Cathedral by night

Monaco's cathedral at night.  This is where HSH Prince Rainier III and HSH Princess Grace are buried.

The Palace and Happy 2014!

The Prince's Palace on le rocher.  Wishing you all a happy and peaceful and healthy 2014. Thanks so much for all the kind and encouraging comments on my photos over the last year (blogs and Facebook). It means a lot to me.. Thank you!

The Palace at Christmas

The Prince's Palace at Christmas. 

Have a wonderful Christmas everyone.

The Red and the White for Monaco's National Day

Not the most exciting photo in the world but I thought you might like to see Monaco's windows decorated with the Principality's red and white flags. Monaco celebrated its National Day last week - I didn't take photographs because I was exhibiting at PhotoMenton - but the flags are still on display and in this case with pots of red and white flowers to match. These pics were taken around the port of Fontvieille yesterday.

Supplier to HSH Prince Albert II

This is what you'll get if you own a shop in Monaco that supplies HSH Prince Albert II.

Petanque at the Palace - the Throw

At the Petanque tournment in front of the Palace, this lady, who was playing with the Prince, has a pretty deft action, don't you think?

Petanque at the Palace - Daniel Elena

Another photo of H.S.H. Prince Albert II playing petanque and as you can see one of the other players is no less than Daniel Elena, who is Sebastien Loeb's co-driver in motor rallies. Between them they have won the World Rally Championship 9 times. Daniel Elena is Monegasque. 

The Prince's team won!

Petanque at the Palace! - the Prince

H.S.H.Prince Albert II gets into the spirit of the Pro/Am Petanque tournament. As you can see, he plays a mean game of petanque.

Petanque at the Palace!

Look what was going on at the Place du Palais in Monaco yesterday.  The whole of the area in front of the Palace has been transformed into specially created gravel petanque pitches.   There are several others apart from this one.

There is space for around 800 spectators in the stands, and there's a giant screen relaying the matches.

This event, the Monaco Petanque Masters,  is the result of a collaboration between the Club Bouliste Monegasque and the Palace and is supported by 'Peace and Sport.'

Entry is free to the square and stands with two semi-finals and the final for professionals taking place today, after which the whole thing will be dismantled.

Peace and Sport organised an informal, pro/am tournament, in which Prince Albert and 32 celebrities were expected to take part. So come  back tomorrow and see how His Serene Highness, Prince Albert II plays a mean game of pentanque! 

Concert at the Palace

Get your glad rags on - we're going to a concert in the Cour d'Honneur an the Palace.  Here some members of the audience make their way towards the enormous entrance, which dates back to the 17th century. 

On the programme - Ute Lemper and the Philharmoic Orchestra of Monte Carlo.  The doorway on the left of the palace (with the curved canopy) is the musicians' entrance.

Grace Maman

This edition of Paris Match, showing a photograph of HSH Princess Grace, was amongst a pile of old magazines on sale at a recent BrocTroc in Menton. The date is February 1957 so the baby is HSH Princess Caroline who was born on 23 January of that year.

There's something so poignant in this, isn't there? Memories flood back...

Oceanographic Museum - Prince Albert I of Monaco

The first thing that strikes you as you enter the Oceanographic Museum is that the building is going to be every bit as stunning as the fish - and it is.

This is the main entrance hall with a sculpture of Prince Albert I of Monaco (1848 - 1922), mariner and scientist and founder of the musuem.

As a young man, Prince Albert I served in the Spanish Navy, but during the Franco-Prussian War, he joined the French Navy where he was awarded the Legion of Honor. He was only 22 years old when he began to develop an interest in the then relatively new science of oceanography. After several years of study, Albert showed his ingenuity by devising a number of techniques and instruments used for measurement and exploration. Accompanied by some of the world's leading marine scientists, he recorded numerous oceanographic studies, maps and charts. He then founded what would become the world renowned Oceanographic Institute which is based here, at the museum, and in Paris. We'll learn more as we continue our visit.

The tentacles of the octupus are part of a exhibition - more another day.

Prince Albert I, (click to see him in the Saint Martin Gardens looking out to sea) is the great grandfather of the current ruler of Monaco, Albert II.

More tomorrow...

The Wedding - Music, Lights, Fireworks!

Not my photography today but I really wanted you to see how fabulous the Jean Michel Jarre concert was. I was dining at a restaurant on the side of the port and not in a position to take photos myself (yes, I should have left the table I know but that would have been rude to my host).

Our guest photographer is Sylvie Mathieu who lives in Menton. I haven't yet had the pleasure of meeting Sylvie face-to-face but have met her via a great Facebook photography group of 120 mostly local photographers to which we both contribute a daily photo.

