France: Burgundy, French Riviera, Eze Village

After my four days in Paris, I joined a tour group to see key touristic locations throughout France including Burgundy, the French Riviera and Eze Village. On my own, I wouldn’t have ventured out of Paris to explore beyond. The only downside was feeling more alone among a bus full of people than by myself! I was the only solo traveller, the others were a combination of families and couples. However, I stayed in hotels throughout the trip, all transportation was covered, got all breakfasts included and about 5 dinners for the twelve-day trip (10 full days to be exact). Most importantly, I had incredible experiences, would do the trip all over again in a heartbeat and the people with me were very friendly so there were some good conversations and funny moments.

After Paris our first stop was Fontainebleau then unto wine region, Burgundy where we did some wine tasting. Living in a rum country I am not good at giving knowledgeable opinions on wine but they all tasted great and I did spend every single day drinking wine in France, more than I had drunk in my entire life!

Burgundy

This was just a short stop to do wine tasting (included in tour package).

The French Riviera

Perfume making

After wine tasting the next day had an included activity before heading to Nice, perfume making. We visited the Fragonard perfumery in Grasse. On a side note this is key location in one of my favourite books, Perfume by Patrick Suskind which was made into a movie, is a very interesting read and a highly acclaimed international bestseller.

We got to Nice in the evening, so I didn’t go out exploring and the next day was spent on a day trip to the Principality of Monaco, an independent country.

Eze Village

On the way to Monaco a man in the bus told us about the wonders of Eze village, a tourist hotspot. After my independent tour of this microstate I got on another bus and headed up to Eze. Some persons from the group remained behind to visit Prince Albert’s car collection and see the changing of the guards at his palace.

Eze is a medieval village that sits atop a cliff overlooking the Riviera. The views are spectacular and unforgettable. The brick houses and cobblestone streets transport you back into some ancient time that contrast sharply with the modern sophistication below.

Colourful, giant Bougainvillea plants decorate the houses covering entire walls and the village also offers well-manicured gardens with animal statues. 

Another great spot to explore in the vicinity is the Jardin botanique d’Èze. I didn’t have the time to visit but several persons recommended it and a few from my group made the journey. The entrance fee is approx. €6. 

I saw many small shops selling souvenir items especially lavender products and scarfs, got some bars of soap and flowers. There are also several hotels with restaurants. The shocker was I had to pay a whopping 14 euros for one beer, the cheapest on the menu but it was served with some fancy nuts and black olives but still 14 euros was too much. Maybe, it was for the amazing view and being in the land where the rich and famous mingle. 

The adventure continued…