Today the Fnac, which is a French chain of stores that sell multimedia, books and music, held a “photo marathon” in Nice. I signed up a few weeks ago, thinking it would be nice to get some challenging ideas, plus registration was free. The day started at 9am, and we were given three themes on which to shoot photos, one every two hours. There were three hundred of us in all, and we had to turn in two photos per team (I was a one-person team, most were two-person) after the two hours. The prizes were some Canon cameras; I forget which since I didn’t participate with winning in mind (plus I’ve always preferred Nikon). All participants got a free cinema ticket, which is nice with movies so expensive to see nowadays. The themes were “le reflet dans tous ses états” (“reflection every which way”), “de haut en bas, de bas en haut” (“from top to bottom, from bottom to top,” which I translated to keep puns on “haut”, up, and “bas”, down, also being able to mean items of clothing), and “politiquement incorrect”. I was a little disappointed that they were so generic, since I’d been hoping for topics specific to Nice, but it was fun nonetheless.

The photo above is not one submitted to the contest, but is similar to one that I used for a theme. I took other non-theme-related photos as well, since it was a beautiful day today. At the Villa Arson, which is a museum on a hill in the north of Nice, there were two huge, ancient olive trees; I photographed one of them. Olive trees can live for more than a thousand years, and considering the size of that one’s trunk, it’s likely to be at least a few hundred years old. A bit younger and livelier, a friendly kitty let me photograph her/him after I introduced myself. After leaving the Villa Arson, I noticed two neat homes nearby.

On Wednesday (the 10th), we got news that a strong winter weather system was heading our way. Dozens of inches of snow were predicted for the hills, and up to six inches along the coastline — never before seen on the French Riviera. We get snow once every few years, but it’s usually a dusting, like we had in December, and melts by noon.

Thursday morning, I woke up to 4°C (39°F) and rain. I decided to try for the bus, and put on my nice hiking boots, wool socks, a turtleneck, and a wool knit cap, as well as taking along a pair of gloves just in case. I figured that if the bus came, it meant the weather was fine at our offices in Sophia Antipolis, some 28 kilometers (17 miles) to the west of Nice. The bus did indeed come; when we arrived in Sophia an hour later, it was raining there too.

Until just before 11am, that is. Snow began to fall, but it was still above freezing, so it wasn’t really sticking. Then the temperature began to dip, and the snow started picking up. By 11:30, the snow had built up noticeably. Roads quickly became blocked. The buses were no longer running. Not long afterwards, our prefect formally forbade drivers from going on the roads, and the highways were closed. Weather reports said that the worst was still to come in the evening! At 4:30pm I took the photo above, as well as a few others (full photoset here), and then my reflex’s battery died.

With roads still closed, buses not running and the news continuing to report a larger storm front about to roll in, I realized I was probably going to spend the night at the office. When I joked about camping in front of my office radiator with another colleague, he mentioned that he lived 8 kilometers (about 5 miles) away and was going to walk home — he offered to let me eat and sleep at his place. His children were with their grandparents, so there would be a spot for me without a problem. I took him up on his offer. In addition to working together, we often cross each other’s paths on the trails at lunch time — he goes running, and I go mountain biking. So we both knew we’d be fine with the 8-kilometer hike through snow.

It turned out to be one of the most beautiful hikes in my life. We passed the Mougins golf course, Fontmerle lagoon, and Picasso’s former home. Just as we passed the sign pointing to Picasso’s home, the setting sun set afire the Estérel coastal range beneath the grey storm clouds. I took these photos with my mobile phone, since it was the only camera we had available. A few minutes later, we looked behind us and had our breath taken away again, this time by the all-encompassing ink blue that was enveloping the Pré-Alpes just to the north of us. To the south, the sunset skies had transformed into pinks, purples and blues.

