And When You Can't Ski...

....there's always the sea..

We have a Swedish friend who went to Isola, found the black slopes closed because of the Mistral, didn't want to waste the day so drove back to the coast and went windsurfing.

Which would serve as an apt definition for "driven" I guess.

I was so happy to find this award waiting for me at North Metro Daily Photo. I've always admired DL's photos so it's an honour: two days, two awards. That's a great start to Christmas week and I'm going to milk it for all its worth and give it out 10 times, 5 for each award.

Geneva Dail Photo
Birmingham, Alabama DP
Palos Verdes DP
Around Roanoke
Visual St Paul
Mumbai DP
Ramsay IOM
Jilly in Menton & MC
Oeiras DP
Alice in Arradon

Sky Watch Friday

As I have a distinct aversion to being cold and enjoy the snow only from my armchair by the side of the fire, you can tell I didn't take this photo so it's thanks to Josh who headed up to experience the white, fluffy stuff.
The shot was taken about 2 weeks ago, after the first snowfall, from the Col de Vence looking out over the Med and the crowded coastline..

To see more glorious Sky Watch images go here.

Beachcombing

I was sitting in one of those nice blue chairs enjoying the ozone in my lungs and the spray on my face when the noise of machinery disturbed my calm. On investigation it proved to be an earth mover redistributing the shingle after the storms.

Sunday Mornings: Testing the Water

I've lived here for 23 years but watching someone voluntarily go for a swim in mid November, and she did swim, still amazes me and makes me shiver. Which is a joke really as both sea and air temperatures were probably warmer than the UK on a nice Summer day!

Sunday Mornings 1

So what does Sunday morning mean to you? Me, I slop around in night clothes, email the family, read a newspaper, have a leisurely breakfast and eventually work up enough energy to walk the dogs. This morning, however, I actually got up, dressed and headed into town to see how the average Nicois spends his down time and was stunned to discover half the city out and about and engaged in all sorts of physical activities: jogging, walking, cycling and sailing. It was so inspirational I just had to find a bench to sit on while I recorded it all...Anyway I'll show what I saw over the next few days.
This photo came with a bonus: you can just catch sight of the airport runway sticking out into the sea behind the yacht. It's almost touching down in the water that makes landing in Nice such a special start to a visit here.

Sailing Ships...

Driving along the Promenade des Anglais this afternoon we caught sight of these beautiful sailing ships heading towards the port. What to do? Stopping was impossible; traffic's always busy and for once all the traffic lights were on green so my inventive son hung out of the car window with my camera and with a judicious bit of cropping, (I doubted anyone would want to see the barrier or the window), this is the result. Oh and my son's fallen in love with my camera..
According to Nice Matin newspaper this was part of a prestigious sailing ships event. Here's the link...

Nice from the Mediterranean

A glimpse of Nice from the sea. Even from this distance you can make out all the apartment blocks that line the Promenade des Anglais..

SOS: I have forgotten my username and password for the daily photo blog portal. Can someone let me know if I should reregister, please?

Promenade des Anglais 3

Cool, blowy and overcast. No one about except this grandfather.
The Med's still blue, though.

The Mediterranean Sea

The guy actually in the water was wearing a wet suit so he's not so brave as he appears.