NICE to see you again!
It’s been a long time since I last wrote. I think to be able to write, one first needs to calm down and have a peaceful mind. Over the past six months, I’ve stepped far outside my routine, job interviews, language exams, the constant question of whether I should return to my home country, heartaches, bursts of euphoria, bouts of depression, laughter until my stomach hurt, and pain in three different languages. I had completely lost my calm and the comfort of my familiar days. But as I started feeling content with my life again and my gratitude towards life grew stronger, the desire to write came knocking at my door once more.
Finding a peaceful life, having a routine, and being grateful for what we have is such a rare blessing. If we fail to understand how great a wealth it is to be content with our life, we are bound to live in poverty of the soul. In fact, during my “Path and Virtue” lessons, my instructor once told a story about this.
At a school, primary students were asked: “If you could have one wish come true, what would it be?”
One child said, “If I had one wish, I’d want my mother to let me eat as much chocolate as I want.” The other children clapped and approved, it seemed like a really good wish.
The second child was a little wiser: “If I had a wish, I’d want to own a bakery. That way, I could eat as much chocolate as I wanted without asking anyone’s permission.” Clearly, this child was smarter, and the classmates cheered.
The third child said, “If I had a wish, I’d want to be the richest person in the world. That way, I could eat all the chocolate I wanted, not just in my neighborhood, but in the whole world.” The children were even more excited about this idea.
The fourth child said, “If I had a wish, I’d wish for unlimited wishes to come true. That way, anything I wanted would happen.” The students applauded wildly—this seemed like a brilliant and clever idea.
Then the fifth child stood up. He was gentle and kind. “If I had one wish,” he said, “I’d wish to be so content with my life that I wouldn’t need to wish for anything at all.”
Nice – Côte d’Azur: The French Riviera
As my instructor said, in life, this child should be our teacher. And when, right after this lesson, I was also recommended to watch The Game, a 1997 film starring Michael Douglas, I truly felt deep down how extraordinary a life in flow can be and how deeply grateful we should be for what we have.
But of course, this doesn’t mean living without ever breaking the routine just sitting in one place, making no effort, never experiencing, never falling and getting back up, in short, never feeling. To feel is just as important as seeing, hearing, smelling, and tasting. In my opinion, it is the very reason we exist in this world!
And so, for us, feeling meant sensing the wind on the southern coast of France, greeting the sun, and sitting on the famous blue chairs which, for me, are a symbol of happiness while gazing into the distance. That’s why, just last week, we found ourselves in Nice, the jewel of the Côte d’Azur. See how well that came together? :)
Nice – Côte d’Azur: The French Riviera
Côte d’Azur! The older French say that Nice is “the most beautiful place to spend your retirement.” But if we think of true age as the energy we carry, this is a destination where people of all ages can surrender themselves to the deep blues of the Mediterranean, taste the delights of French cuisine, and let the sounds of the Jazz Festival or open-air concerts refresh their spirits.
When I first came to Nice twenty years ago, I engraved the image of the blue chairs in my mind and, in my own way, associated them with happiness. These blue chairs were originally placed along Nice’s famous seaside promenade, the Promenade des Anglais, for wealthy tourists to sit and rest while gazing at the sea. In the 2000s, their iconic charm was recognized, and in 2014, an artist created a sculpture of one of them for this long seafront.
The chair in the sculpture leans slightly to one side, meant to symbolize wind and movement. By choosing the Mediterranean’s blue, the artist wanted to express peace, calmness, and freedom. But when I first saw it, I imagined the chair balancing on one leg, stretching towards the sun. For me, it was like a moment reaching out to the sky, the sea, and the sunlight all at once.
Blue Chair
Then, as you continue along this famous seafront, you come across the elegant and grand Negresco Hotel, with its iconic pink dome. Henri Negresco was a poor man who came from Romania to France in the early 20th century. While working as a butler in Paris, he dreamed of building the most magnificent hotel in the world.
In 1913, his dream came true with the opening of the Negresco Hotel a palace like place with Versailles-style halls, crystal chandeliers, marble brought from Italy, and rooms that were works of art in themselves. But life has a way of breaking everyone, and no one can escape it. Perhaps this is the only way life is truly fair.
