The thunder storm that I mentioned in yesterday's post stayed with us for a couple of hours with lightening flashing all around the ship. The sea swell was quite uncharacteristic of the Med and was rough well into the night. It was therefore a surprise to be awoken with sunshine through the window and when the curtains were pulled back a magnificent view of Monaco was revealed before us.
Monaco is the only stop on this itinery that requires a tender ashore, the Crown Princess being too large to fit into the harbour. The bay was still a little rough from last night's storm which made this tendering operation quite exciting, with the small boats bobbing up and down as they made their way to the shore.
The harbour itself is filled with luxury yachts, some barely smaller than our cruise ship, all with exotic names like "Giselle", "Lady Rose" and "Mrs Nag-Nag". The owner of that last boat is, I assume, single now!
The old town of Monaco is built high on the rocks over looking the harbour and although we were told that there were lifts to take you to the top, we couldn't find them. We therefore climbed the steep roads towards the Palace the benefit of which were the superb views over the bay and towards the ship.
We passed through some lovely gardens and a sculpture park on the way up where Sylvia took a well earned rest with a local.
Eventually we reached the Royal Palace just as the crowds were gathering for the changing of the guards. For those of you who have seen the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace you may be a little disappointed by this display which involved six soldiers in a white uniform swapping places with another group of six also in white uniforms. It did however seem to keep the assembled crowd entertained.
From the palace courtyard you get the view over Monte Carlo that is well known to viewers of the Grand Prix.
From the Palace we made our way down through the Old Town towards the Casino passing through the tunnel that the Formula One cars whizz through at break neck speed.
Around the Casino and the adjacent Hotel de Paris the wealth of the area is obvious with Rolls-Royces parked next to Bentleys and Ferraris, but Sylvia preferred a more stylish motor.
By this time the clouds began to roll in over the hills so we decided to make our way back to the ship.
Tomorrow we have a 7.30 start for our trip to Pisa and Florence so an early night is called for.
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