Eze, France Day 1

What happened to July? I’ll tell you what happened to mine–with regrets for not posting to the blog for the bulk of the month.

A book ate my summer. I pulled what we’ll call an Eve Dallas for about three weeks to get a book finished before the crazy travel started. 12-15 hour days, eating pizza at my desk. But it worked! Any time I had for writing went into finishing next summer’s hardcover.

Then it was a week at the spa with friends and family–always so much fun to spend that week with happy kids. Then a week with girls at the amazing Greenbrier where we shared our gorgeous space with several playful ghosts. We did a Facebook Live from there, you can check it out from my FB page. Fun stuff.

Unpack, pack, write, unpack, pack, write gobbled up a lot of the summer.

And yesterday, after a pretty smooth flight, we arrived in Nice. Gorgeous Weather greeted us. Summer blue skies, puffy clouds, balmy breezes. The drive from there to our hotel for our three-day stay in the area was highway mostly, but oh, those hills and all the red-roofed houses climbing them. The splashes of color from flowers and gardens. Palm trees and cacti.

And we’re greeted by the concierge who whisks us to a balcony to sit while our rooms are readied. He offers champagne. I accept. We catch our breath looking out at the Med, the clumps of land jutting into it, the gliding white boats, the muscular mega yachts.

Up to Kat’s and Jason’s room–so pretty! Such views, and their own little balcony. Then down to ours, and more pretty with a lovely terrace. I don’t look down from the rail as that rolls my stomach. But I can look out, see Nice in the distance, watch the white boats with their white wakes skim over the blue.

We need a nap! I’m down for two hours, know that’s all I should take if I want to adjust to the time change. Drag myself up. Need to walk some, so I prod BW to do the same. Down the brick path, down the stone steps, into little shops just to browse for now as the brain’s still pretty soft. Feel less logy, and the air’s just delicious.

We go into a pretty little church, and the bells strike four.

Start our walk back, run into Kat and Jason who’ve finished their nap. Off they go for a walk, and it’s definitely time for more champagne on the terrace. It’s starting to feel like holiday.

We have a lazy late afternoon followed by a fancy dinner, again on a terrace with those views, and as the evening slides into night, all the lights sparkle on those clumps and juts of land. The moon’s full but for a bite.

In bed by elevenish, and I’m stunned when I don’t wake till seven. Late for me, and lovely to wake late with that view greeting me. Kat’s up on her balcony, and comes down to hang. Being Kat, she’s found a market on her phone app. She and Jason will take the three mile walk and see what they see. I gear up and do a workout on my terrace. BW’s just back from getting the rental car we’ll use to drive to Monaco tomorrow. Woo! Monte Carlo. I’ve always wanted to see Monaco, and now it’s a easy drive from where we are.

We’ll walk about today and explore what’s billed as Jardin Exotique. We’ll all about pizza and gelato today, too.

In a few days, we’ll pack up and drive to Provence, settle in for two weeks. But this little interlude has, so far, been perfect. Gotta get myself cleaned up for today’s adventure.

A bientot!

Nora

A PS from Laura: I get all the photos and am able to choose what illustrates Nora’s posts the best. Usually I can intuit my way into the caption, but sometimes I’m stumped. More often than not, it’s a clever, quirky photo from Kat. So when I can, I’ll add a photo that falls into Random Katness. Today, I bring to you the puzzle of the door locks — and I’m absolutely certain Kat’s had a wonderful time figuring them out.

29 thoughts on “Eze, France Day 1”

I feel as if I’m there. Can’t wait to see what’s next!

Great start to the travel log. Beautiful pictures. Have fun and safe travels.

Next week, we will leave our home on the English South Coast, and travel to France in our Motorhome (RV) for 6/7 weeks travelling and cycling in our second favourite country. We are assured of a wonderful time as are you. Happy days ?

