Slept-in this morning to take advantage of the "daylight savings time" change here -- thye start a weel before the US. Wandered out on to the balcony, took one look at the green sea (green today) and the blue sky and it was difficult to talk myself into doing anything or going anywhere -- lazing around like yesterday seemed the appropriate thing to do. Finally convinced myself to drive over to Monaco and check out the gambling tables at the casinos in Monte Carlo -- turned out to be the wrong choice.
Had read about a tiny place called Eze with a well-preserved Medieval city. so decided to stop there on the way. Arrived around 11:00am only to be the sixtieth car looking to park in the fifty spaces available -- hung around for twenty to twenty five minutes and finally gave-up -- figured I'd try again on my way back from Monaco later in the day.
Continued on to Monaco of Princess Grace and Prince Ranier fame. Monaco is the second smallest country in the world (with only the Vatican being smaller) and Monte Carlo is it's largest city. I's seen it in the movies over the years and on tv wth the Formula I racing and it looked so charming -- wow, has it changed. Today, it's a modern city with all the sprawl and congestion that goes with that designation -- impossible to navigate -- my GPS got lost so many times, I just turned it off and drove around.
Parking is at an absolute premium as are any signs informing you where the casinos are located -- they apparently are all in a fairly compact area and unless you know exactly where you're going, good luck finding them (typical European attitude!)
Gave up at one point and started heading out of town only to see an actual sign reading "Casinos" with an arrow -- followed it and even found a parking garage -- within twenty minutes I was standing outside the Monte Carlo Casino. Turns out I was there too early -- 11"45am -- and they don't open until 2:00pm -- couldn't believe that what is billed as a "world-class" casino didn't open until mid-afternoon on a Sunday!
Took some photos and wandered down to the harbor where I found a Starbucks with a million-dollar view of the Mediterranean. Got a muffin and a cup of coffee and proceeded to sit there staring out to sea for the next hour and a half, people-watching too. Lovely day, a little haze, temps in the 70's, a gentle breeze -- not half bad (but thought I could be doing the same thing back at the apartment without all the hassle).
Two o'clock rolled around and walked back up the hill to the casino. Strangest place -- they charge you ten euros just for the privilege of entering and losing your money gambling -- figured out, why not, I'm not coming back and I had a few euros burning a hole in my pocket.
On one hand it was very nice, on the other it was a huge disappointment. Beautifully decorated (19th century French decor -- huge chandeliers, a back-lit glass dome, statues, alabaster carvings, period-style paintings) but it was only one room maybe eighty by forty feet (where they had table games) -- about one-third the size of a football field -- and two smaller rooms probably one-third the size of the large room (where they had slot machines) -- I couldn't believe it -- nothing at all like in the James Bond movies -- very disappointing.
They had two restaurants whick probably took up more room than the gambling area. On top of that , the gaming room only had six tables -- two roulette wheels, two 40/30 tables and two tables that I had no idea what they were used for. No blackjack, no poker, no pai-gow, no baccaret. Stood around for awhile admiring the decor and then left with my two hundred euros still in my pocket.
Monaco/Monte Carlo is a picturesque place with impressive mountains towering over it and the sea shimmering below it but it didn't come close to living up to its hype. Unless you really want to be able to tell people you went to Monte Carlo, I'd say "skip it" and spend your time strolling around some of the small coastal villages much prettier, much more atmospheric, much more what the south of France used to be.
Oh, and I went back to Eze, made one loop of the parking lot (which was still a zoo) and went back to the apartment and sat out on the balcony watching the sea as the sun set -- that was worthwhile! Should've followed my instincts, oh well.