The next morning, it was below freezing, so we set out to walk the 8 kilometers back. It was more dangerous than on Thursday, since melting snow had frozen. We both had to catch ourselves from slipping a few times, but thanks to our trusty hiking shoes, we made it to the offices safely. Along the way, I took more photos (reminder, full photoset) and shot two videos:
o Etang de Fontmerle in the snow and morning sun
o Trail after the Mougins golf course, about a kilometer from Sophia Antipolis

Luckily the weather warmed up on Friday and I was finally able to get home by bus. There’s no more snow in Nice, but it is still falling heavily in the back country! And today I made sure to get some nice chocolates for my kind colleague.

I’ve been busy lately, and today was no exception — I went to Paris for a business meeting. Once it ended, I hopped on a metro to the Eiffel Tower, hoping to see it in the sunset. I didn’t have time to visit anything else in Paris, which meant that I could devote what little time I did have, to photographing more of the Eiffel Tower than I would otherwise. It was a beautiful evening, and as always, my breath was taken away by Eiffel’s gorgeous conjunction of imposing mass and fine grace. You can see more of the “Iron Lady” in my photoset from today.

Earlier this week I took another mini-vacation, this time to Geneva. As with Corsica, I had visited Geneva before, several years ago, since my ex-family-not-quite-in-law lived nearby in the Ain département. I didn’t remember much of it, however, and so thought it might be nice to take advantage of Nice-Geneva flights to spend two days in the city.

It turned out that the flight was gorgeous! We flew over the Alps, which shone in the early morning sun; I took nearly a dozen photos. I suspect I may have photographed Mont Blanc, since it looks familiar, we were pretty close to Geneva, and the mountains seem to fit satellite views of Chamonix. A few minutes later, the weather, time of day and the plane’s altitude all came together for this beautiful shot of sunlit clouds.

Apparently I took Nice’s weather with me to Geneva, since it was lovely that day. All my photos of Geneva are in this set. As usual I wandered around with just a map — no guide book. I’ve always enjoyed cities more with the thrill of discovery that comes when, for instance, you notice amazing lamps, approach the building to see just what it is, and it’s an incredible concert hall covered with the names of famous composers. (You can learn more about Victoria Hall here.)

My favorite “discovery”, however, was the towers in Cathédrale Saint Pierre, which was the church where John Calvin preached. (This year is Calvin’s 500th anniversary of birth — you can see banners on the cathedral announcing it.) For four Swiss francs, you can walk up a first steep, narrow spiral staircase that takes you to an ancient room midway up a first tower, then cross a cramped, dark passageway through to another room, with a door to yet another staircase, even steeper and narrower than the first. In that room I used my flash for the only time during my trip — you can see the ceramic roof tiles are laid directly on the roof frame. I was alone with the huge, cracked wooden beams and dark passageways during my visit, which made it very easy to imagine myself back in time 450 years ago, when the towers were built. In addition to bird’s-eye views of Geneva, you can see the roof tiles from above, and a nice information chart on the church’s bells (one weighs more than six metric tonnes!).

The second day was damp and overcast, so I spent it in two museums: the Natural History, and Art and History museums. The Natural History museum was filled with every sort of animal and mineral imaginable, which was great for learning the French names of birds and mammals I often see here but didn’t know in either English or French. The Art and History museum had an exhibition on Rembrandt, Rubens and Ruisdael, as well as another on 17th- and 18th-century Flemish and Dutch painters. It also had several rooms that were fully done — furniture, floors, ceilings and all — in the style of a Swiss castle.

All in all it was a great visit. These mini-vacations are a fun compromise: cheap, and the brief stays make it possible, paradoxically, to visit more places in a given city. You don’t need anything more than a single bag, so never have to worry about luggage, and since it’s so much cheaper, you worry less about spending money on food, museums, and souvenirs. Physical fatigue is also less of a concern since you know it’s only going to be a day or two, so might as well make the most of it! While you do miss out on getting a better feel for a place, and on visiting surrounding areas, you can identify what you’d like to see and plan to return another time. In the case of Geneva, two days seemed just right for the city itself.

