Hello family and friends!
Well, another week, another cup of tea in hand (plus one of my homemade dark chocolate peanut butter cups, mmmm), another blog post! I must say I'm quite proud of myself for letting only a week pass before I get started on this one.
Many of you know that I was considering flying back to CA this month for a visit before the baby arrives. I went back and forth for awhile, deciding against it in the end. The length of time I would have been gone didn't really suit me (let me rephrase that-- I would miss Niall too much!) and it's hard to pass up cheap European flights! The alternative ended up being a wonderful week away and I'm so grateful that I was able to soak in a little more sun before winter really closes in here. I flew to Nice in the South of France to spend the week with Miss Taylor Payne, who is quite the French mademoiselle at this stage! We had some good laughs and it was comforting to see such a familiar face from home.
Niall hasn't even asked to see my photos, I think he's still a bit jealous. ;) Here's a quick recap of our adventures...
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| bonjour! :) |
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| Nice |
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| SB girls reunited! |
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| beautiful sunset walk along the promenade |
We both arrived in Nice from our separate places of origin on Sunday night. Monday was actually quite dreary and there was a huge thunder & lightning storm! But we didn't really mind. We got a hot chocolate, walked around, hiked up to a cool lookout point, and just took it easy. I think I got my California accent back after just a few hours chatting with Tay. :)
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| a day in San Remo, Italy |
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| rockin' the belly look |
On our second day, we took a train into Italy! Nice is quite near the border so it didn't take too long and the train service was very handy and inexpensive. We did more walking, had some gelato, explored a big market, and enjoyed being in a new place. I must say we traveled well together, it was nice being with someone easygoing.
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| Isn't this a beautiful shot? Another walk by the beach in Nice. |
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| pizza truck! |
We left Italy late in the afternoon and got back into Nice in time to enjoy a beautiful sunset. Tay went for a little run on the promenade... I would have loved to join in-- there were so many runners out, reminded me of Cabrillo Blvd. in SB! However, Baby Madden hasn't been on a run for quite some time now... so we walked. :)
Taylor and I rented a room through airbnb for the week. The couple we stayed with insisted we buy pizza from the 'pizza truck guy'. We wanted something easy for dinner so decided to give it a try. It was good. And cheap! We took it back down to the promenade and had a romantic pizza feast. :)
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| day 3 breakfast |
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| of all the places I've been to, France has the best bread |
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| view of the cote d'azur out of the train window |
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| Monaco! |
On our third day we took the train to Monaco. Wow-- what a beautiful place! I think this was my favourite day. It was so sunny and warm... I cannot express enough how good sun feels on my skin when it has been so long. Seriously-- all you CA people, don't take it for granted!
We made the trek up to the palace to watch the changing of the guards. The rest of the day we spent walking, eating at a big indoor market, more exploring, and a little rest at the beach.
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| so pretty everywhere... |
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| We sat on this bench for at least an hour! The sunshine felt amazing. |
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| Cheers to a great day! Don't worry folks, I didn't drink the whole glass :) |
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| sushi in Nice for dinner! |
All in all Monaco didn't disappoint! It was especially fun for me to see it after getting into Formula 1 and imagining a Grand Prix race in that city... crazy.
On our fourth day we took the train to Cannes. More of the usual exploring, walking, eating, and soaking up more of that sunshine!
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| my favourite meal, I think I had it 3 times on the trip... 'salad nicoise' |
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| more beach time |
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| It was cool looking at the countless fancy yachts anchored in the harbour... some of them were huge! |
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| red carpet spotting?! |
Our fifth and final day was gorgeous... sunny, clear, and hot! I wanted to get up a little earlier and walk along the promenade. I wasn't expecting to be out in time for the sunrise but I was happy I made it down in time. I enjoyed being up before the beach got busy and watching planes come in for early morning landings.
Whenever I am in continental Europe I find it very, very hard to pass up freshly baked croissants-- let alone Nutella ones!! I walked to this corner bakery twice on my own to sit, people watch, and indulge. After my early morning stroll on my last day I couldn't resist topping the morning off with this simple pleasure. :)
Taylor and I had decided to spend our last full day (we both had night flights) on the beach in Nice. However, first we took a quick train ride in hopes of going to a Renoir Museum, which actually was the house where he lived in his later years filled with some original works. To our dismay we arrived 2 minutes after they had closed the museum for lunch hours (11:30 to 2 pm... come on people, how long does it take to eat lunch?!). Oh well. We found a really cute market nearby and went to that before heading back to Nice. The lounge chairs, sea, and sand were calling our names!
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| fresh produce, I miss this! |
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| Taylor just chatting it up, she's such a local :) |
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| Now we're talking! We spotted our destination for the day :) |
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| I totally spaced that I had left my bathing suit in my backpack that I stored at the train station. Hope you all don't mind this sports bra / underwear shot!! |
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| A good way to say good bye to Nice! |
Well, there you go! I could post more but you get the idea... it was a great trip. My flight didn't take off until 10 pm Friday night so it was great having the whole day to relax. Amazing that I can hop on a plane and 2 hours, 20 minutes later I'm back to scarves, jackets and boots... I stepped off the plane and the chilly air reminded me that I was definitely not in France anymore! I was excited to see Niall, who made a late night drive to pick me up from the Dublin airport. From there, we made our way to the Madden home in Naas-- I was so happy to have a weekend with the fam to top things off.
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| Nobody makes an Ulster fry like Benny does... nobody!! |
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| the coveted chair by the window |
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| :D |
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| yep, I finished the whole thing no problem! |
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| I know you all love the belly shots :) |
Hoping to squeeze in one more flight somewhere before January-- we'll see! I think I'll get Niall to check in with you all next time-- he's overdue for a post. Have a great week everybody!
xox
