C’est la vie

We followed our day-trip to Monaco with a visit to the cities of Cannes and Antibes. Cannes is the city where the very well-off are willing to pay a slightly exorbitant amount of money to do nothing. Besides the phenomenal beachfront littered with every luxury brand imaginable, along with a “caviar house,” there is not much to do in Cannes save enjoy a scoop (or two) of gelato on the beach. So I did. After I soaked up an adequate amount of sun, a small group of my cohorts and I made way for the neighboring town of Antibes. Antibes was my favorite part of the Cote D’Azur weekend because the city is able to capture a quaint, small town feel while still embodying the plush environment of southern France.

I had researched Antibes before we left and discovered that Picasso spent time working in the “castle” along the shore, focusing on antiquity through the lens of modernity. A friend and I quickly made our way to the Picasso Museum in order to delve into the works of Picasso and his contemporaries for a meager three euros. Antiquity and classical artwork is a personal interest of mine, thus it was fascinating to see how Picasso utilized the themes and figures in the ancient works in his modern style. Picasso’s other works clearly had Mediterranean influence and with such a magnificent setting as Antibes, it is no wonder that a vibrancy and happiness emanated from the paintings and sculptures.

That night we joined the final celebrations of Carnaval in Nice and what an unexpected surprise that was. The floats and costumes were elaborate manifestations of wild imagination, some at least two stories tall, and the whole city was out to partake in the festivities. Children peppered us with confetti and silly string and participants in the parade gladly broke rank to dance with onlookers. It was an excellent way to conclude my visit to the French Riviera and I long for an opportunity to return!