I first went to Corsica in 2002, on a trip from Ile Rousse down the coast through Calvi, Porto and to Ajaccio, then back up through the center via the Restonica gorges and Corte, and finally a tour along the Cap Corse to finish in Bastia. I fell in love with the island then — it reminds me of Oregon, in a Mediterranean climate. Wild, mountainous, with a rocky coastline, and people who want to protect its beauty.

Yesterday I returned for a day trip to Calvi, which also ended up including a trip to Calenzana for a wine tasting, and another trip to Ile Rousse! When I ordered my ticket on the phone, the woman had said I’d be in Calvi the whole time. It’s a good thing I double-checked at the ticket office about the time my “boat from Calvi” would be leaving, since there was no boat from Calvi, it was from Ile Rousse. Lesson learned: when you buy a ticket by phone, double-check at the physical (real-life) ticket office, no matter how certain you are of what you heard.

As always I’ve created a photoset of my Corsican trip. Calvi is a gorgeous town, and with our lovely weather yesterday, the colors came through wonderfully. I also tried something new this time, inspired by vistas like the one you see above: panoramas! Click on the “All sizes” icon above these to see larger sizes:
- Panorama of the Corsican coast in the morning sun
- Panorama of Calvi’s port
- Panorama of Calvi from beneath an olive tree
- Panorama of Ile Rousse
- Panorama of the Cap Corse

It was an enjoyable trip, but a bit much for one day. If I’d had more funds available, I’d have paid twice as much for the two-day trip, which includes a night in a Calvi hotel. (All excursions are described here.) Another possibility is the shorter trip, which is the cheapest available at 20 euros, where you only stay for 5 hours rather than 9, but is available on fewer dates than the others. With the longer trip I took, the rough part was being tired and hungry at 6pm, which is too early to eat dinner in a restaurant here, and too late to do anything else with the boat leaving at 7:15, plus we arrived in Nice at 11pm, adding even more to the fatigue factor. For a day trip, it would be better to lose a few “exhaustion hours” by returning earlier (and it would cost less).

I also have to recommend against the wine tasting option. I actually didn’t take it — between the boat departure location and this, I’m really puzzled about what I was told on the phone! I paid for the 49 euro excursion, which does not include the tasting, but I got it anyway. I’m glad not to have paid for it since the domaine’s wines were mediocre. The red “prestige” wine aged in oak vats was strong and yet without body; their fizzy muscat tasted like 7-Up mixed with grape juice; their orange wine was far too bitter even with a piece of honey nougat; only their Cap Corse was decent, but I’ve tasted so much better that I didn’t buy any. As my tastes in wine go, I love Côtes du Rhône and Patrimonio (a Corsican appellation) reds, Oregon pinot noirs, Mâcon and Patrimonio whites, good Cap Corse, limoncello (a lemon liqueur), and have had homemade fruit liqueurs so strong they numbed my throat — and which I enjoyed because they were good, with real body to them. These were table wines in comparison. Even then I wouldn’t serve the orange wine to anyone.

If you want to go to Corsica to taste wine, stay for several days, rent a car and drive through the Patrimonio region. I did this as part of my 2002 trip and it remains one of my favorite experiences. I’ll never forget one vineyard in particular, where I had dinner served with a different wine every time I finished a glass. Every one of those wines was delicious. I’m looking forward to returning to the island again, for a longer stay some day.

A year and a week ago (on 25 July 2008), Kanoko came into my life. His whiskers had been cut off by his abandoners, apparently a common tactic to further disorient cats. A year later, they’re now long and luxurious! Kanoko is a delight, very affectionate and creative, although he does love to play with (read: destroy) my plants and can be a bit too energetic when tackling his “big brother” Grey.

Grey is starting his fourth month with us, still a calm and very matter-of-fact cat. He loves nothing more than to be petted and cuddled, with a deep motorboat purr that starts as soon as he knows he’s going to get affection. He patiently allows Kanoko to pounce on his back and his tail, and gives a harmless but firm swat or two when he’s had enough. His favorite activity is stretching out on the terrace and napping in the filtered sunlight.

