{"id":3412,"date":"2026-03-09T19:42:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-10T00:42:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/2026-pieter60\/we-were-azur-ed\/"},"modified":"2026-03-09T19:42:00","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T00:42:00","slug":"we-were-azur-ed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/2026-pieter60\/we-were-azur-ed\/","title":{"rendered":"We were Azur-ed"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>We docked on the famous Cote d\u2019Azur near the small town of Villefrance-sur-Mer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We tendered from the ship to the port and then went off to explore the principality of Monaco.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This whole area is so beautiful with charming coves and bays all along the coast. Of course, this area has been popular with the rich and famous for hundreds of years, so there is a cascade of mansions and palaces along the mountainsides that makes for a very scenic trip. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1254-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1254\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Good morning!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1255-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1255\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Leaving the ship by tender.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1256-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1256\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1257-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1257\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Villefrance-sur-Mer in the morning sun.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1258-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1258\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Our first stop in Monaco, the Mus\u00e9e Oceanographique de Monaco which was inaugurated in 1910 by Prince Albert 1. The famous deep see explorer, Jacques-Yves Cousteau, was director of the museum for more than 30 years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1259-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1259\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The original deep sea submarine of Jacques-Yves Cousteau is on display outside the museum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1260-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1260\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The decorations on the building are all sea creatures.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1261-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1261\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Cathedral of Our Lady Immaculate, also know as the Cathedral of Monaco, is a Romanesque-Byzantine Catholic church that contains the remains of many members of Monaco&#8217;s ruling family. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1262-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1262\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1263-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1263\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Grace Kelly\u2019s final resting place.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1264-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1264\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1265-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1265\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The palace of the Prince of Monaco.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1266-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1266\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The Prince was in residence so there was a lot of other security as well as the guards. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1267-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1267\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>A view of the racetrack of Monaco which is now being prepared for a visit from the pope. The side of the hill behind is the district of Monte Carlo. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1268-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1268\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Walking the streets in Monaco.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1269-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1269\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1270-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1270\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Nice, capital of the Alpes-Maritimes department on the French Riviera, sits on the pebbly shores of the Baie des Anges. Founded by the Greeks and later a retreat for 19th-century European elite, the city has also long attracted artists. Former resident Henri Matisse is honored with a career-spanning collection of paintings at Mus\u00e9e Matisse. Mus\u00e9e Marc Chagall features some of its namesake&#8217;s major religious works<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1271-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1271\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Walking around Villefrance-sur-Mer.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1272-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1272\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em>The Rue Obscure (Dark Street) in Villefranche-sur-Mer is a 430-foot long 13th-century covered passageway in the Old Town. Originally a defensive, open-air walkway for soldiers, it was later covered by houses, creating a dark, tunnel-like alleyway..<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1273-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1273\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>A copy of the painting by Jean Cocteau at the entrance to the Rue Obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1274-we-were-azured.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1274\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Waving goodbye as we head back to the ship.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-video aligncenter\"><video controls src=\"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/images-posts\/1275-we-were-azured.mov\"><\/video><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A final vista as the soft rain comes in.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We docked on the famous Cote d\u2019Azur near the small town of Villefrance-sur-Mer. We tendered from the ship to the port and then went off to explore the principality of Monaco. This whole area is so beautiful with charming coves and bays all along the coast. Of course, this area has been popular with the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3412","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-france"],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":false,"thumbnail":false,"medium":false,"medium_large":false,"large":false,"1536x1536":false,"2048x2048":false,"mailpoet_newsletter_max":false},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"monkeydads","author_link":"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/2026-pieter60\/author\/monkeydads\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"We docked on the famous Cote d\u2019Azur near the small town of Villefrance-sur-Mer. We tendered from the ship to the port and then went off to explore the principality of Monaco. This whole area is so beautiful with charming coves and bays all along the coast. Of course, this area has been popular with the&hellip;","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/2026-pieter60\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3412","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/2026-pieter60\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/2026-pieter60\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/2026-pieter60\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/2026-pieter60\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3412"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/2026-pieter60\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3412\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/2026-pieter60\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3412"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/2026-pieter60\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3412"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travel.monkeydads.com\/2026-pieter60\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3412"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}