Day trip

Sunday afternoon and this boat is about to take off on a little trip. Notice the guys fishing on the right-hand side.

Tomorrow - back to Roquebrune village and the tour of the Château.

Reflections

We've not finished in Roquebrune village (see second paragraph) - but just for a couple of days I fancied coming back down to Menton (no good reason, I just thought we might all like to be by the sea) - so I hope you approve. Here we are in the port below the Old Town. It's a glorious day after so much rain - the autoroute was closed above Roquebrune - falling rocks, dangerous boulders that needed to be brought down. The train track was closed at Eze just along the coast. Heavy rain after a long dry spell is always dangerous and driving up and down the valleys, you really have to take care. I've had to avoid three falls on the Route de Gorbio already - but look at today - absolute heaven.

As for Roquebrune, we'll go back in a couple of days and then we start a full tour of the 10th century Château. I promise you it'll be worth the wait.

Roquebrune village - 24

Many villages retain their lavoir (wash house) - indeed many are still in use by villagers. The one in my village, Gorbio, is regularly in use by the locals.

Here's the lavoir in Roquebrune, which is found near to the entrance of the village. As you can see, no water in it at the moment. Don't you love the sign 'It is forbidden to wash vehicles.' I took this photograph over the Christmas/New Year period, hence the crèche which you see in front of the lavoir. Each Christmas the village of Roquebrune creates a Chemin des Crèches. This year 130 crèches were exhibited - one family alone created 17. All compete for the top prize and the tourist office organises tours of the crèches.

Roquebrune village - 23

This is part of rue Pié, one of the oldest streets in the village. It rises up from where we saw the pool and view of Monaco a couple of days ago. In less than a minute or so from where I took that photograph, we are in this hidden part of rue Pié - carved as you see, out of the 'poudingue' rock.

Roquebrune village - 22

This is the hotel and restaurant Les Deux Frères. It's in the main square with La Grotte opposite. From the car parking way below, you enter the village by the road that you can just see at the end of the building.

See the stone bench to the left? Well alongside that is an iron railing with wondrous views down to Cap Martin and to Monaco. If you click on the link for the hotel, you'll see a photograph that makes this even clearer. I've posted several photographs already of Monaco and of Cap Martin taken from those railings.

Les Deux Frères is run by a very amiable Dutchman called Willem who will give you a very warm welcome if you visit his lovely hotel. It's a great place to stay or simply to visit for lunch or dinner.

Roquebrune village - 21

This is Impasse du Four, which means the Cul-de-sac of the Oven. This is where, in times medieval, the seigneurial oven would have been found. I'm adding the photograph below - I really don't know - but perhaps what we see behind the screen is the original oven.

Roquebrune village - 20

Not all the houses in the village are jumbled together, with no view. In fact, many are surprising - internal gardens, balconies with a view of the sea. You can see another view of this house in the photo below - who'd have thought they'd have a view like this!

Tomorrow, come and see the Impasse du Four - where the seigneurial oven once stood.

Roquebrune village - 19

Here's the village post office in a building that was once the presbytery of St. Marguerite church you see in the background. Above the door you can see a fragment of a sarcophagus from the second century.

We'll be visiting the church one day. Meanwhile, let me know if you'd like us to continue looking around the village a little longer or whether you'd like to start the tour of the Xth century Château.

There's so much to see in this beautiful village, it's hard to know where to stop and frankly we've hardly begun - there's so much I want to show you. But don't worry - even if we go back down to Menton, we can always come back up again. It's not far!

Roquebrune village - 18

A pretty corner of the village. Note the boarded-up windows and state of the walls. Just a little work needed, methinks.

Roquebrune village - 17

Meet Julien Mehmed (Julien des bois) in his workshop which is situated just below the Xth century Château in the village. Julien works in olive wood and I found the following words on a very small website dedicated to him.

Olivier arbre mythique, symbole de paix et de longévité existait déjà à l'époque de la préhistoire. Cultivé encore aujourd'hui tout autour du bassin méditerranéen son bois dur, avec son veinage riche donne des sculptures pleine de vie.

....and my probably not quite correct translation...

The mythical olive tree, symbol of peace and longlife already existed at the time of pre-history. Still cultivated today in the Mediterranean basin for its hard wood with rich veining which makes sculptures come to life.

And if you missed the beautiful 1,000 (plus) year old olive tree in the village please click on the link.

Roquebrune village - 16

'Au Coeur de l'Olivier' - this is the atelier and gallery of Julien Mehmed, the olive wood sculptor. Known as Julien des bois, he opened this studio in rue du Château in 1959. He's fascinated by the history of Roquebrune and is always happy to share his knowledge. Come back tomorrow and see Julien at work.

