From 13th February to 1st March 2009 will take place the most important event on the French Riviera: the 125th edition of the Nice Carnival!
The origin of this festal period goes back to the XIIIe century, when the Catholic were used to celebrate the period before the Lent eating hearty food and dressing up with masks and fancy dresses.
After “King of Ratapignatas” in 2007, “King of Fools” in 2006, the theme for this 125th edition of the Nice Carnival is “King of Masquerades”!
This year again, the Nice Carnival makes the town coming alive in a fortnight of festivities: concert, fireworks, music and above all unbelievable carnival processions, including the famous “Bataille des Fleurs” (Flowers Parade). At the beginning of the Carnival it consisted in a simple bunch of flowers exchange between the visitors’ decorated carriages, but today it’s a real part of the show, composed of twenty flower-covered floats.
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Your property finder on the French Rivieria told you some days ago about one of the most beautiful French village (see previous post). The gorgeous audiovisual experience that we talk about today takes place in this village, and we judge that this incredible place certainly deserves a dedicated post.
Indeed, you will live in those old quarries an experience that you never find again elsewhere. Since thirty years, the directors of this unusual venue have been inventing new worlds made of special light and sound effects. The walls, floors and ceilings of the quarry are used like giant screens, on which are projected more than 3000 pictures. Each years, this gorgeous audiovisual experience offers you a new show, often dedicated to an artist in particular. Thus, Michel-Ange, Cézanne, Van Gogh and many others have filled this out-of-common space.
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You need to relax in a natural and peaceful environment on the French Riviera? Discover this luxurious lodge in the Camargue. If you’re fond of nature, you can’t be disappointed: the richness of the wildlife of the Camargue Natural Park will amaze you! And the natural character of this charming venue too.
It’s an institution that looks like no other one: every room or suite is really unique and has its own personality, with exclusive decoration. From your private terrace that looks over the lagoons, you can admire the gorgeous fauna of the Camargue: flamingos, bulls, and, of course, the famous Camargue horses!
The lovers of good French cuisine will be delighted: the restaurant of this luxurious lodge in the Camargue got three “red houses” in the Michelin Guides and benefits from the congratulations of Alain Ducasse and Jean-Pierre Coffe. Enjoy a subtle organic menu on the terrace on piles, that offers you a wonderful overview of the lagoons. And on Saturday evening, you can take advantage of a show during the dinner: a group of gipsy musicians, singers and dancers.
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Your Property Finder selects for you the places to see absolutely if you want to visit the French Riviera. Here is one of the most beautiful French villages! The richness and the diversity of its patrimony make of this small burg a place that can’t be ignored.
Dating from the Middle Age, it concentrates in its little territory an impressive number of wonderful historic and cultural places.
Among others, the Santons Museum, that gathers various collections of the most exceptional figurines, two monumental chapels, an exceptional castle that expands on seven hectares, or even an out-of-common place that will delight the pictures and music lovers.
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Your property finder lists for you today the three-star Michelin restaurants those are established on the French Riviera. In other words, the really best of the restaurants in the area.
Only twenty six restaurants in France get this supreme distinction, symbols of outstanding quality, and, according to the Guide’s authors an “exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey.”. Three restaurants on the French Riviera obtained this out-of-common rating:
- Le Petit Nice: located in Marseille, at the foot of the hill of Notre Dame de la Garde, near the Vieux Port, this restaurant leaded by the Chef Gerald Passédat faces the Mediterranean Sea. A real haven of peace, comfort and luxury. Gerald Passédat offers an exceptional cooking, typical of the South, inspired by the memory of the his childhood, between tradition and eccentricity. Le Petit Nice has been a familial restaurant that is handed down from father to son since three generations. Learn more on its website http://www.petitnice-passedat.com/
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Unique by its setting, the place that we present you today is a trendy restaurant on the French Riviera. We said it’s located in a unique surrounding: it’s a euphemism. Indeed, this venue is built in the heart of 3500 m² of protected nature, and the most incredible, it is nestled in a little island in front of the Bay of Cannes! You can only reach this protected place by boat! But don’t panic if you don’t know how to pilot a ship: the restaurant makes available to all a shuttle service to access this trendy restaurant on the French Riviera.
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Those beautiful Russian churches on the French Riviera are the relics of a real love story between the Slav people of the 19th century and the South of France. This attraction dates from the times when the Russian Imperial Family began to spend much times on the French Riviera. The liking of the Imperial Family for this French area intrigued the Russian population and many of the wealthiest Russian family came to set in it.
During one of her stay in Nice, the tsarina Alexandra Feodorovna would build an orthodox church to pray: the first Russian church on the French Riviera was born.
In view of the fact that the Russian population was growing up on the French Riviera, many other constructions followed, especially the famous Saint-Michel Church in Cannes.
When the tsar’s son Nicholas died of meningitis in the Villa Bermond of Nice, his father bought this villa to build on it a commemorative chapel in his memory. This chapel is the biggest orthodox structure outside the Russian borders, replica of St Basile in the Kremlin.
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If you don’t know what to choose between snow and beach for your holidays, why don’t you kill two birds with one stone with the ski resort Isola 2000? It is probably the only one place in France where you can ski down a slope in the morning, and go swimming in the sea or get a tan on the beach in the afternoon! Indeed, this incredible place is set in the heart of the Parc National du Mercantour, only 1h30 away from the Mediterranean. With its modern and numerous facilities, the ski resort Isola 2000 should be the main argument in the Nice’s communication campaign to become the Olympic City. Half-pipes, snow parks, obstacles, boardercross must delight the fresh powder lovers.
No less than 43 slopes are waiting for you to go down, or 120 km of pure adrenalin. If you prefer snowboarding, the ski resort Isola 2000 proposes also a 2300 m-high snowpark maintained daily. Concerning your leisure, you will not get bored: the resort place a cinema, a center of leisure, a beauty saloon and a gaming room at your disposal. So don’t panic if you’re not fond of skiing, you could still have good holidays!
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On the French Riviera, the Christmas Eve is still imbued with a traditional and family spirit. The charming customs that made the magic of this celebration are still relevant in many Provencal families today. Especially the “Gros Souper”, the meal before the Midnight Mass, that ended with the traditional thirteen Christmas desserts. They symbolize the Christ and his twelve apostles, and must be served all at the time on the table. The desserts’ composition is a controversial matter in Provence, and the list varies from one city to the next. The most important is the number, but the choice of the traditional thirteen Christmas desserts is free enough, you can deal with what you found on the Christmas market, even if the symbolic desserts rather have to be respected. The guests have to taste all of them, serving them with a syrup based wine.
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At close of the day, discover an other face of this amazing city of the French Riviera. Lively and busy during the day, the atmosphere changes radically in Nice at nightfall, and turn into a convivial and intimist ambience, if you know the places where to find it.
If you’re not fond of the overexcited environment of nightclubs, you should rather choose those original and trendy addresses we suggest to you to discover Nice at nightfall.
Lovers of good music, there is a place for you in the old town: an authentic jazz bar with a retro style atmosphere worthy of the best clubs of New Orleans. The founder Dimitri Shapko is a saxophonist himself and has played in the best place, from the Blue Note to the Village Vanguard. You will find in this special place the best “hot jam sessions” of the city! And, icing on the cake: the price are very moderate.
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