A Journey Through Belle France
Monaco
Day
12 - Monaco & Villefranche-sur-Mer
We got excited when Rick showed up at our door
Not to mention, he was staying on our floor
We all hoped he would come, as the trip got started
But he stayed in Nice and left us broken hearted
Villefranche
Today
we are going to Monaco, woohoo! I have always wanted to see Monaco
because it seems like the glamorous place to be in all those old movies.
Monaco also has the added bonus of having an unwed Price who will soon take
over the throne. Um...which way to the palace? 
Monaco is only a short bus ride from Villefranche, so most everyone in the group opted to go. We all walked together to the Place du Palais where Prince Rainier's palace is. We took a group photo with Francois Grimaldi , and Italian who captured Monaco dressed as a monk in 1297. Prince Rainier is a direct descendant of this ambitious Italian. From Place du Palais, we split up to explore this little, tiny principality.
Linda,
Laura, Michaelanne, and I decided to go see the Musée Océanographique,
otherwise known as the Jacque Cousteau Aquarium. Having grown up
watching The Undersea World of Jacque Cousteau, I couldn't wait to see the
aquarium. 
Donna, Deb, Peter, Laura, Linda, Mr. Grimaldi, Me, Emily, Katie, Nancy, Judy, Dwight, and Jack.
The
aquarium was originally built in 1910 by Prince Albert I and today has a spectacular
collection of live critters as well as a huge collection of marine life
samples collected by Jacque Cousteau, films of him working, and scale models
of his research vessels. Jacque Cousteau actually directed the aquarium
for many years. We probably could have stayed there all day in
dark rooms of the aquarium watching the fish swim, but we had a prince to
catch...um, I mean we wanted to see the changing of the guard and tour
the 
palace.
Plus it was getting close to lunchtime, and this being our last full day in
France, we were not about to pass up an opportunity to eat. So we headed
back to Place du Palais.
Musée
Océanographique
Cathédral
de Monaco
On
our way to the to the palace we stopped at the Cathédral de Monaco where
generations of Grimaldis are buried. As you enter the church you follow
the line of people up to the alter. All around the alter, almost in a
semi circle, are the tombs of many of the Grimaldi family. The very last
tomb is where Grace Kelly was buried in 1982. The death of Princess
Grace is still a difficult subject for many people here. All of the
shops we went to had pictures of Princess Grace and Prince Rainier. The
people behind the counter always seemed happy when you acknowledged the
pictures and were happy to talk about the wedding and such. But at the
same time, you could see the sadness in their eyes. I can only compare
it to the way the English loved and still love Princess Diana. 
Palais Princier
The Prince's Palace is half museum and half residence. Because the royal family lives there, only certain rooms are available to be viewed by the public. So much for catching a Prince.
The opulence was so overwhelming, maybe I'm not cut out to be a princess after all. No matter how extravagant the palace is, however, you could not help but remember that this is a family residence. One of the rooms we visited had a beautiful family portrait of Prince Rainier, Princess Grace, and there children. Like so many other places I have encountered, photography was not allowed. Luckily I found some great postcards of some of the rooms we visited. Can you imagine living here?
The
outside of the palace is not nearly so lavish but still very impressive.
It also seemed positively deserted until the changing of the guard, which is
as popular here as it is at Buckingham Palace.
Clockwise from top:
(1) The Throne Room; (2) Louis XV Chamber; (3) The changing of the guard; and (4) The exterior of the palace.
After
a full day in Monaco we hopped on the bus and headed back to Villefranche-sur-Mer
for our farewell dinner. I always hate this part of the tour.
After two weeks together and a scrapbook full of shared experiences, it is
always hard to say goodbye. But, as all good things must come to an end,
we got cleaned up and met everyone in the lobby to head over to Le Cosmo for
one last group dinner. We shared toasts, tears, stories, and a great
meal with free flowing kier and wine. One of the highlights of the
evening was when Emily and Katie read the poem they wrote about everyone of
the tour. 
Villefranche-sur-Mer - Farewell Dinner
Laura, Sy, and Harriet
The girls read their poem.
Linda and Michaelanne
Sabine and Jack
Michaelanne and Sabine
Sabine makes a toast.
Sy says a few words.
The gang!
Katie & Emily's Ode to the Tour Group
Now that we're here at the end of our trip
We all can't believe it went by so quick
Oh the times we've shared, and the laughs had by all
Ya'll can agree not a moment was dull
Charlie's our professor, of Latin and Greek
But we bet on this trip, he wishes French he could speak
Lois was a nurse, patient and kind as can be
And what a wonderful buddy she was to me
Shannon is a Scrapbook Queen, we're told
She made a scrapbook of Ireland and Linda was sold
Linda, an active girl
Gave
us a surprise with her belly dancing twirl
Rich and Janet sure looked like they had fun
Janet probably can't believe she didn’t want to come
On this trip, they had a blast
Now their love of traveling will last and last
Elena has traveled the world and organization must be her key
She's always prompt and prepared and knows exactly where we'll be
Laura got lost, and it's not the first time
She'll admit it herself, so thank her for your wine
Jack, soon renamed "Jacque" by his beloved partner Sy
Knows how to make us all laugh 'till we cry
Judy's also so funny, in fact quite a hoot
We just hope that for Sy, Jack does not give her the boot
Sandy can be found always wearing a hat
It's a good thing no one here minds when he hair falls flat
Donna taught Spanish just a little while back
Also like Charlie, it's her French she lacks
Dwight is a vet and Nancy's his wife
Brought their kids along, which caused them much strife
We enjoyed the trip, thanks for bringing us here
Just one more thing, where are we going next year?
Pete liked the beach, but he didn’t go swim
Unlike his wife Deb, who jumped right in
It's a shame Deb must work the day she gets back
We bet when Pete gets home, he'll hit the sack
Susan and Elizabeth are quite a pair
Mother and daughter, they travel everywhere
Susan's alert and always on the go
Her mother's the same, they're never slow
Alp Boy returns on his 2nd Rick Steves
He came back to see what Rick has up his sleeves
If you want to know his secret you'll just have to ask
All I can tell you is he's got a HUGE tattoo on his...
Pam loves to decorate her French style shows through
Just visit their home and you'll see that it's true
Harriet and Sy, to you congratulations are due
From the day that you met, your affections only grew
25 years, my what a feat
Now that is something, not many can beat
You two are a couple that is lots of fun
Especially a few days back
When Sy danced for us some
Francois, Sabine, and Michaelanne
Another successful trip went as planned
Ya'll have been great, superb, and grand
So common everybody lets give them a hand