I saw some of these great shots on that Facebook page and Sylvie agreed to my reproducing them here. They show so well the talent of Jean Michel Jarre - the colours, the lasers, the fireworks.

Thanks Sylvie - I look forward to meeting you in person shortly. Click on the link above to see Sylvie's travel blog.

The Wedding - Flags

Well, it's all over bar the gossip. The flags still fly and Monaco is slowly getting back to normal. If you'd like to see a little of the wedding reception and part of Prince Albert's speech, please click HERE.

The Wedding - the Jean Michel Jarre concert

These strange structures appeared on Port Hercule a few days before the wedding and of course they were for the Jean Michel Jarre concert - a gift to anyone who wanted to come to Monaco to hear it.

It was absolutely fabulous and so beautiful incorporating magical music, colour (such colour!) images of Prince Albert and Princess Charlene and towards the end, delicate fireworks - stars cascading down amidst unimaginable rays of laser colours.

The short video below gives you an idea of what it was all about.

The Wedding - Monaco has a new Princess!

Monaco has a new Princess! Yesterday saw the Civil Ceremony which took place in the Throne Room of the Palace and was watched by thousands on giant screens around the Principality.

Do click on the video below. It shows highlights of the whole day and is a beautifully-made video.

The wedding had it all, a beautiful bride dressed in Chanel by Karl Lagerfeld, Princess Stephanie who cried and the crowds who loved it all.

Today we have the religious ceremony - a much bigger affair and later in the day the Princely couple will drive to the tiny church of St. Devote where the bride will place her bouquet. You can just see a corner of St. Devote Church in the photo below.

The Wedding - the Civil Ceremony

Today is the first day of Monaco's Royal Wedding (or more correctly, Princely wedding). The civil marriage between Prince Albert II and Charlene Wittstock takes place at 5 pm. Tomorrow is the big religious ceremony when we see THE dress!

At 8 p.m. this evening there are cocktails on Port Hercule for Monegasque citizens offered by Prince Albert and at 10 p.m. Jean Michel Jarre has designed a concert show with an incredible, 200 metre-long stage set, which will include a light show, HD video, lasers and fireworks - a magical, high-tech extravaganza to the rhythm of his music, which will be performed live on the central stage. This is a free concert gifted by the newly married couple who will also be there. 100,000 people are expected to attend.

You can see and here the concert live HERE from 10 p.m. CET.

I'm invited to dinner with friends at a restaurant on Port Hercule which will be a great place to see and hear the concert and people-watch. Getting to Monaco tho is a nightmare. Already all the parking places are taken - hardly surprising as they are free for this special weekend. So the bus or train seem to be the answer and extra trains and buses are laid on for the Monaco to Nice route but they seem to have forgotten the Monaco to Menton and Ventimiglia route - not good. If you don't hear from me on Saturday, send a search party...

Of course, this is Theme Day in our City Daily Photo family - the subject is 'the colour green' so I give you the sign seen outside the palace over the last few days. Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

As a little extra - an interview with Prince Albert and Charlene Wittstock.

The Wedding - Putting on a Show

Everyone is getting ready for the big day. This lady is putting on a show at the entrance to the Winter Sporting on Casino Square.

Tonight in the football stadium in Fontvieille there's a concert by The Eagles. 15,00 tickets have been given away - a gift from Prince Albert and Charlene Wittstock to Monegasques, residents and workers in the Principality. Unfortunately some unscrupulous ticket holders have been selling them on the black market. Naughty, naughty...

More events tomorrow...

The Wedding - Flags

Everywhere you look in Monaco you see flags. The Monaco flag, the South African flag and one that simply says 'Marriage Princier.'

A few more days and Prince Albert marries South African Olympic swimmer, Charlene Wittstock. The civil ceremony will be on Friday and the religious ceremony on Saturday.

The Princess and the Ceramist

Princess Caroline spoke to all the exhibitors - here you see her chatting with Stéphane Montalto, a local ceramist of great renown. He was recently awarded the 'Meilleur Ouvrier de France 2011.' Do take a look at his website to see the beautiful art he creates.

Stéphane not only makes stunning pots but does historical restoration work and creates architectural pieces for some of the famous houses and gardens along the Riviera, such as Villa Cyrnos, the Empress Eugenie's villa in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin and Villa Kerylos in Beaulieu. He's also done work for Bono at his villa in Eze-sur-Mer.

I've featured Stephane's work before - you can see it on Menton Daily Photo HERE. You'll find his atelier in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin or you can see and purchase his work on the 1st and 3rd Saturday of the month in Menton market.