On Monday the school organized a trip to St Paul de Vence. I was very interested in visiting the village because I didn’t get a chance to visit it on my previous trip even though I was nearby in Vence. We met in the morning and traveled by bus. We were delayed for a short bit in Nice because they were filming along the beach. Our first stop was the Fondation Maeght. I love modern art so the museum didn’t disappoint me. I really enjoyed the sculpture garden with many statues by Miro, Calder and Giacometti. I also loved the setting which is in a pine forest with the cool grass. After the museum, we walked to the old city and had a couple of hours to tour the shops and have lunch. There are many art galleries in the village. There are also great views over the valley. I enjoyed the village even though it was popular. I can just imagine how crowded it must be on a summer weekend. It wasn’t too bad on Monday.

After lunch, we went to Vence to visit the Chapelle du Rosaire. This church was designed by Matisse. It was very interesting and different. The stained glass is beautiful. I really liked the cactus in the windows which represent the difficulties and struggle in life. The simple black and white tiles representing the stations of the cross were also very different. I liked the stark simplicity of the chapel.

After the chapelle, the bus took us up the Loup valley though Tourrettes sur Loup to Gourdon. It is a perched village high (760m) in the foothills. The road was very windy and I felt a bit car sick. But the view! You could see Nice and the sea in the hazy distance. The village is also known for pain d’espice or gingerbread. The ginger helped my car sickness. The village is charming but there are many vendors so it is a little tacky. There is a cool garden around the Chateau but it is not open in October. The trip back wasn’t as bad although we got stuck in traffic because of the film again.

Today’s forcast was for rain, but it has been very warm and sunny. There was a strong wind along the ocean. You could see the whitecaps but it was not windy at the school or my apartment. The wind cleared the air and it was stunningly clear this evening.