Saint Honorat

Friday 25 May 2012 Continued

The city of Cannes was crazy busy due to it being the last day of the famous Cannes Film Festival.  No, we didn't see any famous people, just got caught in a lot of traffic.

Banner for the Festival

At 2:00 pm we boarded the "St. Honorat III," the ferry boat that took us to the island of Saint Honorat.  After a twenty-minute boat ride, we immediately went to the fortified monastery on the southern coast.  Dr. O'Brien explained the history then we were sent off to explore.

Again, the views of the sea were amazing.  Not a bad view no matter what direction you pointed the camera.    A beautiful place to relax and recharge.  Also a very strategic place to build a fortification - you can see a ship coming miles away!

I like capturing views framed by gaps in the stone

Coast and the modern Abby of Lerins

View of the Sea

Minda, Jim, Cullen, and Erica enjoying the view above.

After our time in the fortified ruins, we headed to the active part of the island - the Lérins Abbey.  As the church was empty at that moment, we were able to spend a little time in it.  It was very plain and simple compared to the other churches we had seen up to that point.  We then wandered back toward the north side of the island where we would meet the ferry to go back to the main land.  As it had started to rain, we gathered at the resturant for a drink before heading back to the mainland.  

Jim (on left) with best glass of wine ever

Jim thoroughly enjoyed is 9 Euro glass of wine - he didn't know it was going to be that expensive when he ordered it.  (Just a note, on average we were paying 2-5 Euros for an entire bottle of wine)  Note to self - always check prices, don't order without seeing the wine list.  We caught the ferry at 5:00 pm and once on the mainland it took forever (over an hour) to get out of Cannes due to the festival traffic.  Dinner back in Vergons at about 8:00 pm then back to the gite for journaling.

For additional pictures on Saint Honorat go here.

Antibes

Friday 25 May 2012

Early morning again - on the bus by 8:30 am for our two hour drive to Antibes along the coast.  The nice part was I slept most of the way there. :)  We were dropped off by the pier and walked  to the market to check things out.   It was much larger (and more expensive) than the last market we were at.  Everything from fruit and veggies to meats and cheese all under one large pavilion.

Following the market, we walked the ramparts.  Absolutely beautiful views of the sea from this part of the city.

In exploring the rest of the city - we stumbled upon this unique monument.  It was titled "1940-1945 Antibes a la Resistance et ses Martyrs"  What was different about this monument from others I had seen was the look as if the figure was carrying a heavy load on his shoulders.  Was he weary with the weight of sorrow or was it something else?

With our limited time in Antibes, we saw what was left of a Roman cistern we had missed on the rampart and caught some lunch before boarding the bus at 12:30 to take us to our next destination - Cannes and the Isle of Saint Honorat.

For additional photos in Antibes go here.