Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild - the Marble Lady

Everywhere, inside and out, you'll find beauty. Here, near the entrance, a lady bathes in a small pond.

It took five years of major work to construct this 'Palace,' evoking the great Italian Renaissance residences. Several architects were approached, including Auburtin who was in favour with Béatrice Ephrussi. This 'Prix de Rome' winner was replaced on the coastal project by Aaron Messiah. Béatrice sometimes had huge models constructed to be certain of the end result.

Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild

Don't know about you but I'm fed up with the endless rain here, so let's go back to days of blue skies and sunshine and visit the beautiful Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild on Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat. We'll look around the villa and we'll wander the 9 gardens laid out over 7 acres - and we'll leave this cold ol' winter behind for a while.

Béatrice Ephrussi, born Rothschild, discovered Cap-Ferrat in 1905, when the Côte d'Azur was about to become the holiday destination of High Society. She owned four villas in Monaco but was seduced by the natural beauty of this nearby site and bought seventeen acres of land on the narrowest part of the peninsula, right from under the nose of King Leopold II of Belgium, who wanted to extend his neighbouring property.

More tomorrow...

The Ceiling

Such a pretty ceiling, don't you think? I've no idea how old it is - certainly it has a 'look' of being old but who knows? It's in the centre of the restaurant at the Hotel Eze Hermitage on the Grand Corniche in Eze.

Red

The snow has gone on the coast. These photos were taken before Christmas - on the 20th December. No matter, I wanted to show you this red plant. It looks like a Trachelospermum Jasminoides but I've never seen a red-leaved one before so perhaps not. Does anyone know this plant?

This was taken in the gardens of the Eze Hermitage Restaurant and Hotel. Click on the link.

Glass and Marble

Glass and marble - reflections inside the sumptuous foyer of the Hôtel de Paris.

Hands and Feet at Lanvin

We've seen a couple of other shots from the window display at the Lanvin shop in Casino Square. Here's another.

Turquoise

Ornate decoration on a building in Avenue Grande Bretagne.

Between Sea and Sky

The Vista Palace Hotel is actually on the Moyenne Corniche in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin but it's usually thought of as a Monaco hotel, hovering as it does between sea and sky over the Principality. The view from the hotel in the direction of Italy or looking towards Monaco and beyond is stunning.

The Tablecloth

Watching a waiter prepare the tables for lunch is fascinating. He is working on the terrace of the Salle Empire in the Hôtel de Paris. He threw the cloth into the air at least four or five times before he was satisfied at the way it landed.

Theme Day: Changes

This is a Datura, photographed in the gardens of the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild on Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat. This beautiful plant, so common on the Côte d'Azur is a poison and a toxic hallucinogen which causes changes in the brain manifesting itself in agitated behavior and confusion.

Datura belongs to the classic "witches' weeds," along with deadly nightshade, henbane, and mandrake and has a long history in producing a changed delirious state and death. It was well known as an essential ingredient of love potions and witches' brews and sadly, the local newspaper, Nice-Matin sometimes reports on youngsters picked up in an intoxicated state having used Datura unaware of the extreme danger of the plant. Not the sort of changes anyone needs.

To see how other CDP bloggers have interpreted today's theme please click here to view thumbnails for all participants.

For 2010 I wish you happy changes, positive changes, changes that will make you dance with delight. Happy New Year everyone!

'If nothing ever changed, there'd be no butterflies.' ~ Author Unknown

A New Year's Eve Dinner

Where will you be spending New Year's Eve? These tables are in the charming Eze Hermitage Restaurant and Hotel on the Grande Corniche in Eze. Highly recommended with great food - I lunched with a group of friends (18 of us) the Sunday before Christmas.

And if you want to dine in Monaco tonight, well you might just be too late. The 'grandes tables' such as Alain Ducasse's Louis XV in the Hôtel de Paris and Joel Robuchon Monte Carlo have been fully booked for weeks. In fact all of the important restaurants in the Principality are fully booked. There will be more than 1000 meals served tonight in the grand restaurants with prices that range from 99 euros to 760 euros a head for a gastronomic evening of foie gras, coquilles Saint-Jacques, truffles and more... Recession? What recession?

Happy New Year everyone!

Deck the Halls...

The entrance to the Hôtel de Paris decked out for the festive season. A policeman patrols.

The Window Shopper

This lady walked from shop to shop, then posed outside each one, whilst her husband took her photograph. I think he was keener on this than she was. Here she stands outside the Lanvin shop in Casino Square.

The Flapper

A painting for sale in the Galerie Monaco Fine Arts. Depicting the Casino in the background, it's called Monte Carlo By Night by the Russian artist Viatcheslav Plotnikov.

Christmas Baubles

The Metropole Centre is always pretty impressive with its enormous chandeliers but naturally, Monaco being Monaco, more more lights and baubles were added for the festive season. Note the beautiful marble floors. The café you see on the lower level is a great place to meet up with friends for a coffee or lunch.

The Red Carpet

The red carpet came out for Christmas on Avenue de Monte Carlo. This photograph was taken by the Gucci store before the snow and later the heavy rains. Hopefully it survived.

Christmas on the Port: Mother and Child

This photo is a slight cheat because I took it last Christmas on the port. At the time there was a beautiful display of cribs from around the world. This is one we didn't see - part of a Venetian scene. So here it is for Christmas Day.

Wishing everyone a very Happy Christmas with those you love.

Christmas on the Port: Skating

The skating rink (which of course is the famous swimming pool iced over) set against the backdrop of luxury yachts.

Christmas on the Port: the Fair

It's not all luxury living in Monaco, dining at the Hôtel de Paris and shopping in the Metropole Centre. Here at the Christmas Fair on the port you can eat cheaply and the kids have fun on the rides.

Prince Albert II and Charlene take to the Icy Waters

Each December Prince Albert II takes part in the traditional 'Bain de Noël' on Larvotto beach but this year it took bravery, following our recent snow falls. As you can imagine, the water of the Mediterranean was really cold but this year the watching crowd had a treat when Prince Albert brought along his beautiful long-time companion, Charlene Wittstock, the South African Olympic swimmer. Another member of the Royal Family of Monaco, Pierre Casiraghi, son of Princess Caroline, took part too. They all took to the sea for a full 10 minutes and afterwards Charlene met Woolite the sheep, dressed as Santa Claus. The swim raised 1200 euros for the Thai After Tzunami Schooling Aid charity.

Regular readers of this blog have met Woolite before - she's the sheep who swims in the sea, is the mascot of Les Foulées Roquebrunoises (runners) and, of course, is Philippe Mazza's constant companion. Woolite has her own blog HERE. Thanks Philippe for the photos.