winter extravaganza – carnaval de nice

For the last few years, I have given myself a little extravaganza in February, to make the Swedish winter (or what we can call it)  a little shorter.

I have a loss account where I pay in money every month … and that I spend on and under my week in Nice. I stay at a fantastic 3* hotel, Hotel Saint Gothard, … by the Gare de Ville Nice, the main railway station. Comfortable and spotlessly clean, nice French breakfast .. very good coffee (bean to cup).

This year I used up a COVID flight voucher with SAS, but I try to get the cheapest flight possible. For next year the flight only cost me 75€.

Nice doesn’t come cheap … so I rather spend my money on great food and glasses of good wines.

I delight myself with two Carnaval de Nice events .. the full day parade that is on a Sunday and the fantastic flower parade (Wednesday and Saturdays). Each event with booked seating costs around 20€, very reasonable.

This year it was a little different for me because I need a stroller/walker and to take my own is hard work with a suitcase, cabin bag and the stroller. So I looked around on the internet and I found a shop that sold disabled products and I wrote to them and asked if it was possible for me to rent a walker. No problem, they delivered to the hotel and pick up on departure. It cost me 35€ for the full week. It was delivered 2 hours after I had checked in at the hotel. An awesome service.

Without it, I hadn’t have been able to do anything. Now I could walk around in Nice, go to the events, take the train to Menton … go on buses and trams. I called it my Volvo.

This year I really enjoyed my week … I loved every minute of it .. and I didn’t want to return home. I felt so good the whole stay. Even if Nice is not very respectful when it comes to disabling people. Trains are the worst.   The sidewalks are very high and narrow, it is to lift the walker up and down all the time. I saw people in wheelchairs and how they struggled. Such a pity. Neither are people respectful on busses, trams and trains.  Such a pity.

I went to the Monday posh flea market in the Old Town .. and I went to the normal market which is 6 days a week. Bought some exciting spice mixes.

I wasn’t able to enjoy a Cafe Latte at my usual beach bar, because of all the stairs down to the beach and they don’t have an elevator. But I sat in one of the blue chairs and enjoyed the Côte d’Azur Spring Sun. Only fluffy white clouds in the sky for a whole week.

“The Riviera isn’t only a sunny place for shady people.“
W. Somerset Maugham

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