Monaco's Market

Scene/seen inside Monaco's market.  Note the sign for pizza is written first in Italian, then French, then English. In the past, I've heard people say that Monaco would collapse in a heap if the Italians left.  Nowadays, they'd be more likely to say the Russians.

Pomodoro

Market, Place d'Armes

Is there anything more evocative of a Mediterranean summer than succulent, thinly sliced, fresh tomatoes, served with buffalo mozzarella,  generously drizzled with the best olive oil and scattered with fresh basil?

Add a baguette, a glass of rosé - heaven!

'Get Closer and come to the M.Zone'

These signs saying 'Get Closer and come to the M.Zone' are all over the market area at Place d'Armes in Monaco. Included in the sign is a barcode and also the usual warning about smoking.

The M.Zone appears to indicate a WiFi zone but why the warning about cigarettes?

Anyone know? I clicked on the link but don't understand ...

PS. I now understand this is an advert for Marlboro Cigarettes so who knew?  What happened to Marlboro Man!

Red Bull

One side of the Red Bull hospitality area and heavy cloud on the mountains ... where is summer?

Monaco Grand Prix reflections

If you going to show up in a reflection, best choose Ferrari red hospitality to frame you.  As you see, it's in the process of being dismantled following the Monaco Grand Prix last weekend.

Monte Carlo Daily Photo is back ... with Ferrari Red

Well... it looks like Monte Carlo Daily Photo is back!  For how long, I don't know, but I missed it! And work on my book continues regardless.  Time management would appear to be the answer ...

Last Tuesday, I had to go to Monaco and as I'm incapable of going anywhere without a camera, here goes ...
 
The Monaco  Grand Prix is over and the clean up is underway. So, come with me and see what happens.  This as you can see is part of the Ferrari hospitality area on the port - in the area known on race day as the Paddock.  You don't get in here unless you pay a lotta money.   Don't you love that everything, including these guys, are in Ferrari red ...

See you tomorrow ...

Monte Carlo Daily Photo is taking a temporary break ...

The Oceanographic Museum at sunset and a temporary au revoir ...

Monte Carlo Daily Photo is taking a break after publishing daily for over 6 years. Menton Daily Photo will continue, so do please visit me there where I may well publish the odd Monaco photo taken when I visit friends in Monte Carlo.

The reason is that I'm putting all my creative energies into a book of photography and words. All will be revealed eventually...

I want to thank everyone so very much for being so faithful to this blog - for your encouragement and comments. Currently there are 10,000 people a month who look at Monte Carlo Daily Photo, of which 5,000 are what Google refer to as 'unique visitors' so I'm aware that I'm saying a temporary goodbye to a lot of people. But I will be back one day.

I simply need to concentrate my creative energies on my book. 

lots of love and thanks - Jilly xxx

Passing Strangers ...

La Reine Mariana and a passing stranger.  She was sculpted in 2004 by Manolo Valdés, the well-known Spanish artist who lives in New York.

Palms

Morning light near the Grimaldi Forum.

Crew

Deep in thought ...

Reflections in Port Hercule

And black and white kind of day.

Grand Prix de Monaco - the Back of the Stand

If you get bored looking at the pit lane, you can turn around and look at the boats ... not that any Formula One fan would, of course ...

Grand Prix de Monaco - the Pit Lane Stand

Monaco is wearing her usual mantle of steel as she prepares for the Monaco Grand Prix which takes place on the 26th May.  Here you see the stand that faces the pit lane.  Behind this stand is Port Hercule.  We'll see a photo of the other side tomorrow.

'Royal Clipper'

Isn't she stunning!  I was at Larvotto Beach and saw she was in the harbour, so had to get in the car and drive to the port to photograph her. 

She's called Royal Clipper and is a five-masted fully rigged tall ship used as a cruise liner.  She flies the Maltese flag. She is listed in Guinness World Records as the largest square-rigged ship in service, with 5202 square metres of sail. Her sails can be handled with a crew as small as twenty using powered controls.

Larvotto Beach - la Rose des Vents

Yesterday on the private beach of La Rose des Vents at the end of Larvotto

Aperitif?

Time for an aperitif at La Rose des Ventes on Larvotto.

Christine Franchesini's Exhibition

Last night I went to a gallery opening in the medieval village of Roquebrune.  Meet my lovely, talented  friend, Christine Franceschini with one of her beautiful paintings.

The exhibition is open until the 20th May at the Salle Saint Lucie in Roquebrune village.   Christine will be there each day from 14h00 to 19h00. Do come along ...

Skateboarding at Dusk

The walkway that runs from Portier to Larvotto Beach is a popular place to run or skateboard.

Scoot into Monday ...

Kids on their scooters at Larvotto.  Last ride before nightfall.

Scene at Larvotto

Larvotto Beach at dusk.

Théâtre des Muses

How adorable is this!  A tiny theatre on the Boulevard Jardin Exotique called the Théâtre des Muses.  It has 100 seats and puts on plays and comedies and gives classes in theatre for children and adults.

Dusk

Last rays of the sun before nightfall.

