Visit to Eze

  We all think of Eze as a "cutesy" little village on the hillside with lots of well tended garden pots and charming corners.  It is a spiffed up version of a French country village and mostly only tourists are to be found there.   There are a handful of galleries and little boutiques and some very pricey restaurants and there you have it.   The best value is to take a glass of champagne at one of the restaurant terraces and sit and take in the beauty of the coastline. 

Or you can visit a hidden hillside haven which is what I did a few days ago. 

 Leave it to my friend June to ferret out the best addresses,  some rarely on the market, and book a week to 10 days to avoid the gaggle of monster children running around the pool.   She finds a holiday sanctuary in one of the most sought after vacation destinations in the world but she lives just a town over.   Brilliant. 

But before she whisked me to her retreat, we went to have lunch along the coast highway.  Both our chosen destinations were closed for lunch so we headed for a family run tavern filled with locals.  

There I found the irony of our part of the world:  the authenticity of French life less than a kilometer away from a fantasized version of an authentic French village.  

The menu was typical at our small local cafe.  I had the "moules" ( mussels) in their broth. June had "dinde"( turkey breast) in bread crumbs....Two glasses of rosé and a tall Pellegrino.  It was perfect. 

 After a friendly conversation with two French gentlemen,  I heard music and turned to see someone had brought a guitar.   A beautiful young lady with an exceptional alto voice was singing.  Being this place, this moment and this song, I went over and joined in. She was gracious about sharing and so it was one of those joyful moments that if you dare....you grab. 

 Then I went back to my table and tried to pretend that this was an everyday occurrence.  But it certainly had more authenticity to it than the tourist mecca of Eze Village. 

After quitting the restaurant, (where several people thanked me),   we wound our way up the hill of Eze in June's trusty "bangole".  

These photos give you a glimpse and I even dared post one that June snapped of me in my new red bathing suit. 

 And then there is Wesley, June's majestic feline of the first order who for the moment has even a guest bedroom to explore as well as two levels of private deck.  He can sit and watch the squirrels or just lie under a convenient bonsai.  

    I don't know who was happier,  Wesley or the old girl who got to sing "House of the Rising Sun" once more.