Ultimate Europe Trip 2016 Day 23: Nice is Nicer Then Nice
For only being in Nice for less then a half-day yesterday, we sure fell in love with this city fast. We woke up more eager then we've been in days ready for our first full day in Nice. It started a little after 8AM when I went out for a run on the beachside while Jenn continued to get her beauty sleep. After my run I made the ten minute walk to a nearby Starbucks to pick Jenn up a hot chocolate and me a cappuccino.
We took our time this morning getting ready. Nice is not a place with a ton to see or do. It's a place where you come to enjoy French food and the beautiful coastline. We made it out of the hotel a little afternoon and went in search of lunch. What better to have in France then crepes. We found a really highly rated Crepe restaurant called Cafe Breton. When we arrived we were seated outside and thankfully given an English menu (always helpful). Jenn went with a crepe filled with egg, cheese, and sausage. I had a crepe filled with egg, duck, escargot butter, and potatoes. We've never had a crepe like this before, most of the crepes we've had have been more desserts. These were phenomenal. Just the right amount of food with great fillings and incredible flavors.
We left Cafe Breton and went back to Starbucks to grab our last mug of the trip, which makes seven mugs we are bringing back with us. From there we made the mile walk to Castle Hill. Although there really isn't a massive castle on the hill it's what most consider the best lookout point in all of Nice.
The walk up wasn't overly difficult and we took breaks to take tons of pictures along the way. When we finally did make it to the top of Castle Hill we viewed Nice both on the port side and the beach side. It was simply stunning everywhere you looked.
As we made our way down Castle Hill we literally stumbled into a very old elevator that takes you to the bottom. It literally cut our walk in half. We were let out on the boardwalk and made our way back to our hotel. When we arrived back at the Hyatt Palais de la Méditerranée we got in our bathing suits and headed down to the gorgeous pool overlooking the ocean. We plopped down on two loungers and stayed there for over two hours. It's one of the first times we've really relaxed on the trip.
We left the pool a little after 5PM and made it back to our room. We laid around and eventually got ready for our dinner reservations at a restaurant called Frog. We walked to Frog and got there a little after 7PM. As you can probably guess by the name of the restaurant their specialty is Frog. Along side two glasses of red wine we also had five Frog legs which were exquisite. They were almost like chicken wings just meatier and tastier. We loved them.
For Jenn's entree she went with a seafood pasta which came with mussels, prawns and scallops with a spicy sauce. It was really good but was way to much food. For my entree I went with the duck breast with a cherry sauce and mashed potatoes. The duck breast was perfectly cooked and the sauce with it was divine. We both couldn't finish these massive portions but enjoyed our meals quite a bit. When we got the check for our meals we were brought out an after dinner lemon liquor that was a really nice way to conclude a great meal.
With our stomachs feeling just a bit warmer we walked the beautiful streets of Nice back to our hotel to call it a night. As the trip winds down I cannot think of a better way of capping off this trip then to be relaxing in Nice. After spending three weeks taking in historical sights, museums, and the like it feels so great to go outside, put some music on, close our eyes, and take in the early fall weather.
