Nice is nice

Elani, a friend from Cape Town, and I jumped on a train and went to Nice for a lazy sunday. We had lunch at a Kebab Restaurant, that was the first for me, bought a bottle of wine and lazed it out on the

pebble beach.

 

 Place Massena

Sea view of promenade des Anglais

Sundowners on the beach

We went to a restaurant in old town and lost track of time. We missed the last train and there were no busses going back towards Antibes. Public transport on a sunday in the French Riviera is not the best. We ended up calling a taxi and paid 70 euros to get home. Not a happy moment.

Saint Paul - de Vence

I thought Monaco was beautiful, but I think I finally found "my" place!  Saint-Paul is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in southeastern France. One of the oldest medieval towns on the French Riviera it is well-known for its modern and contemporary art museums and galleries such as Foundation Maeght which is located nearby.

As we arrived the first restaurant I saw was called La Colombe d'Or, similar to the one i worked at in Cape Town. For over a decade, the "Golden Dove" has been St-Paul's most celebrated restaurant, not for cutting-edge cuisine or exotic experiments, but for its remarkable art collection. You may begin with smoked salmon or foie gras from Landes if you've recently won at the casino. If not, you can count on a soup made with fresh seasonal vegetables. The best fish dishes are poached sea bass with mousseline sauce, and sea wolf baked with fennel. Tender beef comes with gratin dauphinois. A classic finish to any meal is a soufflé flambé au Grand-Marnier.

This little village made me think of John's mom, Adele who is a stunning artist. Every little shop was unique in its own way, whether it was selling art or olive oil. 

Picking a restaurant is always the toughest task for me, especially when people tell me to choose and especially when you walk past Saint Paul's 1 Michelin star restaurant and you know it will be outstanding but you can't afford it. We walked through the village and stopped at a "very french" bistro facing the most beautiful view! In these little villages they hardly speak english and with my poor culinary french, I tried to attempt the menu without any help! I ordered a beef stir-fry, which to my disappointment was grilled courgettes and peppers stuffed with beef mince. So my French was worse than what I thought, but at least I got the chocolate tart right!

Situated on a little hill, this is the stunning view you get from a distance

Art galleries

Restaurants

Monaco-Monte-Carlo

Famous for the Grand Prix, this is truly the mecca of high society, glitz and glamour.  I was in total ore while visiting the sweet home of Prince Albert and his beautiful South African princess Charlene.

This must be the most beautiful place I have seen.

Overlooking the port

Colourful streets towards the Prince's Palace

Monte Carlo Casino

Juan Manuel Fangio Statue

Villeneuve-Loubet

After a week and a half in Cannes we had to move to a new berth. I was sad because it was great working close to Mark, but I was very excited to see a new place. At this stage my deck-hand skills had improved a bit!  I was always on fender duty, making sure the boats don't touch as we park or leave a berth. It sounds simple, but sometimes a little fender can save a boat from great damage.

Villeneuve-Loubet was our new home. It lies between Cagnes-sur-Mern and Antibes. Avery small and old French village.

The port is surrounded by apartments in the shape of Pyramids.

After I served dinner to the crew I went for a run to explore the village. I made the mistake of going along the beach, because it was a pebble beach. Coming from South Africa we are so spoilt with out long coasts of soft sea sand, not rocks!

 Roller blading on the promenade

The French like their rollerblades

Cocktails at the port

I scream Fun!

After a crazy long week with the owners on board, I finally got the time to hit the streets of Cannes for summer shopping!
Knowing my first pay cheques is on its way, I went a bit wild, especially in Zara and Chanel. Love it!
Later that evening Mark and I went to a quaint little bar and sipped on fresh mojitos.

A great evening was ended with the best Italian Gelato I have ever eaten in my life. I had Dark chocolate and tiramisu. DIVINE! 

St. Tropez

Early morning routine: Run to the boulangerie and get all the pastries for breakfast. Eggs on order.  Girls went out for shopping and came back with their Chanel bags! Engines on, we ready to leave for St.Tropez. I was so excited, my first trip! Now the challenge was to not get sea sick!

