I'll be Your Tour Guide!

I really think travel logs are boring. Most of them go into details about where they went, where they ate, what the region is known for, etc. If I look at them at all, I’m skimming them to see what sites are mentioned and then move on.

My blog is more focused on bringing my kids to France and the experiences we’re having here. But, I feel like I owe a little update as to our locale— so here’s a little picture of our town.

We’re in Antibes, France. It’s on the Mediterranean coast, but also part of Provence. There are no lavender fields here, no fields at all in fact (and come to think of it, no grass, really). This is an old port town. Antibes expanded its port, used since the days its early Greek settlers called it Antipolis, to accommodate huge luxury yachts. It’s not a port in the Norfolk sense (cargo), more like a collection of marinas massed together. These are the largest yachts in the world, owned by royalty and business tycoons and entire countries, and Antibes is the only port in Europe big enough for them to berth. It’s big business here. 

When I planned our trip, news of the yachts kept popping up on searches; friends told me they were here. I didn’t factor them into my plans at all because I didn’t plan on venturing over to the yacht basin other than once to check them out. Little did I know that most of the captains and crew members are English speaking. Likewise there’s a little strip of shops and bars that cater to the English, Aussies and Kiwis (not too many Americans). The result is that many people in Antibes speak English. Good if I get really stuck, but bad when I practice my French. I’ve gotten better at telling people when they ask us if we speak English that yes, but we are trying to speak French. After that, they usually let us speak our terrible French to them. Many times they say to me- “good, you’re in France, you should speak French.” The boys and I really make an effort to speak French; this sounds obvious, but you would’t believe how many people just go into a place speaking English first. 

Buildings are supported by
these connectors in between them

Our cross street that
we walk daily.

We live in the old town portion of Antibes, in the (mostly) pedestrian zone. Sometimes a car will try to navigate our narrow street and we have an occasional moto, but it is designated as pedestrian. I thought our street was pretty narrow but there are others in the pedestrian zone closer to the Picasso Museum that are even more narrow. I thought it would be difficult without a yard, but my kids can play in the little street. Most of the time we go to one of the two playgrounds one block from our house, or sometimes we go to the one by the sea which is three more blocks away. My kids love the playgrounds; they are urban (gated and surfaced), but my kids love to climb and they have their run of the places everyday until 4:30 when the other kids get out of school. We tend to go to the playgrounds in the late afternoons so my kids can have other children to play with. The town is bustling around 4pm, when the kids are getting out of school and everyone has their “snack hour” (every country in Europe has its version I guess). The cafes fill with people and there’s a line at the bakery to get bread for dinner. It’s a great time to be out and about in Antibes. We typically get gelato in the afternoons.

Here's an arch built in the Middle
Ages with Roman ruins.

Antibes is influenced by its proximity to Italy; in fact it was Italy until not too long ago. The menus feature Mediterranean specialties like seafood, pasta and pizza, bruschetta and of course gelato. You won’t find bouillabaisse on the menu here. In Provence they have a different version with a thick stew garnished with some pieces of fish and shellfish. Of course I can’t go into too much detail about the food in restaurants here because my experience is pretty limited.  I am dining with three young boys who are not very adventurous and can’t stay out late enough for the traditional dinner hour. We typically go out to restaurants for lunch and my kids prefer panini and pizza. My guilty pleasure is the local charcuterie. Yes I am a vegetarian; but it’s here where you’ll find the lovely cheese and vegetable pastries, quiches and salads like taboulleh, pickles and salmon cakes. I ducked in there one day when it was slow and told the guy I eat only fish and asked him to point out all of the things I could eat in there. It was an amazing tour! I was quite surprised at all of the wonderful options I had in a place that specialized in cured meats. I usually grab something in there to eat at home when the kids are eating one of their boring staples like pasta with butter or fried chicken.

Our days are usually like this: homeschool until 12 or 1pm, then go out to a restaurant or picnic for lunch. We usually walk around old town or go to the park or beach after lunch. I try to knock out an errand with the boys each afternoon. The boys have judo on Mondays and Thursdays. I try to plan something fun for our weekends and that has been pretty easy. There have been festivals or special sights to see each weekend that we’ve been here. 

Some sub-tropicals! Love them.

My favorite thing about Antibes are the little narrow cobblestone lanes lined with stucco or stone buildings with tile roofs. Here and there, there are little courtyards and palazzos with palm trees and other subtropical flora peeking out. The wisteria is in full bloom right now. Today the boys were running down one of our streets and it was absolutely picturesque. Some little corners remind me of Miami, whose settlers were emulating the mediterranean in that city’s design. There are a few Roman ruins here, but they are mostly buried under the old city. The boys and I like to search for old Roman stones and columns that were reused in medieval times for other structures, like the walls and towers in the oldest part of the city a few blocks from our house, and a fountain in front of one of our favorite restaurants. Our tour guide from our first week here said that if the stone was from a sacred structure, it was re-used and placed upside down so it would be less legible. It makes the stones easier for the boys to spot because the writing is upside down. 

The weather here is very sunny. We enjoy being outside most days. I mentioned in an earlier post that many of the restaurants have larger patios than dining rooms. You can tell everyone is wishing it was a little warmer. You can spot the tourists because they already have shorts on. Most everyone else is waiting til it gets a little warmer. It doesn’t stop them from going to the beach of course. The water is still pretty cold but some people go in anyway. Most everyone else just enjoys being on the beach or picnicking. 

We’ve made some friends here, mostly the shopkeepers and waiters who we are in regular contact with. It is so nice to be considered locals by them. When we see them out and about, my boys greet them enthusiastically and it always makes them feel good. The boys have friends from Judo too and we often run into them at the park. I usually chat up the parents while we watch our kids play. Because we’re here in the old town all of the time, we tend to run into the same people everywhere and that makes Antibes feel like the small village I imagine it once was. 

I really think this was the perfect spot for us to settle in; some locals have complained to me that Antibes is too transient. But coming from a place that is also pretty transient, I feel like I’ve been on both sides now. You need to be willing to put yourself out there in order to get noticed in an environment that is always changing. I don’t think any of my friends would have questioned my assertiveness, but they’d be surprised how timid I can be when I am not always sure of myself (my language, my place, etc). We’ve definitely been noticed in our 10 weeks here, and I’ve been bold enough to get out there and make it happen for us too. I’ll forever be indebted to Antibes for taking us in and letting us be ourselves in France while learning more about being French.

Cooper learned "Can I play with you" pretty early on this trip.
This is his favorite park.