So for a fresh change from the hustle and bustle of Cannes i decided to move onward to Nice, with the the intention of staying for only a day or two. Nice is a beautiful yet down to earth town on the Cote d'azur which was once home to Picasso and Matisse and also boasts an impressive collection of Marc Chagall.
The city itself has a dirty down to earth appeal with equally down to earth prices in comparison to the exorbitant excess of Cannes during the festival. I found myself in a cosy youth hostel run by a charming old French woman who spoke very little English and provided the perfect opportunity to practice some French; which she remarked I spoke impressively well. The hostel itself was filled with long term residents which was a refreshing change as it meant that you came home to the same faces each day. Amongst them I met my first South African (not part of of the Cannes clan), New Zealanders and Australians, Israelis, a Honduran and some jolly Scandinavians. It was the first truly jovial hostel experience I have had as everyone expressed an easy and genuine interest in each other.
I spent my days in the local museums, swimming in the icy Mediterranean and a day trip to the Ancient Medieval town of Eze. Eze sur la mer is a small settlement on the coast while Eze Ville is a one and a half hour walk up the mountainside. The panoramic view from the top of the mountain is absolutely beautiful, and unlike the more touristy Carcasonne up north, Eze Ville retains its ancient Medieval atmoshpere.
Le Cote d'Azur. The place where the Ocean makes the Sky Jealous.It was with a strange sadness that I left Nice, a place I was not even expecting to like. But Milan invited new adventures as I would regroup with a German born Australian lady called Eva, I met in Cannes during the Festival. We seemed to form and instant bond and had dinner together almost every night during the festival as we forged an unexpected bond of likemindedness . Truth be told we were both kicked out of our hostel for outrageous nitpicky reasons such as wanting to take a shower while the maid was cleaning or complaining that there was someone else in my bed when I came home.
Eva headed of to a horror film festival in the South of Italy while I spent time in Nice and so it was that we decided to meet up again in Milan. Eva had a model friend from Sydney, Gideon, who was staying in Milan for a month for a fashion show and then heading to Paris for the Paris Fashion Week. Eva and Gideon had met during an one year Acting course while studying togethr in Sydney and told me fantastic stories about protesting outside the Sydney Opera house while it was being used for a G8 summit as they felt it was an invasion of public space.
Gideon a tall lithe haute couture model with celtic appeal, lived in a studio with two other male models from the Sweden and the US. With Zoolander as my only point of reference into the world of male modelling, i was surprised to find that Gideon was one of the most Sophisticated and interesting people I have ever met. He took us on a walking tour of Milan from the ancient monuments to some of the most exclusive shopping strips in the world.
The italians have a 3 hour long happy hour called aperitivi from 6.oopm till 9.00pm during which time any beverage comes free with a moderate all you can eat buffet. We certainly got our moneys worth coupled with scintillating conversation and so it was that what is termed one of the most boring cities in Italy was an unexpected adventure for me.
Eva headed of to a horror film festival in the South of Italy while I spent time in Nice and so it was that we decided to meet up again in Milan. Eva had a model friend from Sydney, Gideon, who was staying in Milan for a month for a fashion show and then heading to Paris for the Paris Fashion Week. Eva and Gideon had met during an one year Acting course while studying togethr in Sydney and told me fantastic stories about protesting outside the Sydney Opera house while it was being used for a G8 summit as they felt it was an invasion of public space.
Gideon a tall lithe haute couture model with celtic appeal, lived in a studio with two other male models from the Sweden and the US. With Zoolander as my only point of reference into the world of male modelling, i was surprised to find that Gideon was one of the most Sophisticated and interesting people I have ever met. He took us on a walking tour of Milan from the ancient monuments to some of the most exclusive shopping strips in the world.
The italians have a 3 hour long happy hour called aperitivi from 6.oopm till 9.00pm during which time any beverage comes free with a moderate all you can eat buffet. We certainly got our moneys worth coupled with scintillating conversation and so it was that what is termed one of the most boring cities in Italy was an unexpected adventure for me.
