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.