When World War I broke out, the dream hotel Henri had built with such hope was turned into a military hospital. He got lost in his own dream, and the hotel went bankrupt. In 1950, however, its new owners managed to bring it back to life. Today, with over 6,000 artworks representing different eras on each floor, the hotel has welcomed and left traces of great artists and stars like Picasso, Dalí, Chagall, Elizabeth Taylor, and Michael Jackson, who have stayed, dined, and made memories there.
Hotel Negresco
Nice is a city that can completely transform your mood. In fact, when the famous painter Henri Matisse fell ill in Paris, weighed down by the grey skies and the heavy atmosphere of war, his doctors told him, “Go south and find the sun.” Following this advice, Matisse came to Nice, and from the balcony of his hotel room, he noticed the light filtering through lace curtains a moment that changed the direction of his brush entirely.
Until then, Matisse had painted in a rather harsh style. But after arriving in Nice, his palette began to reflect the tones of the Mediterranean—the silvery leaves of olive trees, the deep blue of the sea, the soft shadows on the beach. In his own words, he was now “painting paradise, not hell so that people could be freed from their suffering.”
Henri Matisse Museum
To see Matisse’s vibrant works and experience the atmosphere of his years in Nice, I recommend visiting the Henri Matisse Museum. Housed in a 17th-century Italian-style building with a striking red façade, it beautifully captures the Mediterranean light. And if you have the time or if, unlike us, you’re not planning to enjoy a pizza picnic by the sea and a game of Uno you can take a short 10-minute walk to the Marc Chagall Museum. Dedicated to one of the most poetic painters of the 20th century, it’s a place where, as they say, “colors pray.”
You can read endless information about the Old Town, with its narrow streets, churches and cathedrals, colorful buildings, and the statues of Place Massena the heart of the city. You can also find plenty written about its vibrant green parks, walking trails, and the famous Mont Boron with its stunning harbor views. And of course, you’ll easily discover that you can take a day trip to glamorous Monaco, home to Monte Carlo, or to the celebrity hotspot Cannes both just about half an hour from Nice.
But as someone in love with the Aegean Sea, I naturally set out in search of beautiful waters. That’s why, instead of focusing on a typical “things to do in Nice” list, I wanted to share unusual stories and gorgeous bays. The beaches in Nice are, unfortunately, rocky. The views are stunning, but because the coast is open, the waves can get quite rough. While it’s great for water sports, I don’t think it’s the best choice for swimming, stand-up paddleboarding (SUP), canoeing, or simply floating and watching the horizon.
For that reason, I highly recommend leaving the city center and heading to bays like Villefranche-sur-Mer! And if your travels take you there in summer, let me know I’ll happily share my maps with you.
Villefranche-sur-Mer
And finally, let’s talk about food. If it won’t get me into trouble, I’ll confess I’m a huge fan of French cuisine, every bit of it! From breakfast to long, leisurely dinners, from baguettes to cheese to tarts! I’m filled with gratitude that I got to celebrate my birthday with this cuisine. Italian food is another favorite of mine, of course.
Nice’s culinary scene carries both French and Italian influences, and with its fresh Mediterranean ingredients, it completely won my heart. You should definitely try Salade Niçoise, the classic Nice salad made with tuna, olives, tomatoes, boiled eggs, anchovies, and other fresh ingredients.
Escargots
Another must-try, in my opinion, is Escargots snails baked in their shells with plenty of garlic, parsley, and butter. And of course, I don’t even need to mention foie gras, made from the specially fed liver of duck or goose…
And so, to sum it all up Nice is a city that must be seen, explored, and experienced to the fullest, with all the variety and beauty of feelings it offers.
Lastly happy birthday to me. This year, I began my new age with a perfect coffee in Monte Carlo, followed by incredible flavors at charming French restaurants in Nice, and ended the day listening to wonderful music at the Jazz Festival until midnight. I felt deeply grateful for life.
When I think about it, time passes incredibly fast and it can be merciless. But as long as we don’t lose our memories, neither our age, nor our wrinkles, nor the changes in our appearance really matter. We can smile big, and somehow, everything truly passes. No matter what, if one day we lose our hair, if our teeth struggle to chew, if we walk with great effort, if we are still alive, then we should be thankful thousands of times for every single day we get to live.
Long live life!
Here’s to many more journeys together.
Cheers, Betty.
