Riviera Palace - the Winter Garden

The Winter Garden is the heart of the Riviera Palace. These photos only show a part of it - more to come!

It covers 900 square metres and is 20 metres high at the centre of the dome. The architecture of the Winter Palace is attibuted to Gustave Eiffel who built the beautiful glass dome in the Hermitage Hotel in Monaco and of course the Tour Eiffel in Paris.

More on the restoration of the Winter Garden tomorrow...

Riviera Palace - the Staircase Windows

These beautiful windows line the main staircase of the Riviera Palace. Is that a goose or a swan?

High Seas in Monaco

We've taking a one-day break from our visit to the Riviera Palace to bring you a weather report...

There's been a massive rain amount of rain in the south of France and Monaco - really awful flooding in the Var with hundreds of people being evacuated and tragically two deaths.

Here's the beach near to the Monte Carlo Bay Hotel yesterday. I snapped it looking down from the main road to Menton which is above the tennis courts.

Tomorrow: back to the Riviera Palace...

Riviera Palace - the Lift

This lovely old lift reminds me of those in old Paris hotels and apartment buildings.

Riviera Palace - the Concierge

The old Concierge's office looks unchanged since the building was opened in 1903.

Look at those beautiful old black letters - they look like an Art Nouveau design in wrought iron. (Click the small photo to enlarge).

Riviera Palace - the Facade

The beautiful facade of the Riviera Palace. But look carefully (see last photo) and you'll see the plaster is crumbling and iron supports have rusted under the balconies.

This beautiful building was a hotel for the rich and famous from 1903 until the beginning of the great war in 1914 when it was used as a military hospital. It was closed in 1932/33 but in 1936 was transformed into apartments.

Tours of some parts of the building, such as the beautiful Winter Garden, are available to the public.

Rviera Palace - the Drain Pipe

Even the drainpipes are interesting...

Riviera Palace - Now

It's very hard to get the whole building in one shot without an amazing wide-angle lens which I don't have. Take a look at yesterday's photos of old postcards. In those days, there were no other buildings to get in the way of a good shot!

The building is based on designs by George Paul Chedanne (he designed the Palace Hotel on the Champs Elysée and the Hotel Mercedes 0n Rue du Presbourg in Paris.)

The Riviera Palace was finished in 1903 and soon welcomed King Leopold II of the Belgians, the imperial family of Russia, the Shah of Persia - also distinguished names in the arts such as Diagilev, Nijinski, Stravinsky and Colette. Winston Churchill was a regular visitor too.

Tomorrow - the details...

Riviera Palace - the Old Postcards

These are the signs that great you as you approach the Riviera Palace and it's good to be reminded of how it looked when it was first built at the turn of the last century. You can see the posts and chains I showed yesterday in the lower half of the photo below.

From the end of the 19th century to the beginning of the 1914-18 war, the French Riviera was where artists and writers and members of the European aristocracy and bourgeoisie spent their winters, hence the building of this Belle Epoque hotel.

In 1898, when Camile Blanc was president of the SBM and future Mayor of Beausoleil, he founded the Real Estate Company of Monte Carlo Superior. He also owned the train company and the mythic Orient Express. He built a funicular railway that ran from the Cremaillère, way down the hillside in Monaco, to the Riviera Palace Railway Station.

Riviera Palace - Railings

We have a treat in store. We are going to visit the Riviera Palace in Beausoleil. This is a celebrated and beautiful Belle Epoque palace with its stunning winter gardens, built high above Monaco between 1891 and 1903 on behalf of the famous Cie des Wagons-Lits.

Today - a part of the railings.

Don't Fence Me In

A fenced-in cat who lives at the Riviera Palace in Beausoleil.

To see how others around the world have interpreted today's theme 'Fences' please click here to view thumbnails for all participants.

Our Lady of Laghet - the Yellow House

This could be anywhere on the Cote d'Azur - soft yellow walls, green shutters, deep shadows and blue skies but in fact I took it from inside Our Lady of Laghet. The yellow building is where people stay if they take a 'retreat' here.

Our Lady of Laghet - Our Last Day

A few final images taken within this beautiful and peaceful sanctuary.

In 1653, a commission of theologians, a doctor and a lawyer convened and confirmed the authenticity of the miracles and so the bishop allowed and encouraged the cult of Our Lady of Laghet. April 25, 1654 saw the the first official pilgrimage by the White Penitents from Eze to Laghet. Since then there are pilgrimages every year, including one from my own village of Gorbio.

It's also possible to take a retreat at Our Lady of Laghet - take a look at the website for more information.

Our Lady of Laghet - the Chapel and the Organ

The intention was to show (in the main photo) the interior of the chapel but it's not a good photo. I'd grabbed a shot quickly with my small camera, no tripod, as I didn't want to intrude on the worshippers. No matter, it's shown on the left so you can get an idea of the colours and beauty of this place.

The main photo shows a model of the sanctuary - the chapel is in the centre of it. If you don't speak French, this is a request for donations towards an organ - the intention being to replace the old organ with a mechanical one.

Our Lady of Laghet - Accidents, War, Exams

Many of the paintings give thanks for those who made it after an accident - for instance this little boy from Menton who was run over by a bus in 1921.

Others give thanks for sons and husbands saved in the Great War - see the hand-made sampler on the left. It's easy to imagine the lady who made this, giving thanks for the safe return of her husband and his four brothers.

And then, there is the girl who gives thanks for passing her exam at school. I only saw one of these.

Our Lady of Laghet - the Nun

One of the nuns stands in comtemplation before entering the chapel.

Our Lady of Laghet is the name of the Virgin Mary associated with the name of this small village which was first mentioned in a charter of the 11th century. In the 12th century, Laghet was part of the fiefdom of Eze and mention is made of a small chapel. In the 15th century, the chapel served as a small shrine for shepherds and peasants but it was modest and had been built in an exposed position and was slowly falling apart.

In 1625 an ardent priest, Don Jacques Fighiera was so moved by the abandonment and decay of the chapel of Laghet, he decided to devote himself to rebuilding it. By 1628 it had a new roof, he leveled the land, he whitewashed the walls, and hung a door with a lock, He also repaired the path that leads to Laghet from Eze and all at his expense 'in honor of God and the Virgin Mary.' Then he announced to the public that the chapel of Laghet had been restored and he took the service, in a voluntary capacity, for the next 25 years.

More tomorrow...

Our Lady of Laghet - the Accidents

Most of the drawings and paintings are simple but somehow so touching. Many, as you see, show accidents where the beloved husband or wife or child was saved and thanks are being given to Our Lady of Laghet.

More tomorrow...

Our Lady of Laghet - the Walkway

This is the walkway with its vaulted ceiling that goes right around the church - the chapel itself is in the centre.

Here you'll find hundreds, perhaps thousands, of tokens of thanks to Our Lady of Laghet - tomorrow we'll see some of these up close.

Our Lady of Laghet - the Church

The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Laghet has been an important destination for pilgrims since 1654.

This is a church where people go to pray and to be cured. The inside - and we will see it - has almost every inch of its walls covered with tokens of thanks for a return to health.

Notre Dame de Laghet is not far from Monaco. It's just five minutes from La Turbie and is a place of beauty and peace, whether or not you are religious, whether or not you are a Catholic.

More tomorrow...

Dreaming

I wouldn't mind a euro for every person who leans on a barrier in Monaco...and dreams.