Roquebrune village - 15

Kids play football everywhere - here are a couple kicking a ball about in rue de la Fontaine.

Roquebrune village - 14

This is the butcher's shop in the village. The church is off to the left. Notice the two plastic bottles outside? Do you know what these are for? Most original answer gets a postcard of Roquebrune village - and first correct answer gets one too.

Roquebrune village - 13

Here's a small part of the village as seen from above. You can really see how narrow the streets are and how the houses live cheek by jowl. Some have new roofs, some have those beautiful old tiles.

And if want to know where we are standing, click on THIS LINK - see the flagpole - that's where we are, leaning over the parapet of the Xth century Château. Of course, we'll be taking a full tour of the Château - and that's a treat - but I've more good things to show you in the village first.

Roquebrune village - 12

This look-out and tiny picnic area has always fascinated me. It belongs, so far as I can tell, to a house just out of shot. We are standing, leaning over the railings at the main square of the village - the Place des Deux Frères. It overlooks Cap Martin to the left and Monaco to the right.

Roquebrune village - 11

As I mentioned in an earlier post, the village of Roquebrune is built on rock called 'le poudinge' - pudding - which is a tertiary rock: a solid mix of shingle and sand. As you walk through the old streets, you can see how the houses literally grow out of it. This photograph is a good example - if you enlarge the photograph, you'll really see it. This is part of rue Moncollet, the oldest street in the village.

Roquebrune village - 10

A pretty corner of rue Pié. The plastic bowls are, presumably, for the local cats. Rue Pié and rue Moncollet are the two oldest streets in the village.

What's 'Jilly' in Arabic?

This smiling potter was working alongside the many pots he has for sale as part of the Christmas Fair. You can see MORE OF THE POTS HERE. I asked if I could take his photograph and he then asked my name. I told him and he asked me to repeat it and then he picked up one of the tiny vases you see on the edge of the table, scribbled on it and handed it to me. I noticed a few coins on the table, so I put down a couple of euros. I wonder if there is an equivalent to my name in Arabic? Can any Arabic reader tell me?

Concentration

We're back in Menton for the moment but we will be returning to the beautiful village of Roquebrune village - never fear.

This ice-rink had been installed, by the sea, as part of the Christmas/New Year facilities and as you can see Menton kids aren't natural skaters but they have a lot of fun trying. On the far side of the rink, you can see the Christmas market and in the background, the lower part of the Old Town with its steeples rising into the blue sky - yes, first blue sky for days after a week or more of rain. Oh happy day - this is what January is normally like in Menton. It's unusual to have had the amount of rain we've had this past week.

Today, I believe, is the last day of the Christmas/New Year market and facilities for the children.

Roquebrune village - 9

This pretty little impasse has recently been decorated by the new owners. When I first came to this part of France in 1992, I lived below the village of Roquebrune and often used to walk up the donkey track with my dog, Milou, to have a coffee in La Grotte or at the Deux Frères. There was always a table in this impasse, which looked very scruffy in those days. A Dutch artist, Philippe, used to live and work here, selling his paintings and postcards. I remember sitting with him on occasion sharing a bottle of wine and putting the world to rights. Now it's got considerably smarter and more chi-chi. We are just down from the main place and almost opposite rue Moncollet, the oldest street in the village.

Roquebrune village - 8

A couple more doors today - if I dare call them that. These are in the rue du Château.

Posting old doors is a good excuse to mention Marie from Montpellier's page of beautiful doors and arches.

Roquebrune village - 7

As you can imagine, Roquebrune village has many old doorways. Here's just one in rue Grimaldi. You'll be seeing more old doorways - and windows - because I love them - and I know many of you do too.

Roquebrune village - 6

This monument to the departed stands outside the 13th century, l'Eglise Sainte Marguerite which is to our right. We'll be visiting the church another day. The steps on the left lead to rue du Château ( we saw another part of this street the other day). Note the mosaic of black and white pebbles which dates back to 1776 and is called 'Calade.'

The motif is by Simon Bussy (1870 - 1954), who was a lifelong friend of Matisse (a fellow pupil at art school) and through his marriage to Dorothy Strachey, brother of the writer Lytton, was on the fringes of the famous Bloomsbury circle. He was the teacher of Duncan Grant.

'Simon Bussy was five years younger than Dorothy, and the son of a shoemaker from the Jura town of Dole. Lady Strachey’s liberalism faltered at the sight of him actually cleaning up his plate with pieces of bread. The family drama "shook the regime of Lancaster Gate to its foundations" (Holroyd), and, despite the silent disapprobation of the older Stracheys, Dorothy remained determined to marry him with what her brother Lytton later called "extraordinary courage".'

