Finding Fragonard

I slept in a little and headed to breakfast were I joined Sunha. We talked for a while and then I jumped on the computer to plan out my day and figure out my next step. I decided to extend my stay at the Villa another night. There was a few more things I wanted to do while in Nice. I was on the computer much of the morning having no luck with deciding on where I was going to go tomorrow. Lots of places to see, but all of them were out of my price range. I'd decided to head North toward Strasbourg to drop off some gear that I'm not using now that it's getting warmer. Sadly, Switzerland is extremely expensive and I'm not finding many cheap options. I thought I'd figure it out later.
I grabbed shuttle down to the tram and took the tram to the bus station. I missed the bus by about 5-10 minutes and had to wait an hour. Did I mention that it was raining? Well it was. I got on the bus and headed to a town called, "Eze Village". The bus winded up the steep hillside and it provided some excellent views of the ocean. It was clear enough so I could see a cruise ship in the water completely dwarf the giant yachts. Those things are HUGE and they amaze me! I made it to Eze Village a lot later than expected. I asked around to find a place called, "Fragonard". Now, Fragonard is a perfume company based in France. I took a tour the last time I was in Europe so it was partly Nostalgia. The other part was Ma's shopping list.

Fragonard

I walked in and I was greeted by a nice French lady. My French was poor so she asked, "Would it be better to talk in German or English? I speak both". I said, "Well, my English is better than my German". Yeah, I can go on all day about how Europeans do not understand sarcasm. It's hard because it's so natural for me. Anyway, I hand her the list and she says, "Follow me". I find what I'm looking for and she asks, "Does the lady like gardenia?" to which I reply, "Well, yes, but the LADY force fed me peas as a kid so I'd like to get back at her. Do you have anything in vinegar?" Ha Ha! Just kidding Ma!
I decided to take the tour and it was just me and my guide, "Elenore". During the tour an old Asian Lady was walking in the wrong direction for the exit. My guide Elenore pointed her in the correct direction. So, Elenore points to some equipment behind this large protective glass (which separates the workers from the people on the tour) and begins to explain it. While she is explaining the equipment the old Asian lady is now walking lost on the other side of the glass wall where the workers would be (it was Sunday and they were off). The old Asian lady has gotten herself lost in this perfume laboratory and we can see her with a confused look on her face. Elenore and I start laughing. Finally, a security officer came and escorted the old lady to the exit. It was funny!
After the tour Elenore let me smell some of the perfumes and colognes. Last time I was there I bought some cologne for myself so I thought I'd treat myself again. What is funny is some of the odd stuff they put in the perfume and colognes. Here are some: ceder wood, grapefruit, green tea, leather, nutmeg, black pepper, clove, and marshmellow. Crazy! Oh, and their "Sex Panther" line has been discontinued.
I caught the bus back to Nice and into the Old Town area. It's still raining. I decided that there is one more tradition that I need to do. I walk down toward the beach and along the coastline. I saw her yesterday from on top of the park. I needed to pay her a visit.....I arrived at, "Necresco".

Necresco

So, remember that story I shared a while back about me and a group of people getting kicked out of a classy hotel? Well, this was the hotel. Last time I was damp because a we had just finished swimming in the Mediterranean. Now I was dripping wet because of the rain. I approach the hotel. A man who looks like Carter Putershmit is standing directly in front of the door. He sees me. I wait until he leaves. I walk up, open the door, and immediately start the timer. Carter walks up to me and says, "No No not here, toilet is around the corner" as he waves his finger at me before walking me out. I was in there for a total of 19 seconds which beat my last stay. Maybe next time they'll let me in for whole half minute, but I'm not holding my breath. On the long walk back to the tram in the rain I was thinking about all the things I have done longer in my life then stand in that classy hotel lobby: Having the hiccups, balancing a spoon on my nose, and the length of time I waited for Dick Tracy to get blown up by Big Boy Caprice while he was in the basement. Okay, that last one is a stretch, but Meg will understand me on that one.

A Walk Along the Rainy Beach

I arrived at the hostel in time for dinner. I was very hungry! I ordered a pizza and sat with Sam and Sunha. I also met our new roomie, Kelvin, who is from Fremont. He quit his job and decided that he wanted to travel for as long as he could. I liked him, he said I looked like Matt Damon. Ha! We sat and chatted for the longest time. After, I had to do some research for what I was going to do the following day. I knew that I'd be moving on, but was unsure where I was going. I figured that a couple days in Switzerland would be fun. However, Switzerland was WAY too expensive. Crazy expensive! Even Lyon in France was going to cost me a lot. Since my plan was to go to Strasbourg ultimately and it was due to rain tomorrow I decided to bite the bullet and do a long travel day. My hope is to be in Strasbourg by 9pm tomorrow. Hmmm, it's 11:30pm so maybe I should e-mail Deb and tell her that I'm staying with her tomorrow night.

This one is for you Ma!