When we arrived a taxi was waiting for the guests and took them to Club 55 - a very posh restaurant in St. Tropez.
On a typical summer day, the traffic heading down the one-way-street to Club 55 is most intolerable. Bumper-to-bumper Bentley's and open-top Ferrari's reveal platinum bombshells in their bikini best. They arrive to a thick-forest of overgrown bamboo surrounding a typically Provencal beach bungalow with white canopies and lavish beach club jetting all the way to the Mediterranean. A wooden pier extends into the water, luring star-studded occupants away from their mega-yachts parked offshore and into the land of the fabulous. No matter how famous or well known, guests should expect to fight for prime lounger near the water that command 100-Euro in high season and promises of endless Cristal-ordering. More modest types may prefer a simple lunch within the main dining room, offering all the views of the elite with a more digestible price tag. 


So while the guests were indulging on tuna carpaccio, breaded calamari and Beluga Caviar, tanya and I went strolling through the village. I was dead tired but had to go explore. I got more fresh berries and went to a beautiful patisserie where I got the traditional Tarte Tropezienne.

According to the traditional recipe, a Tropézienne is prepared with brioche, French pastry cream and butter cream. The ingredients which compose this pastry are relatively simple: eggs, flour, powdered milk and butter. Delicious! 


When the guests returned they had brought a few goodies along with them. Foie gras, truffle infused brie, matured parmesan, different varieties of charcuterie such as salami and Parma ham and a lovely mango confit, together with a bottle of Rose Crystal. Total 300 euros. So I prepared a delicious cheese board with all the goodies.


The guests were meant to have dinner in Cannes that same night so I hadn't prepared anything for dinner. They partied up a storm as we were cruising back to Cannes and decided not to go out for dinner anymore. I had 2 hours to prepare a stylish dinner. I grafted so hard I hadn't even realised the boat was moving! 
We arrived at Cannes in the dark and then I had to help out on deck as usual to park the boat.
Once we parked and everyone was having so much fun, dancing and singing to their crazy russian music i was plating up the first course.

Dinner Menu

Thai prawn and avocado tian served with a caesar dressing

Grilled Beef Fillet with garlic pomme puree and seasonal greens

Chocolate duo - Chocolate torte with chocolate and espresso ice cream

First Charter...

Rise and shine, the big day has arrived! Early morning start at 4am. I started with the canapes. At 7am I visited the fish market and got all the fresh fruits de mer. The total amount came to 300 euros. The owners were meant to arrive at 1pm so at 12h i rushed to Saki to collect the sushi. It was 35 C and I'm running down the street towards the port with two platters of sushi in my hands. When I got to the boat, I had to shower quickly and put on my face. I was so nervous. I sent a bowl of strawberries along so that the owners could nibble on that while they were driving from the airport.

Fortunately they were behind schedule and I still had time to shuck a few oysters. So finally they arrived in the limousine, my heart is racing. Tanya and I welcomed them on the half deck. Vlad took their luggage to their rooms and then the magic started. Just as I expected, Russian bling-bling millionaires.

It was the owner's wife's birthday and she brought her closest girlfriends along. I tried to greet them in Russian bust forgot what to say so just smiled! The crystal champagne flowed and everyone seemed to be having a lot of fun! Shine time for me...lunch is served.

Bon a petite!

Lunch menu:

Cananpes on arrival:

Smoked salmon on blinis with creme fraiche and rocket

Borscht served in shot glasses with sour cream and fennel
Grilled prawn on skewers with a lemon mayo

Spicy chicken on corn fritters with guacamole and salsa

Fresh oysters with red wine vinegar dressing

Sushi

Buffet:

Grilled prawns with lemon mayo

Lobster tails with mango salsa

Grilled cob with lemon parsley sauce

Seared Norwegian Salmon with teriyaki sauce and fresh coriander

Steamed mussels in a curry coconut foam

Scallops wrapped in parma ham

Caprese Salad

Shrimp and plum salad

Garden Salad

Ciabatta 

Dessert:

Lemon tart served with fresh berries and creme fraiche

Great success! They were very happy with their first lunch. They actually said they want to take me to Russia and open a restaurant called "Michele's"! The wife said to me in her broken English, "Sank you Michele, your food is beautiful!"

Grilled prawn skewers with a lemon mayo

Spicy chicken on corn fritter with guacamole and salsa

Smoked salmon on blinis with creme fraiche and rocket

Lemon tart served with fresh berries and creme fraiche