Cruise Liner

This is typical of some of the massive cruise liners that call in to Port Hercule on a regular basis.  This photo was taken from the forecourt of the Grimaldi Forum.

Hotel Hermitage

Part of the facade of the beautiful Hotel Hermitage, overlooking Port Hercule.  This was taken from the terrace of the Restaurant le Saint Benoit.

Blake - Fixing the supports

We're back at Blake's Monaco studio today.  Here he is fixing the metal rods that will hold the various parts of the sculpture together.  When this is completed, it will be sent to the foundry in Italy to be cast in bronze.

Mulberries

We're in Cap d'Ail today at the Pointe des Douaniers.  The restaurant, Le Cabanon, is behind us, the car park off to the right - Monaco is to our left.  I think these are mulberry trees - they form a wonderful horizontal canopy of shade in summer.  I'm not sure of the name though - perhaps someone knows?

The Yacht Club of Monaco rises ...

The new Yacht Club of Monaco is getting nearer and nearer to completion. As you can see it's beginning to look like a yacht iself. It's due to be finished at the end of this year with a grand opening in summer 2014.  You can see another photo by clicking on the link. The design is by Lord Norman Foster.

Bistrot le Bouchon

A table is being prepared at Bistrot le Bouchon on Avenue Princesse Grace.  Super ambiance, good French bistrot food. You can check their 17 euro menu on Facebook each day (click link).

Bikes

A bike is a good way to get around when you crew on a yacht - or if you own one ...

The Buzz of the Port

This is a longer shot of the diveboat we saw yesterday. (see small pic) 

There's something so relaxing about wandering around amongst the boats -  look at their names, look at the reflections in the water, look at the people working on the big yachts.  You don't have to own a yacht to enjoy the buzz of Port Hercule.

Dive Boat

Get the wet suit ready ...

Triplets

Identical boats in Port Hercule.

Watch your Step - 2

We saw this man the other day hanging over the other end of his boat - he's doing it again! Life on the water ... in Port Hercule.

Lunch

Pizza delivery.

Telling Tales: The Art of Creating Stories in Images and Words

Yesterday was the 5th and last day of a superb Photography/Writing Workshop in Monaco called:
 
Telling Tales: The Art of Creating Stories in Images and Words

With Nick Danziger, award-winning photojournalist, author and documentary filmmaker and Rory MacLean, best-selling author.

It was fabulous, inspiring, exhausting - we each worked on a specific project and left with the tools to put it into practice.  This is probably the only course where writing and photography are combined. It was such a privilege to be taught by and work with Nick and Rory - they really cared about us and our projects and that we should learn as grow as the course progressed.  Do click on the links above to read about the work of Nick and Rory.

There will be another workshop, I believe in September, in Monaco, so if anyone gets the chance, I'd say --- don't miss it!   Click on the link where you'll find contact details to reach Nick. Note - the workshop is in English.

Thank you Nick and Rory for a truly great workshop.

And thankyou to my fellow participants, wonderful talented photographer Tiziana from Monaco who cooked a regu to die for one evening.  To Jon (that's going to be a wonderful book!)  and Claire from the UK and her photographs representing poetry and to beautiful Elisa from Hongkong who has an old soul and will enchant us with her future work. 

The first photo was taken by Nick Danziger.  The one below by me.

Watch your Step!

Port Hercule

Careful, Monsieur ...

Stars 'n' Bars - Legs Eleven

Well, not quite eleven, but isn't this fun. 

Cloud Roll

We have the most glorious weather at the moment but suddenly, a couple of days ago around 10h30,  this low cloud rolled in and hung just above the water.  And then it went ...

Blake - the Wax Creation

Today Blake is pouring warmed wax into a mould that is the beginning of a new Angel creation.  Later he will join the delicate pieces together along with internal rods to hold the sculpture together.  Then it will be sent to the foundry in Italy to be cast in bronze. We'll see more of these processes another time.

Click on the link to see the beauty of a finished Angel by Blake.

The Tender Touch

Such a gentle and tender touch from a beautiful young woman to a little Westie, who is lunching at a neighbouring table at Bistrot le Bouchon.

Blake - and Bling

It's always such a treat for me when celebrated Canadian sculptor Blake invites me to his Monaco studio to take photos of work in progress. 

In the main photo, you see Blake's assistant, a sculptor herself, applying gold leaf to the interior of this sculpture in his new series, Phantom.  The first in the series, 'Phantom Sky' was exhibited at the recent Monaco-Japan exhibition. (see photo below)

Blake has written about the Phantom series:

'We have gone Las Vegas!
Bling has entered into the realm of the Phantoms!
This new series of sculptures place great value on the interior space within us, it is an exploration of our inner selves and the ideas of our emotional and spiritual psyche. By bring the interior to our attention I place a high value on this area of our intellect and emotional being, by covering it in gold I add physical, symbolic and material value to the work.'

Instant Summer

Miami Plage, Larvotto

We seem to have suddenly gone from a long wet, chilly winter to instant summer - notice I'm not complaining.  This guy is preparing mats on the beach.