Simon and Dorothy Bussy lived in Roquebrune in winter and spent their summers in England and Scotland.

Theme Day: photo of the year - 2007

My choice was between two photographs: this one I took on a day in September when I'd come down to the beach to photograph the beautiful Old Town for the header of this blog. You can see another - just the little girl - HERE.

My other choice was BEAUTY - I so love the colours. I really don't consider myself a 'proper photographer' (yet!) in a technical sense, as I use a simple point and shoot - and so if anything works it's down to the camera and luck and so much encouragement and great advice from so many of you - my fellow City Bloggers - THANK YOU SO MUCH.

HAPPY NEW YEAR to everyone - and may all your dreams come true and all your photographs be PERFECT.

There are 118 Daily City Photo bloggers participating in today's Theme. Do please visit them - you'll see fabulous photographs from around the world.

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Roquebrune village - 5

On the road that leads from the village to the donkey track down to Menton is one of the most remarkable trees in France. This is a must for all visitors to the village, although for me, there isn't a corner of this beautiful village that isn't worth visiting. Known as the Olivier Millénaire - the 1000 year old olive tree - it is thought to be nearer to 2000 years old according to the tourist office of Roquebrune-cap-Martin, who write:

'The roots, like those of the Mathusalem de Provence, extend 20 meters in diameter. Olive trees were probably introduced to France by the Phœnicians 3000 years ago, but this tree was more likely planted by the Romans in the year 400.'

I also took the following information from a website called Venerable Trees of the Earth.

'The tree was, in the 19th century, the property of the Vial brothers, called 'the dragons, the loggers, bonesetters and poachers.' They were determined to cut it down but Gabriel Hanotaux, the French politician and historian (1853 - 1944) intervened. He happened to be passing and was entranced by the beauty of the tree and bought it from the Vial brothers. It still belongs to his descendants but it is the municipality who care for it.' There is a street in the village called avenue Gabriel Hanotaux - seemingly, he invited Clémenceau, Poincaré and Briand to admire the beauty of this olive tree.

The hanging cage, by the way, contains a crèche - Roquebrune village is famous for its beautiful and varied cribs at Christmas.

Roquebrune village - 4

This is part of rue du Château which leads to the Xth century Château - built in 970 by Conrad 1st, Count of Ventimiglia. The castle is the oldest Carolingian fortress in France. I'll write much more about the Château when we visit it. But for tomorrow, I've another surprise - do come back.

Roquebrune village - 3

It's hard to know where to begin in showing you this beautiful village. Everywhere you look there is beauty and most of all age - you can feel the history in the very stones of this village. Here you see Rue Moncollet - yes, it really is a street that cuts through the rock.

Rue Moncollet is the oldest street in the village and dates back to the 10th century. It's a long narrow street with stepped passageways and is filled with houses from the Middle Ages, many with barred windows.

We have walked just a few metres from the square we were in yesterday.

Roquebrune village - 2

We've parked below the village and entered the village by the rue Grimaldi and walked between the two pudding stone rocks, the two 'brothers' after whom the square is named - the Place des Deux Frères. Cars can drive up to this Place during certain hours of the day to make deliveries - otherwise you walk. If you've ever wondered why the old folk who live in these hill villages live so long - now you know. They walk. In the old days, of course, they would have had donkeys.

You can see the Xth century château (we'll be visiting the château) built into the rock and below it, a restaurant called La Grotte. In shade and closed at the moment, the restaurant is totally carved out of the 'pudding' I spoke of yesterday, hence the name. Even the loo is carved into the rock! They make truly great pizzas at La Grotte and it's a really buzzing little restaurant/bar - and it's great fun, sitting outside under the awnings, eating and drinking with friends.

Behind us, and way below is the sea, with stunning panoramic views of Monaco, the Cabbé and Cap Martin. To our left is the hotel/restaurant, Les Deux Frères, which serves excellent food and is a great place to stay. Do come back tomorrow for more.

Roquebrune village - 1

Menton is surrounded by beautiful Medieval villages, and one of the most beautiful is Roquebrune. You can see an alternative view below. Over the next days let me show you around this village which is perched, 300 metres above the sea and which looks down on the cape or headland called Cap Martin - the area you've seen in many previous postings. Roquebrune-cap-Martin is between Menton and Monte Carlo.

