12 July 2005 :We woke up about 10.00am., as that day we didn’t have many kilometers to cover. Many cities to see, in a short distance between them. So we went out for a walk at the city, as Vangelis with Nikos were looking for internet cafe. Some time we were all gathered and walked at the commercial roads, at the blvd de la Croisette that all the hotels are protracted, until Palais des Festivals. We took some photos at his “red carpet” and went back to the hotel. We met rue Venizelos and returned through it. About 11.30 we departed from the city of Cannes.
We followed the beautiful coast route to Antibes, through Jean-les-Pins and Cap d’Antibes. Along that destination, we met very beautiful summer resorts, traditional of the French Riviera. At some points we stopped to enjoy the view and took some photos. We passed by Antibes and continued to Nice.
The weather was nice. About 1.00pm. we entered the beautiful Nice that possess the title of the capital of Azure Coast. Entering the city, we took the coast road Promenade des Aglaies and reached the Tower of Bellanda. The hot was unbearable and decided to go to the beach bar Castel for food and swim. At Nice you will find many hospital beaches, full of perfectly round pebbles. The access to those beaches is free, as the waters are warm and deep.
After we freshened and rested ourselves, started for Monaco. From the helical way we had the chance to enjoy the marvellous scenery of the Azure Coast. About 6.00pm. we entered the principality of Monaco, but before we wore our waterproof due to the potential rain.
The tiny luxurious Monaco is a fantastic land with well-looked-after roads, luxury gardens, classy shops and opulent palaces of entertainment of 19’s century. The day we reached Monaco was the coronation of Albert and the city was bunting in red and white. We stopped for a coffee at a beach cafe with the view of the port, full of yachts and the area of the pits stop of Formula 1 race.
The time went by and decided to depart, riding first our bikes at the city, following the course of the speedway of Formula 1. Because of the coronation, we didn’t manage to repeat for the second time to go around the speedway, as they stopped us at the point that went in front of the Casino, due to the arrival of the noble guests of the Prince…
We left Monte Carlo with the best memories. We followed the route to Menton, the last city of the French Riviera. The helical way continued to excite us until there… going out of the tourist Menton, we passed by the abandoned border station and entered Italy.
Our first pictures of Italian Riviera were real disappointment!!! Either the road, or the villages we met until San Remo didn’t remind us of anything similar to the tourist French resorts. We reached San Remo a little late, with many lightning… For that reason we decided to spend the night there and search for a place to stay. Unfortunately our search was unsuccessful. For our good luck, Ploumisti spoke Italian and met 2 brothers that were closing their cafe and asked them for a hotel. Immediately they tried to help us. Finally we found one with a closed parking for 27euro/per person. The rooms weren’t in the best condition but were the best solution we could find.
After we settled, went to the city’s port, where we found the only open restaurants as the time was 11.30pm. We tasted the Italian cookery, as the time we were at the restaurant it rained for one more time. When it stopped, we returned to the hotel…
Motorcyclists:Manolis, Christos, Ploumisti, Nikos(TDM900), Vangelis(CBR600)
Copilots :-
Photos:Manolis, Ploumisti
Written by Manolis
Translation: Sakis