We continued to walk the old town until near dark, then found our way back to the marina. A bit of ferry traffic, but otherwise a quiet night.
10/10/23 Genoa, Italy
Suzette spent the morning making stock from left over vegy
cuttings and perfecting her copper soldering technique for her art project.
About 1030 we were off to see the city. It was a cloudy and much cooler day for
site seeing. We did have a couple specific stores to visit for wine and a few
groceries so our first foray into the city we took the wagon. Completing our tasks,
we dropped off our booty at the boat and headed out for Pizza! When in Italy…
After passing the palaces along Via Garibaldi we found ourselves at a side walk
Focaccia restaurant, close enough, on Piazzas de Ferrari. We had a sampler tray
of all their different pizzas and focaccias. Additionally, I had a focaccia sandwich
with Prosciutto ham, tomatoes and mozzarella. We washed it down with a glass of
Montipulciano. We were probably viewed as the overeating Americans, but it was delicious
and we devoured. It.
We continued to tour the old town and the stores until we were out of gas, 1830 had us back at the boat. It seems that the days are getting shorter and shorter as the set sun set quickly after our return. A cup of Suzette’s delicious soup was all we needed for dinner.
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