I have Never followed a celebrity before , I just so hooked on your books loved every single one . So thank you for sharing your Wonderful life with us :))

I have been to all these wonderful places and it is great fun reliving them via your journey. Hope you have a good rest and recover from your labors.

Thanks for sharing your trip. Have fun and safe travels.

Enjoy your holidays in France, you have a beautiful weather in the south of the country!
Thank you so much for the signing and brunch in Boonsboro, it was an unforgettable trip!
Cheers from Paris, France

Oh, Miss Nora….to be your luggage!

Finally able to sit for pieces of the days ahead to pick up a good book and start my fav hobby again…reading. Been a while but excited to be able to start relaxing more. and losing myself into good stories. Past few years into my retirement have been hectic, busy times. No time for this but now…have many books bought and given to me sitting in my overstuffed bookcase and many of them by you Nora…can’t wait to join you and the wonderful stories you tell…getting lost in them and shutting out the world for a while. Enjoy your trip. A fan forever.

Enjoy every minute of your well deserved vacation!! And thank you for sharing it with us!!

Wow Nora you’re coming near my town Toulon.. Wish I could meet you.. Have been a fan for many tears.. First in the US where I lived for a long time then France.. Even read some of your books while living in India..
You’re famous there also..
Bon vacance

I absolutely love reading your posts. Your words are just as lovely and captivating here as they are in your books. They keep me going until your next book comes out. I hope your vacation was wonderful!

OMG!! DOOR LOCKS IN EUROPE!! In June, my sister-in-law and I stayed at an ancient, Etruscan B&B in Castiglione Fiorentino Italy and for a few minutes there, we thought we were trapped!!! LOL!! I wish I could post a picture – it was hilarious trying to find our way outside!!

Enjoy , I throughly enjoy France .

Awww how wonderful. Can’t wait to know what you think of Monoco. Heard that it was wonderful. Enjoy your holiday.

Oh I forgot to say the photos are just gorgeous.

Wow! Love your travelogues to places I’ll never get to see.

Wow! Beautiful pictures.

I love reading your travelogues, even when I know I will never get to visit these different places. You always make it seem as if we are right there with you. Thank you for sharing your life with us. Have a safe and happy vacation.

Thank you for sharing your travelogue with us, Nora. And thanks, as always, for your work ethic. Knowing you pulled an Eve Dallas so we would have then next hardcover “on time” means the world. There are so many reasons you have millions of fans, and I believe your dedication to timely publication is just one. I have been reading you from the beginning, and consider you one of my personal companions, if only on paper.

Lovely. The photos,as always, bring me to Nora’s location. The South of France in summer – can’t be that. Looking forward to the descriptions of Monaco, the drive there and to Provance, and the descriptions of Provence – scenery and adventures – food and shopping and the sites. Avoir des vacances merveilleuses!

What wonderful pictures! Thanks, Laura, for the Kat picture. My g-niece has been fascinated with locks since she was a toddler. You wouldn’t be able to peel her away from that lock. Wishing you a wonderful vacation, with many thanks for sharing your time away – you rock!

Thanks for taking us along on your vacation. Have fun!!

Spent a magical day in Eze and Monaco in July. How awesome to know my favorite author enjoys the same! I know what a wonderful time you will have!

Love the picture of the shop directory (clever idea) and the building above with the purple crawling down the side. What was that?
Enjoyed the locks! 🙂

I am no longer able to travel, but oh how I love reading about all of your adventures.The photos are wonderful!

I live in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia,a wonderful part of paradise. I really enjoy your newsletters..and traveling with you ….by book or blog…I love how you write, your dialog, the characters you create, everything! I ‘ve probably read all of your books, (many more than once) and look forward to the next ones. Please don’t retire anytime soon…and if you ever want a nice Celtic experience without “crossing the pond” you should think about Cape Breton…thank you so much for sharing yourself through your books…and consider this an invite..
really! Brenda Gouthro…
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I bought Secrets in Death two times on iTunes today and both times I could not open the book on my iPhone because it said both time that the format was not right.