Provence & Côte d’Azur, southern France 8 Part 1 - Beaulieu-sur-Mer & Èze
Day 8 was a beautiful sunny day. We left Nice early and drove east. First we stopped by Beaulieu-sur-Mer, a small seaside town to see a building called the Rotunda. It was a filming location of 'Dirty Rotten Scoundrels,' a 1988 comedy film starring Steve Martin and Michael Caine. J likes the movie and we watched it before the trip.
Built in 1904, the Rotunda was an additional lounge for tea dances at the Hôtel Bristol, a former Belle Époque style luxury hotel built at the end of the 19th century. Today it houses a restaurant.
Nobody was dining there around 6:30am, of course. Luckily the terrace was accessible, which was seen in the movie.
The location was lovely. You can see 'Baie des Fourmis,' or Ants Bay from the terrace.
We have already known what would be waiting for us in a hilltop village. We climbed up through the narrow winding streets to reach the highest point. The village was filled with the fairy tale stone buildings and looked so adorable. I was taking a photo at every step...
There were many small shops, galleries, and restaurants on the streets. They were closed at that moment and there were only a few humans we passed by on the streets. Nothing disturbed the magical atmosphere.
There was a little fountain at a small square. It was the only fountain in the village, built in 1930 with financial support by Samuel Barlow, a Harvard-educated American composer, pianist and art critic, who fell in love with Èze. Until then, the village didn't have a source of running water. No worries today. Èze has been connected to the main water supply system since 1952.
The Notre Dame de l’Assomption was located on the east hillside. Built at the end of the 18th century, the Neo-classical church stands on the foundations of a 12th century church. The yellow painted exterior stood out from the blue sky background.
There was another cemetery above the cemetery. The seaside view from there was striking! Despite of the village was located over the sea, we haven’t seen the sea when we were walking around the village. The hillside facing the sea must be completely covered with dozens of the charming stone buildings.
The garden dominates the higher sharp hillside of the village, including the highest spot. The south facing side (seaside) of the garden was a wonderful showcase of numerous species of succulents and xerophytes. They were so cute! And the panorama from there was spectacular! Also we were grateful to have the gorgeous weather on that day!!
The castle ruins were found at the summit of the garden. They are a part of the late 12th century fortress, built by the Lords of Èze. Interestingly the rocky hill has been occupied by various people since the end of the Iron Age. Some fragments of the protective walls from around 220 BC still remain in the village! It has been strategically located and protected from their enemy, but apparently none of them couldn't keep the position forever.
The peninsula is Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, where we were going to after this garden visit.
The White Arc Bridge and the yellow church were again seen at the backside of the summit.
The view was truly breathtaking beauty...
We explored the shady north facing side of the garden featuring plants from the Mediterranean as well as plants from other humid regions. There were also caves and a cascade.
Hello again, yellow church!
The north garden was smaller. It didn't take time for us to reach the gate back to the west hillside of the south facing garden. The garden was very extended mostly vertically.
It was an utterly amazing garden. I could spend a whole day there, especially in the south facing side. However, it was time to go. Say good-bye to the cute plants!
To be continued...
