A Glimpse Into Monaco

We arrived in Monaco and the bus dropped us off near the Place d'Armes.

We took in the views of the Port de Fontvieille.

We turned around and looked up toward our next destination -- Monaco's old town situated on a steep hill.

We encountered a rather comical sign as we approached the stairs to the old town.  Clearly, tourists shouldn't walk around in their underwear or bathing costume.  Does this mean locals are allowed to?

We started the climb toward the old town.

At the peak, we found lookout points and stacks of cannon balls.

We arrived at the palace just in time for the changing of the guard.  Monaco only has 40,000 residents and only a fraction of those are actual citizens.  I wonder how Monaco manages to staff such a large regimen of ceremonial soldiers.

After the pomp and circumstance was complete we began our exploration of the old town.

We discovered the Chocolaterie de Monaco and had to stop in for some treats.

We walked to the perimeter of the old town and looked out of the ample construction taking place on the hillside.

We could see the palace in the distance...

...and a sweeping view of the harbour lined with expensive yachts.

We turned inland and admired the narrow streets and ornate architecture and figures characterizing the old town.

We stopped for lunch at a local pizzeria (La Tavernetta) which included wine and chips.

Beware...we split 1 pizza for lunch and were charged a fee of 6.95 euro.  It was very clear that this was the case on the menu but it felt a bit excessive to me, especially given that it was the low season and the restaurant was half empty.

I spotted a horseshoe hanging on the wall and wondered if it was an omen of good luck to come at the Monte Carlo casino!

We had walked clear across the old town (only a few blocks, actually) and decided to descend from the opposite side from which we started through a lush park.

En route down the trail, we spied a rough and tumble kitty carefully eyeing a bird in the bushes.

We left him to taunt his supper and continued down the path.  We liked this break wall.  The stones looked like jax.

Stately lampposts lined the path.

Looking up, we could see how far we'd come through the trees.

We arrived at a statue of a sea captain (apparently an old time member of the Monaco Royal family).

We spied a helicopter in the distance -- as you do in Monaco!

We saw this graceful octopus in residence outside the aquarium.

More sculptures were in store including this musical piece.

The trail let out at a small stage/amphitheatre.

Continuing on along the waterfront we approached yet another gorgeous statue - a man of action tugging on a wheel.

I loved that this yacht was called 'Money Time' - how appropriate.

We admired the grand boats lined up in port.

We almost caught a snap of a sports car driving past this statue representing the Monaco Grand Prix.

We walked through the Monaco Christmas Market and were surprised to see several furry bears dancing around.  Totally unexpected...

We completed our walk on the grounds of the Monte Carlo casino.  I swapped my walking shoes for silver pumps (I felt a touch like Cinderella) and we were on our way to experience the magic!