Roquebrune village is built on a sand and pebble conglomerate from the Tertiary period. It's called the pudding and it appears very fragile and soft. However, it is amazingly strong. The whole village stands on this rock with no foundations, the tangled jigsaw of the buildings has held it all together for centuries.

There is a legend that the village of Roquebrune, clinging to the hillside, owes its survival to the fragile broom shrub which, in the 7th century, during a terrible earthquake, stopped its deadly pull towards the sea.

Do come back tomorrow when we'll be in the village itself.

Little Red Riding Hood

The Jardin de Bioves has been transformed, for Christmas and New Year, into Le Jardin des Délices - (The Garden of Delights). It's a wonderland for children with a little train running through the gardens. There's also a corner for animals. Little Red Riding Hood (such a beautiful child) isn't too sure about the sheep - see second photograph. In fact many people brought bread to feed them. Goodness knows if bread is good for sheep? Certainly they wolfed it down. (excuse the pun!)

Joyeux Noel!

'In the meadow we can build a snowman,
And pretend that he's a circus clown,
We'll have lots of fun with Mister Snowman,
Until the other kids knock him down.'

Happy Christmas everyone! - and thank you so much - my esteemed fellow Daily City Photo bloggers - for visiting Menton DP and Monte Carlo DP - for your comments, your encouragement and help and most of all your friendship.

(Photo taken in the Jardin Bioves, Menton - where the whole area has been made into a Christmas Wonderland for children. )

Christmas Fair - rain!

This was yesterday - the Christmas market in the rain. You can just see one of the steeples of the Old Town in the misty background. Today, happily, the rain has gone away, the sea is dark blue, the sky clear and bright - and the market traders will hopefully have a better time of it. It's unusual to have rain here at Christmas. Normally, you can eat Christmas lunch on the terrace but this year it's rather chilly for the south of France.

Tai Chi

This gentleman isn't worried about last minute shopping for Christmas. He's not worried about the rain either. He was totally concentrated - oblivious to passers-by as he did his Tai Chi this morning. You can see Cap Martin in the background.

Give a dog a bone...

This Brittany spaniel is waiting outside the kitchen entrance to a restaurant at the base of the Old Town. I can only imagine his owner works there or is delivering something. Give the dog a bone!

You can see what a beautiful face this dog has by clicking on the link.

Christmas Fair - Santons

Santons are small figurines made of terracotta and can be purchased painted or unpainted. They are used to build nativity scenes and are a traditional product of the Provence area of France. Menton has its own santonnier with an atelier in the Old Town.

The santon comes from the Provençal santoun or 'little saint' and the figures became popular during the French Revolution when the churches were closed and the larger traditional nativity scenes in churches prohibited. Smaller figures began appearing in homes and quickly gained popularity.

Apart from the standard figures and animals associated with the nativity (including elephants and camels), there are countless other santons depicting traditional characters from Provençal village life, including the motley fool, the miller and the blind man.

You saw a different style of santon in yesterday's post.

Christmas Fair - La Cave de Gorbio

This is Frederique - and below you can see her shop in the Christmas Fair of Menton, which is set up between the sea and the market. I have a particularly soft spot for Frederique because she lives in Gorbio, where I live. She has the only shop in the village apart from the grocer's shop and she's worked incredibly hard over the years to make her business a success. She's always smiling - just like this. Christmas is her big time, when she always hopes to make the majority of her money - obviously she has far more visitors to this shop than come to the village. The small figures you see in front of her are santons. Tomorrow I'll show you santons from another stall in the Christmas Fair and will write about them then.

The mystery of the finger nails

Do blow up this photograph and take a look at what the lady has in her hand. She's is in the middle of cutting the man's fingernails. Now I find this rather strange. Here they are sitting on a nice bench by the sea - by Le Bastion, in fact, not far from the main market area. Is this the place to cut fingernails? I have tried to think this through. I don't imagine they live together else surely, if he needs someone to cut his finger nails, then they'd do it at home. And why can't he cut his own fingernails?

Anyone got the answer to this?

Plage du Golfe Bleu - 5

These guys swoop about and land relatively quickly. I had to rather rush up the beach not to be in the way - so apologies for chopping off the top of the parachute in this photograph. Once he had landed, he immediately turned to face the opposite direction (see second photograph) - so the wind would allow his parachute to collapse onto the beach in a way that made it easy for him to roll up.

If you missed the earlier postings, you can read more on these paragliders who take off from Mont Agel HERE.

If you'd like to see a beautiful golden retriever walking the beach - and later being calmed by his gentle owner whilst one of the paragliders landed, please click on the link.

Plage du Golfe Bleu - 4

Almost there!