Friday looked to be another gorgeous day on the Riviera, so we figured we should at least go for a hike, though. We picked one in the Menton hinterland this time – near Sainte-Agnes, to be precise (a supposedly pretty village we’ve not visited so far). So down we drove the A8. Ominous clouds showed up around Nice, and things got progressively worse as we approached the Italian border. Around our motorway exit, we started having second thoughts (since the weather looked a lot clearer on the coast than up towards the mountains (as things usually are on the Cote d’Azur). But we decided to chance it, got off the motorway, and took the windy roads up to Sainte-Agnes. Unfortunately our worst fears were confirmed; by the time we arrived, the village was pretty much covered in mist. Well, we figured we might as well visit the place since we were there… So up we climed to the ruined castle of Saine-Agnes – which actually made for a decent hike in itself… There wasn’t much to see, apart from a garden, but the ruins are certainly atmospheric, especially surrounded as they were by the heavy mists… I suppose on a good day, the views would’ve been astounding – as things were it was quite though, seeing the occasional mountain-top reveal itself as the mist occasionally got out of the way. And the views over the village were quite nice. Having checked out the castle ruins, we had a quick walk around the village, which was a typically pretty Provencal perched village – well worth a visit.
I had a recollection that nearby Castillon was a village worth visiting, so we decided to check that out since we were in the neighbourhood. Well, turns out it wasn’t, really… Actually Castillon was mostly destroyed by some World War II bombardments, and had been reconstructed after the war. Actually, the reconstructed village is kind of like a hybrid between a provencal village and a 1960’s concrete suburb. Not very pretty, basically… We tried in vain to locate the ruins of the old village – but never managed to find it… I suppose the fact that there were no signposts means it’s not worth visiting… We finished off the afternoon by a brief visit to Menton, where we enjoyed a very tasty icecream by the sea… The sun even came out :-)Saturday was pretty eventless – other than the fact that we went to the beach for the first time this year, after a session of roller skating by the seaside. I even took a dip in the sea – it was actually a fair bit warmer than expected.
Sunday was Finnish mother’s day – so my parents had booked one of our favourite restaurants in Cannes for the occasion. We decided to head into Cannes a bit early, to have a walk around. Thankfully, the forecasted rain did not materialize, although the sky was pretty cloudy. We walked around the Croisette and the Palais des Festivales for a bit to start off, mostly to check out the festival preparations which were already in full swing (the Cannes film festival starts next week). We then made our way up to the famous Cannes fruit & veg market – Marche Fourville. It’s where the best local restaurants (including the one we were going to) get their ingredients – and boy there sure is plenty to choose from… Eventually it was time to go to the restaurant – the Bistrot Gourmand, where we had a really excellent meal. It’s really one of my favourite restaurants on the Cote, unpretentious (and remember, this is Cannes ;-), cozy, and with great service. And of course what’s most important – the food is delicious. Kind of haut cuisine, but not over the top. And excellent value for money (less than 20 euros for a 3-course lunch, that’s a real bargain around here…). And in the best of company, of course ;-)
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