Villefranche

Day #11

Cruise Day #7 - Villefranche

We quietly slipped into the tiny bay at Villefranche after cruising along the French coastline past Marseille. As there is no dock large enough to handle this ship we tendered into port via several sleek passenger ferries. They had six ferries running with two separate disembarkation spots.... all very efficient but it take a bit longer to get to shore.

Coffee on our balcony as we enjoyed the views then off to breakfast before catching our tender for our Monaco and Monte Carlo excursion.

Tender vessel.

Once on shore we gathered with our tour guide and proceeded to the bus. It was a nice coach with very  comfortable seats and we all received radio receivers to hear the guided tour as we got on. A quick 25 minute drive along the lower coast as we traveled through several tunnels.  We arrived in Old Monaco then descended into the basement garage that was full of buses. We then walked through the garage and took two separate escalators and an elevator to reach the street level and the entrance to the Centre Scientifique du Monaco. A beautiful building that rose up from the shoreline and was the start of our tour.  

Kelly in front of the Centre Scientifique du Monaco.

Shoreline view from the bus garage at the Centre Scientifique du Monaco!

 We walked in front of both Princess Caroline and Princess Stephanie's residence as we made our way up to the Cathedral du Monaco which is the resting place of many Royal Family members including Princess Grace and Prince Rainer III. Absolutely stunning inside! 

Cathedral of Monaco

After a tour on the cathedral we walked up a narrow street past the Legislative and Justice Buildings to the main center of the palace grounds. Numerous shops and restaurants lined the area and there were spectacular views from all around. 

Kelly in front of the Palace.

 We walked around the immaculate grounds and got some great pictures from the high vantage points. 

Looking south from the palace grounds. This is a small marina:-)

The center of Monaco's marine district! I was humbled by the shear wealth on display.

After the tour of the Palace grounds we reloaded our transport and drove over to the new part of Monaco. It was hustling and bustling with lots of tourists checking out the sites. We walked by the famous hairpin turn of Monaco's F1 track that will now forever remain etched in our memory... sort of.

The famous hairpin turn in the background :-) Tourists in foreground.

Next on our walkabout was the famous Monte-Carlo Casino but we decided not to go in! 10 Euro to see inside... hey they are rich enough!!!

Casino

My car was parked out front :-)

We continued the walk and found a nice French Pastry store so we naturally loaded up on some croissants and other items and ate them in the park. Very romantic I will say:-) Back to the bus for our return drive back to the ship. We went through the tunnel that the F1 guys blaze through... we were much slower. The route was different as we went the high road with views of Nice and other sites before returning to Villefranche. A quick look around the shops near the dock and we jumped on a tender and returned to the ship. Sail-away drinks and then dinner and some Blackjack... then we were done!

Tomorrow is an early get up as we go to Rome and Vatican City!