Nice is nice

I can’t fit my whole spring break into one post so I’m breaking it up the easiest way possible. Here goes nothin’...

Sunday morning I met Alexa and her friend from home, Charlotte, at the train station to begin our spring break journey. We took the train to Rome and the bus to the airport, getting there about 3.5 hours early which gave us time to grab a delicious lunch before our plane to Nice. The flight was a quick one with a huge scare when the plane was about to land, started ascending and the turned the engine off for a hot sec but nonetheless we landed in one piece. We then met Betsy who was flying in from Barca and made our way to the hotel.  Nice is the cutest of cities and we were having trouble getting over the fact that we were in FRANCE! The receptionist at the hostel was adorable and gave us some dinner recommendations since we were starving from our day of traveling. We walked along the road that looked out on to the water until we came to a street that was lined with adorable restaurants. We went for one that has French/ seafood and it was absolutely delicious. The calamari was to die for; I'm still salivating over it. After dinner we walked back to the hostel and passed out. 

Monday morning we woke up early, had breakfast at the hostel and wandered around Nice until Bre and Morgan got in. The nice thing about Nice is that there aren't tons of things you 'MUST' do as there are in other cities so it was very relaxed, like a real vacation. 

We met up with Bre and Morgan, grabbed some wine and headed to the beach. It was a bit windy but the sun was shining and we spent the day relaxing and catching up. We really could not have been more content. The beaches are beautiful with magnificent clear blue water that made me feel like I was in the Caribbean but also in an elaborate city since we were backed by swanky casinos. 

Ready for vacation!

take me back!

After our day of laying out we headed back, showered, and were off to dinner. We decided on a typically Italian restaurant but went with seafood dishes since we were on the water. They were DELICIOUS! After we headed out to wander around, searching for a bar the receptionist had recommended although we somehow ended up on a really creepy side street that resembled and alleyway but found the bar at last. It was ALL french people who didn’t speak a lick of english. SO we opted for the bar next to it. The waiter to got us our drinks was so nice.  Betsy and I tried to converse with him in French and told him we were from the US. He went craaazy telling us how much he loves America, something you don’t often hear from the French.  He also told my my french was good which must have been a HUGE joke since it’s absolutely horrible and I barely remember any of it from high school. 

our delicious meals!

drinks all around

The next morning we woke up bring and early to get on the bus to Monaco. There’s one that is only 1e and takes you straight there. The bus ride was amazing. We had the sickest views of mansions, boats, the mountains, and pretty much all of the French Riviera. I couldn’t stop taking pictures. It felt so surreal. 

Once we checked into our hotel we went to lunch at a restaurant next door and sat outside so we could enjoy the rays. I opted for gocchi since I was craving it and it hot the spot. We sat and chatted for a bit and before we knew it, it was 3! We quickly paid the bill and went to explore the different sights of Monaco (not that many).

Like I said earlier, there isn’t all that much to do in the French Riviera but we did go see the Palace where the royal family of Monaco lives as well as the church where Grace Kelly married the Prince of Monaco. They were both beautiful, especially with the views that were surrounding. 

Monaco

Infront of the church where Grace Kelly got married

someone wanna buy me one of those?

We then decided to walk back to our hotel so we could see what there was along the way.  There were huge yachts along the marina and only the finest of stores. 

We then went out on my French boyfriend’s yacht where he served us champagne and serenaded us with music while we sunbathed. 

yeah, right, in my dreams.

By the time we got back and were done with our girls night and getting ready, it was about 10pm which in Florence is normal to go out to dinner, not so much on a Tuesday night in Monaco. Most of the places were closed so we spent about 30min walking around looking for a place until we found tip top, a restaurant that was open almost all night. We all ordered American food and enjoy it verrry much. We then headed to a club called Jimmy'z (yes, with a ‘z’) which was across the steer, except for the fact that it was completely empty... Like we were actually the only people there besides the workers. That idea was quickly thrown in the trash and we decided to spend our money and Bre’s birthday the right way... At the Monte Carlo casino. Never mind the fact that they made me check my camera, We paid 10 euro to even get into the casino and the went and laid out 18e for a glass of champagne. Whatever. Chalk it all up to experience and being super classy. The casino was stunning but being that they took my camera before I we entered, I didn't dare try to snap a photo on my phone. But trust me, it was stunning and so elaborate. 








There was no one there since it was a Tuesday night but I could only imagine what it would be like on a Saturday night with crazy high rollers. We decided to stick with slots. I sat down next to a Russian man... Who ended up becoming my patron/ sugar daddy. Literally he kept putting money into my slot machine and pressing the button for me. It was hilarious. After about 30e of this I made my way back to the girls and played with them for a while... Although not making much in the process. I spent much of the night running back and fourth cashing my money so I could play more and making friends with the cash man and floor manager who was making sure all the slots were working properly. Once I ran out of money and chips I waited for Bre to finish... She ended up making like 50e! I conversed and made friend with the men, who told me I spoke good French (thanks Mrs. Fischman!) I was trying my hardest to converse and remember what I had learned. They were able to understand me! It was quite rewarding.

Although it was early, we headed back to the hotel to get a good night sleep for our next day of exploring back in Nice. 

Monte Carlo Casino!

Us about to go into the casino

In the morning we were all slightly hungover, and what better way to cure a hangover than baked pastries?! There was a pastry shop across from our hotel so we check out and headed right there, each getting about 3 different pastries that were so good, I probably could have eaten 10. Don’t worry, I didn’t. 

We got back to Nice, checked back into our hotel, and headed straight to the beach for a relaxing nap, we were taking any chance to rest and tan that we could 
get.

After a couple hours we decided to walk around and shop a bit. We had seen this gorgeous waterfall from the beach so we made our way toward it. As we climbed up the stairs, the view of Nice and the water only got prettier.  We reached the top and I was breathless. 1. Because there are so many steps and I'm an out of shape fat-ass and 2. Because I could not believe how beautiful it was.  I was literally staring at a gorgeous cascading waterfall. Ugh, absolutely stunning. 

not real life

The most amazing views

For our last night in Nice, we had wanted to go to this restaurant called Love that we had walked past a bunch, hoping to fine ‘love’ in Nice. ha, okay. The restaurant was closed so there was no love for us. We instead opted for a restaurant that had outdoor seating and a man playing guitar in front of it. We ate amazing salads that hit the spot and then headed back to the hostel for an early night since we had to be up early the next day for our flight to PARIS! 

It was an amazing and relaxing week but I couldn’t have been more excited to see the city of love! You’ll be reading about it soon!

looking out to all of Nice