For our last day in the south of France we headed to the little seaside resort of Beaulieu-sur-Mer. It’s quieter here than in some of the other seaside destinations such as St. Tropez. One of the attractions (other than the beach and the sea views) is the unique historic site of Villa Kerylos. The Ancient Greek Revival style house was built in the early 1900s for French archaeologist Theodore Reinach and his wife Fanny. Mr. Reinach admired the architecture, interior decoration and art of the ancient world and decided to recreate the atmosphere of a luxurious Greek house in a modern building. The villa sits on the tip of Baie des Fourmis and is surrounded by the sea on three sides. When he died in 1928, Mr. Reinach bequeathed the property to the Institut de France. His children and grandchildren continued to live in the villa until 1967. It is now a museum.
The name of the town translates into “Beautiful Place on the Sea”. Some of the sights we saw during our wander.
The church…
A short drive away is Villefranche-sur-Mer another charming coastal town. There were a few more tourists here than in Beaulieu. We had drinks and a bite to eat in a square overlooking the bay. On the main road is the Chapelle Saint-Pierre, a 16th century fishermen’s chapel entirely decorated with frescoes by the famous French artist and poet Jean Cocteau. We weren’t able to go inside because there was a private event going on but the outside was very unique.
Most of the towns and villages we have visited on this trip have been built on the sides of hills and mountains. Villefranche is no different. It’s built on massive limestone rock formations which means lots and lots of stairs! Because of the steep, sloping cobblestone stairways of medieval hilltop towns, it is impossible to play “boules” with the normal rolling balls, so players use square dense wooden or metal cubes instead. The cubic blocks slide, flip and bounce unpredictably down hills and steps rather than rolling away. We came across what appeared to be a tournament of sorts with games taking place along the cobblestone laneways.
The view of the harbour.
For our last night in Saint Paul de Vence we decided to walk into the old town for dinner. This was the view we captured on our way back to the hotel.
We’ve had an amazing trip and have enjoyed all the places we have visited. We are taking home many wonderful memories.
Au revoir France. A bientot!
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