Cote d'Azur Road Trip: San Remo & Menton

Wherever you choose to go along the Mediterranean coast of southern France, you will not make a mistake. The French Riviera is most famous for its visitors from the ranks of the aristocracy, art and jet set, and for its glamorous resorts such as Saint Tropez or Monaco, but if you lose your way and end up in a sleepy village whose name is impossible to pronounce, fear not. It will not be a dull, fishing village but your next-door neighbour will probably be Elton John himself.

You might just as well start your trip anywhere, so we decided to stretch the boundaries of naming, and set off from San Remo. It is technically in Italy, yes, but categories such as nation and territory are arbitrary anyhow and wouldn’t mean anything to a, say, a peasant from medieval Holland who becomes a Spanish citizen overnight after a princess so-and-so marries a Spanish king. And I have recently become an Italian, so in the flush of the first infatuation, everything is Italy for me anyhow.

San Remo’s atmosphere leaves nothing to be desired, it is a seaside city with a long, relaxing promenade flanked by palms and chic hotels, heritage villas, and amazing, affordable cafés serving great food. (Disclaimer: I have still never eaten badly in Italy, so I don’t know if this is even worth mentioning, or everyone takes it for granted. ) We enjoyed a focaccia bread with a view on the casino’s belle époque building dating from 1905.  

The music temple, Ariston theatre, where every February San Remo music festival takes place is unmissable and located in the midst of the main street. Do people outside of Italy watch the San Remo festival?

The visit is incomplete without climbing a maze of medieval alleyways and brick pathways that lead above San Remo, lined with flowerpots, hanging laundry fluttering in the wind, and cats dozing on the window sills. The Old Town meanders seemingly without any pattern, but once on the top, you are bound to see the city in its old-world splendour.

Menton, also called the Pearl of France, was founded by pirates and made famous later by the British upper classes, who arrived in the search for sunshine, lifting of their spirits, and recovery from tuberculosis in a milder climate. The place is incredibly charming and its atmosphere is pure hedonism and joie de vivre. France just makes you desperately want to fake that you speak French, even if you never could. The French will ignore your begging English and prattle on in that melodic way of theirs. Kudos to them for cheekiness and for managing to host all the foreign tourists without stooping to the actual use of a foreign language. Bon travail!

Our first glimpse of Menton was during the night, and it happened that the streets were filled with the participants in the Easter midnight procession. The air was redolent with orange fragrance, religious chanting, the candles were flickering, while fierce old French ladies whose heads were modestly covered with black lace shawls chatted so vigorously about something that simply couldn’t have had anything to do with baby Jesus.

The sun of the following day revealed even more marvels of Cote Citron, dubbed that way due to a big lemon festival that takes place every February in Menton. Pastel-coloured buildings, endless beaches, street markets, and the incredible blueness of the sea only offset the clear sky more.

The walk up to the Old Chateau Cemetery might seem like a strange memento mori choice for tourists, however, it is the most spectacular place to survey the city and admire its beauty. The cemetery itself is an actual Who is Who venue, where you can gaze upon the final resting place of the inventor of rugby, lying next to an English earl and the Cyrillic inscriptions about the merits of a certain Russian count. The place is so hauntingly beautiful, with the view to die for (pun intended)  but you can’t stop thinking how even in death “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others” (George Orwell). Socialism aside, where to apply for a spot in the sun, though?