June 2021 – A Traveling Fool

Our whirlwind introductory tour of Europe in 1984 included some time along the Cote d’Azur (including Eze, Monaco, Nice, Cape Ferrat, Beaulieu-Sur-Mer, and Cannes). Then we followed the Rhone River north to Avignon and Lyon.

We passed Monaco to get to Eze, which is a small, medieval village known mainly for being a small, medieval village and for its perfume industry. The same factories that made very famous, expensive perfumes also made what was basically the same formula, but with a different name at a cheaper price.

From Eze we drove to Nice and checked into our hotel. It was a fairly small, older hotel on a quite, narrow street, not too far from the beach (just a few blocks). After dinner, we took a trip to Monaco to visit the casino at Monte Carlo.

They had separate areas for the tourists and the high rollers. I decided in advance how many francs I was willing to lose and proceeded to lose them. In 1984, there was no European Union or Euros as of yet.

For many years after when I was asked if I liked to gamble, and I said, “Not much.” and was then asked if I had ever tried it (with the idea being ‘don’t knock it if you never tried it’) and if they got around to asking me, “Where?” people tended to look at me a little askance when I said, “Monte Carlo.” I knew they didn’t believe me. But I didn’t give gambling another try until 2005 when I tried a one-armed bandit in Deadwood. I made enough to pay for lunch and quit while I was ahead.

After losing the francs I had set aside, Mom and I watched a few other people for a little bit (there were a few roulette tables) before heading for a little cafe where we could get some ice cream before returning to Nice.

Both of my brothers rode special racing bicycles back then and were big fans of the Tour de France and other international races. I had drawn a little map from a Motobacan shop that we had passed to the hotel so that we would be able to find our way over there after breakfast. I wanted to get a jersey for the one brother and some gloves for the other.

Back in 1984, there were not yet many French who spoke English (or who would admit it if they did). That would require another generation. So, I needed to use my limited French to tell the proprietor what I wanted. We seemed to understand each other well enough and I left with what I wanted to buy.

Next we stopped at a place that had tennis dresses. It was Mom’s birthday and she saw a tennis dress she wanted. At another shop, I bought a touristy T-shirt and cap for myself. Then we retraced our steps back to the hotel, dropped off our packages and walked to the beach.

After lunch we departed for Cannes, Avignon, and Lyon. At each place we just had a short bus drive around before heading to the next location.

Avignon was a walled city in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region of Southeastern France along the Rhone River. It was the location of the Pope from 1309 to 1377. A palace is still there, although it is empty.

The bridge Pont Saint-Benezet, also known as the Pont d’Avignon, was originally a wooden bridge spanning the Rhone between Villeneuve-les-Avignon and Avignon. It was built between 1177 and 1185. This bridge was destroyed in 1226 and was rebuilt, beginning in 1234, with 22 stone arches. The bridge was abandoned in the mid-17th century as the arches tended to collapse each time the Rhone flooded making it very expensive to maintain. Four arches and a gatehouse at the Avignon end of the bridge have survived. The bridge was the inspiration for the song “Sur le pont d’Avignon”.

Lyon was the capital of the Gauls at the time of the Roman Empire. During World War II, the Nazis used Lyon as a center for their forces. Lyon was also a major center for the resistance. Klaus Barbie, known as the “Butcher of Lyon” made his headquarters at the Hotel Terminus.

This was the hotel where we stayed the night. Our room had a chandelier, a lovely fireplace, and brass beds. At dinner, we all sang “Happy Birthday” to Mom.

Next time – Paris.

Continuing with my first European trip back in 1984 — after we made it out of Rome alive — we headed for Florence and Pisa. Florence had always fascinated me because of both Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni and Leonardo da Vinci, who were both born in the 15th century not too far from Florence.

The older of the two, da Vinci, considered to be one of the greatest painters who ever lived, had been born out of wedlock and educated in Florence by the renowned Italian painter and sculptor Andrea del Verrocchio. After beginning his career in Florence, da Vinci went to Milan for a while and then went back and forth between the two cities before spending some time in Rome and finally in France. He died in France and was buried there in the Collegiate Church of Saint Florentin at Château d’Amboise.

Michelangelo was also sent to Florence for his education, but not in art. All he wanted to do was paint and he was soon taken under the wing of the Medici family who were willing to employ him to do just that. He also took up sculpting and began to bounce around between Bologna, Florence and Rome after the death of Lorenzo de Medici. Eventually he returned to the patronage of the Medici family before being commissioned to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in Rome. That project took him four years to complete. He died in Rome and was buried in Florence at the Basilica Santa Croce.

We began this visit at a leather factory and then went on a walking tour of the palace and chapels of the Medici, the Palazzo Vecchio, the Ponte Vecchio, Saint Mary’s Cathedral (also known as the Cathedral of Florence), the Baptistry, and Santa Croce. Even though the statue of Michelangelo’s David that stands in front of the Palazzo Vecchio is a copy (the original is safely housed in the Galleria dell’Accademia), it is still exquisite. I bought a small copy of it for 9,000 lire (roughly $5,00). Since there wasn’t any barricade or guard to prevent me from doing so, I touched my finger tips to my lips and then placed them on Michelangelo’s tomb at Santa Croce.

The next day, we left Florence for Pisa. We stopped at the main square where we could visit the Cathedral, the Baptistry and the Leaning Tower. This time the tower was open. On a later visit, it was closed as it was in even greater danger of toppling and was being shored up by hanging counterweights on the one side to try to straighten it out a bit. On this first trip, we only had a short morning break in Pisa.

Next time — Eze, Monaco (Monte Carlo), and Nice

Month: June 2021

Le Cote d’Azur & Along the Rhone

Florence & Pisa