Yesterday I took the train to Monaco and went to one of my old haunts: the offices I used to work in. They’re on Boulevard Princesse Charlotte, which is where the Tour de France passed yesterday for the Prologue. I sat on a curb bump at the Livestrong ads, since they made a nice solid background, as opposed to smaller and more colorful ads. This was my general view. All of my photos from the Prologue are in this set.

My vantage point did indeed make for some great photos. The one posted here is my favorite — the rider is Arnaud Coyot. I did, of course, also get Lance Armstrong, but he lowered his head. His fiche coureur (rider stats) put him in tenth place currently. Another favorite is this shot of rider Bernhard Eisel, who rounded the corner near the railway station while I was walking there to take a train back to Nice. Japan has two riders in this year’s Tour, and this photo of Fumiyuki Beppu is one I’m really happy with — you can tell how the solid yellow advertisement makes all the difference with these. Currently in eleventh place, Gustav Larsson has a great tattoo on his left calf.

In just a few minutes I’ll be leaving to watch the Tour on the Promenade des Anglais. I doubt I’ll get such good photos as yesterday’s, since the Promenade is flat, so riders will be going faster, and in groups rather than separately. But it’s certainly a neat experience to watch them!

I also went to the port yesterday, going on foot along the Promenade. Unbeknownst to me, there was a show of cars for the Jean Behra rally, so I was glad I had walked rather than taking the bus.

Nice’s port is lined by colorful buildings and all types of boats can be found there, from cruise ships to NGV (high-speed boats to Corsica) to ostentatious yachts licensed to ports such as Nassau, Cayman Islands and London, to a lineup of school sailboats to small wooden boats painted every color of the rainbow. The two in the closeup here are shown from further away in this picture. I also liked this lavender and bright turquoise boat, as well as the funnily-named M’en bati. In Nice there’s a saying, “m’en bati, sieu Nissart” — “I don’t give a flip, I’m Niçois”, joking with Nice’s strong sense of individuality. Nice was not part of France until 1860, and even that cession was — and still is — strongly debated. Although it’s extremely doubtful that Nice’s inhabitants would ever actually declare their independence, the idea is discussed, and to this nine-year resident’s ears, often seems more like an affirmation of their uniqueness than a true call for secession. (In that sense it is much like Pacific Northwesterners griping about similar issues — see the “Free Cascadia” icon in my sidebar!)

As I mentioned yesterday, I walked to the Russian Orthodox church not far from my place this morning to take some photographs. It was a beautiful day; the church was lovely. You can see all the photos I took of it here. I arrived just before 10am and had a wonderful surprise: the bells started ringing. But they didn’t just ring the time — they played an incredible piece of music that lasted for several minutes! I highly recommend visiting on a Sunday at 10am if you enjoy music, because it was among the most amazing experiences I’ve had. I took a mobile phone video of part of it, but it’s much less impressive than in reality. Do note, however, that you won’t be able to go inside the church on a Sunday morning since they have their services then.

On my way from the church to Nice’s port, I passed our famous hotel, the Negresco, and snapped this picture of it against one of our gorgeous deep blue skies:

A quick catch-up post: a month ago I had the chance to take a helicopter ride over the Bay of Cannes. We had fifteen minutes in a Robinson R44 (four-seater helicopter) and flew to the nearby Îles de Lérins. Six years ago I did something similar in a small plane, where we flew over the Estérel from Cannes airport. That time I got to fly, but not this time, though I did get some gorgeous photos.

One of the photos was of trains along the coast that looked like miniatures from above. Not long afterwards, I found the fun tiltshiftmaker.com and tweaked that photo to truly look like a miniature train scene! I did the same to a train over a stone bridge I shot in Tende two years ago, and to a photo of Nice’s port that I took last autumn. That last photo is the same one I use for the title header here — I love how it turned out.

Tomorrow I’ll be going to the Russian Orthodox cathedral, which isn’t far from my place, and then to Nice’s port to better shoot some small boats whose colors caught my eye last week (I only had my mobile phone at the time).