31 December 2010

Palace


Despite the blue skies in this shot, the sun isn't back yet ...although it's promised for tomorrow which will be a great start to the New Year.

This photo of the Palace was taken at the end of November and is perhaps a fitting photo to end 2010 and welcome 2011, when Monaco will celebrate the Wedding of HSH Prince Albert II and Charlene Wittstock.

30 December 2010

Glitter


'Fortune is like glass - the brighter the glitter, the more easily broken.'

~ Pubillius Syrus - Roman author 1st century B.C.

29 December 2010

Mother and Baby



The Casino Gardens. See how the baby twines around the mother...

28 December 2010

A Monaco Christmas - Deck the halls...

All decked out for the holidays - the side entrance to the Café de Paris.

27 December 2010

Coffee Break


Shoppers take a break in the coffee shop on the lower floor of the Metropole centre.

26 December 2010

Pearls


The window of an exclusive perfume shop in a tiny street above the Casino Gardens.

25 December 2010

A Monaco Christmas - Christmas Candles


A Christmas candle is a lovely thing;
It makes no noise at all,
But softly gives itself away.
~Eva Logue

Happy Christmas to everyone! May Santa bring you something really nice but most of all I hope you have a loving day with family and friends and of course your pets. Thanks everyone so much for your visits to this blog. Really appreciate it!

24 December 2010

A Monaco Christmas - Bearing Up


Polar bears in the Metropole Centre. Outside - endless endless rain...

23 December 2010

A Monaco Christmas - Hôtel Hermitage


A row of Christmas trees welcomes visitors to the Hôtel Hermitage.

22 December 2010

A Monaco Christmas - High Heels


You'll find these in the Metropole centre.


'Yet if a woman never lets herself go, how will she ever know how far she might have got? If she never takes off her high-heeled shoes, how will she ever know how far she could walk or how fast she could run?
'

~ Germaine Greer

21 December 2010

A Monaco Christmas - Just a Load of Balls...


We're inside the Café de Paris building looking towards the small casino that houses some gaming machines. This is not the real casino of course - that's the beautiful Belle Epoque building across the square. I've seen day tourists from the cruise liners walk in here thinking it's the real deal.

20 December 2010

A Monaco Christmas - the Casino Christmas Trees


The garden immediately in front of the casino is filled with Christmas trees strewn with lights that change colour every few seconds.

19 December 2010

A Monaco Christmas - Snack on the Port


There's a Christmas Fair on the port - rides for kids, pressies to buy and snacks to eat in the sunshine...

18 December 2010

A Monaco Christmas - NOT a Christmas Tree


A magnolia all lit up for Christmas. This is on Boulevard des Moulins on the steps leading up to Eglise St. Charles.

17 December 2010

A Monaco Christmas - the Barclays Bank Reindeer


Wonder how banks have reindeer climbing the railings? This is Barclays Bank on Boulevard des Moulins.

16 December 2010

A Monaco Christmas - Posh Shoes


A new and beautifully designed shop in the Metropole Centre. L. Guilo sells handmade patinated shoes to the well-dressed Monaco man.

15 December 2010

A Monaco Christmas - the Metropole Centre


Christmas decorations at the Metropole shopping centre.

14 December 2010

Red


A RED moment in Avenue des Beaux Arts yesterday.

13 December 2010

Stop the World...


Monaco is so small, with many buildings, yet it has so many lovely gardens. This waterfall is in a garden just behind the Heliport in Fontvieille and very near to the Princess Grace Rose Garden. A small bridge crosses this water - a good place to stop and ponder the world when you want to get off it.

12 December 2010

The Electricians


Looks like even the electricians are good-looking and stylishly dressed in Monaco!

11 December 2010

After the Party...


We're at the Hermitage Hotel on the Grande Corniche in Eze. Our long lazy lunch is over. Each year a group of us - around 20 - British, Irish, Australian, French, Italian, American, Scandinavian, South African - get together for a Christmas lunch. Normally we choose a different restaurant each year but last year we came here and loved it so we are back! Super environment, ambiance, food, service and a crowd of friends who have created our own 'family' in the south of France.

10 December 2010

Metal Birds


Helicopters take off and land all day long in Monaco. It's a great way to arrive from Nice airport. And there's always a bird (a real one) to fly along with you.

The Heliport in Monaco is in mourning at the moment. A couple of days ago a helicopter from Heli Air Monaco was employed to fly over, and report on, an éboulement (landslide) in the hills above the coast. The weather was appalling, deep fog, the helicopter crashed and all three on board were killed - and all for a few tumbled rocks.

09 December 2010

Gilding the Lily


Snapped whilst waiting at the lights - Barclays Wealth adds a bit more glitter for Christmas.

08 December 2010

Christmas Lights in Beausoleil


This is the Place de la Liberation in Beausoleil and the building, dripping Christmas lights, is the Mairie (Town Hall).

Beausoleil is the small town that adjoins Monaco. Where Monaco and Beausoleil meet, one side of the street is Monaco and the other is France.

06 December 2010

Do Not...


There's an awful lot of things you can't do on Larvotto beach - yet I've seen all of these rules broken. I guess that's part of the fun.

I always remember in France, before smoking was totally banned inside a restaurant, there used to be 'smoking' tables and 'non-smoking' tables. If a smoker sat down at a 'non-smoking' table, the patron would simply move the 'no smoking' sign to another table...

The Fisherman


This sculpture is called The Fisherman and stands by La Rose des Vents on Avenue Princesse Grace on the western end of Larvotto Beach. It was created by the French sculptor, Gustave Dussart (1875 - 1952).

Wish we had this blue sky today - it's p...ing down with rain.

05 December 2010

04 December 2010

Princess Caroline, the Nurses and the Party!


Above, the Princess as she was about to leave the party. I'd changed the lens on my camera but stupidly (grrrr) forgotten to change the settings on the camera so it's far too grainy.

In the small photo, you see S.A.S. la Princesse Caroline handing out diplomas to the nurses and in the last photo, lots of goodies to eat along with the champagne on offer at the party.

More tomorrow...

03 December 2010

S.A.S. la Princess Caroline & the Nurses' Graduation


A couple of evenings ago my wonderful friend, Nathalie (Avignon in Photos) invited me to meet her at the Princess Grace Hospital in Monaco to witness the graduation from the nursing school of her friend's daughter. It's the day the nurses receive their official badges from S.A.S. la Princesse Caroline. S.A.S stands for Son Altesse Sérénissime, which translates as Her Serene Highness.

In the main photo, the graduating nurses are waiting for her arrival. The atmosphere - the enthusiasm and excitement - amongst all the nurses and there were seemingly hundreds of them aound the room was so contagious and such fun.

In the smaller photo two of the nurses deliver short speeches: one on Florence Nightingale and the other spoke, movingly, of her time at the school. You see Princess Caroline sitting on the left and a photo of her late mother, Princess Grace, prominently displayed. Monaco's hospital, of course, is named for her.

And in the last photo, a rather grainy shot of the beautiful S.A.S. la Princesse Caroline on the stage.

More tomorrow...


02 December 2010

Iced Water


The swimming pool has gone - welcome to the ice rink.

01 December 2010

No Finish Line - Distance and Time


No Finish Line is a charity run in Monaco which takes place over 8 days each November. During that time you walk, jog or run as often as you want. Here you see one of the participants checking the screen to see how many kilometres she has run and how much time she has left. Each year No Finish Line raises thousands of euros for children's charities. You can read more in yesterday's post.

To see how other bloggers in the City Daily Photo community have interpreted today's 'time' theme, please click here to view thumbnails for all participants.