Nice, Nice, Baby.

While part of me is tempted to just put up tons of pictures and make people jealous, my mother would never appreciate that. So, on to the second destination from my week of travels.

Nice

We arrived at about 9:30 PM on a Tuesday and immediately hopped in a Mercedes...taxi of course. Our taxi driver told us that we happened to be there right when Carnaval was happening and said we should walk down to the beach from our hotel and find what was happening that night. We were brave, we were adventurous....and went to dinner but not the beach. Our receptionist hadn't been the friendliest and we had to leave the key at the desk (Yay Europe) and didn't want to come in after it closed, etc., so forth, so we settled for some sweet awesome Cuban food at Le Havane.

The ambiance was fantastic.

The following day we decided to stay in town as there was going to be more Carnaval festivities. The morning began with a quick jaunt over to the Art History museum that was about three blocks from our hotel.The outside was pretty.

But the inside was pretty lacking. The building was run down and a bit decrepit, but I did get to pet the resident cat that was sleeping on the radiator, so that was well and good.

The only piece of note in this museum is Rodin's The Kiss statue. It's huge. But I only know of it because of a murder mystery where a replica was ironically used as a murder weapon to bludgeon a man's wife, so I might have had a different or morbid enjoyment than others might have.

And then we went back outside where the locals seemed to congregate and let their dogs play with each other. It seems weird as the museum is an official government building and used to be the home of a Ukrainian Princess, but it's pretty much the most podunk museum I have ever been to. 

Near our hotel was this lovely lady popping out of.....the local Marriott hotel. Okay, technically it had been a French hotel that was bought out by Marriott, but gasp! Nakedness!

The next stop was the Museum Massena, which used to be a home owned by a rich local family. 

These guys. And it was exactly the type of place I'd like to live. An oceanfront property with...

Sweet dining rooms.

Awesome ceilings and chandeliers.

Gilt fireplaces and golden knick knacks.

Ballrooms!

An oddly classical entryway, but oh well. This beauty led to the upstairs that housed the artwork. Including this dude.

Don't see the interest? Look closer.

Bam!

Then we saw someone rather familiar looking.

Oh, hey, your majesty.

And my future rug.

Throughout the museum there was also lots of local pieces from years past of Carnaval. This was the 130th year of the festival, so some of the old pieces were pretty neat.

After the museum of course came lunch! While we were sitting in the restaurant people had started to gather outside and we realized that we were right where the parade for the day was taking place. 

This was one of the first views that greeted us.

It was pretty impressive from the front as well. These girls were walking and dancing in those heels for over an hour as they paraded in bejewelled thongs and glorified bras. A little different.

The parade was supposed to be about flowers, so every few attractions there was a float made out of flowers that smelled amazing and tossed out some local yellow flowers to spectators. In the meantime, though, there were girls like those above...

Steampunk enthusiasts that attacked everyone and everything with leaf-blowers and streamers.

More scantily clad women.

Some Russian Orthodox people, including one surprisingly flirty young gentleman in the back....

Sandwich floats with dancing ladies on top.

Each of the flower floats had a theme that the flower girl of each float dressed to encapsulate. Clearly, this one belongs in Be Our Guest. Others were themed on chilis, chocolate, birds, and so on.

Oh, look! Another scantily clad woman.

Who magically disappears into a cake!

And my favorite float of all time. A DRAGON!!!!

With smoke!!

The head was completely mobile and controlled by a driver on the float, so it attacked us in the audience.

But look at the detailing on that sucker!

A princess flower girl. 

A Madonna wannabe.

Madonna wannabes on stilts.

Flirtatious tables....

Creepy smoking balloons. And my friend Kristi. Hi, Kristi!

Another dragon! This one had some pretty cool artwork on the balloon.

More scantily clad women.

One of my favorites of the flower floats. Check out that sweet dress.

And last but not least.....men in creepy pink unitards wearing a murse.

After the parade was finished we decided to wander and explore the city some more. After a quick rest on the beach of course.

See that hill in the background? There was a huge fountain/waterfall that you could see from where we were. Keep that in mind.

The gorgeous opera house that I wish I could have attended.

Remember the park I mentioned? Well, we decided to go find it.....not realizing that the entire park was one massive hill. Thankfully, we had stopped for some local pastries to fortify us. The views were pretty spectacular, though.

I couldn't get a picture of the waterfall with my camera as it chose to die, but I do have proof I was there.

And so ended the Nice adventure.

Foux du Fafa - A Visual Beginning

This past week I had Flight of the Conchords stuck in my head. Probably because that's about the extent of French that I know and I chose to travel through three French speaking countries. Ça va? Ça va!


Geneva Round One

There wasn't a whole lot of reason behind picking Geneva at first. It was just where there was a cheap flight. But, my friend Kristi and I quickly realized that it was pretty central for travel to other awesome places that will be soon described, so we jumped on that plan. What is Geneva known for, you ask? 

Cuckoo clocks for one.

And Cows. They help with all that cheese and chocolate. Mmmmmm.

Also, the Jet D'Eau, otherwise known as the Jet of Water. Seriously. It's actually pretty impressive. It shoots water up 140 meters into the sky, and serves as a sort of focal point / landmark when trying to navigate through other parts of the city. Keep in mind, this is the top point of interest listed on tourist maps.

There's also the natural history museum that focuses especially on the local wildlife of Switzerland. History that has to do with lots and lots of birds. Hence, cute bathroom artwork.                

And taxidermy. Lots and lots of taxidermy. 

So, I made some new friends.

And then I went to the Museum of Art and History. To begin, the building was just gorgeous. 

So was the view looking away from the museum. Yep, that's the Jet D'Eau. in the background.

One of the weirdest things for me going to this museum, was being allowed to open doors. I'm used to museums not allowing you to go anywhere that was behind a closed door. Here. Nope. It's part of the experience. Just entering the museum is an adventure as the front doors (see below) are huge glass and metal pieces of beauty. These happen to be quite heavy, so as soon as you turn the handle a little electric winch turns on, scares the crap out of you, and then begins opening the door the rest of the way for you.

But once you entered....oh, it was awesome, just from the very beginning. I mean, you get to walk up stairs on a red carpet! SWEET!!

Even if you wind up blending in with the carpet because of your sartorial choices.

But check out random salons for furniture.

And the stained glass that you got to enjoy because of the lovelier Swiss weather.

Not to mention, that while I've never been a huge art fan, it never hurts your sense of classiness when you're walking around looking at Renoir or Monet.

Plus some sweet Swiss painters that were all into size. Look at that chair for reference. 

Next came the Russian Orthodox church. Talk about intense. Those Russians sure know how to make a statement. 

Yet, their restrictions left me confused. I get no loud talking, phones, food, photography, and pets. I especially get smoking. But, no fire pants? Really? How can you be against that?

And then the rest of the first two days in Geneva were spent simply wandering, eating, and enjoying the random nubby trees everywhere, architecture, and multitude of different churches.

See architecture and nubby trees.

A synagogue on Rue du Synagogue. No joke.