It was Canadian Thanksgiving weekend. We slept in on Saturday and it rained most of the day. By 11 AM I had a cauliflower cream soup on the stove and had roasted off the turkey backs (Long's $2) and had them in a pot to make stock for turkey gravy.
We have always done Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday, that way we could all relax on the Monday. I continue to do that for the two of us.
I spent Sunday morning prepping dinner and dessert.
Monday
Lots of leftovers so no cooking required.
It was time to bring in the geraniums and hibiscus from the balcony which meant some repotting and rearranging other plants. I also had to cut my purple coleus because it had bent/gotten too tall.
John has been enjoying the golf simulator and booked a couple of sessions this week. He did a Costco run on Wednesday.
Thursday John golfed and it was a glorious day. I had tickets for Picasso's Blue Period at the AGO and then spent some time wandering.
I had a big detour as I got to Queen St. before the AGO due to track work, what a mess. You have to walk way out of your way to get across the street.
As if the businesses haven't suffered enough with a pandemic.
My tickets at the AGO were for 10:30 but there wasn't the usual line. I had been trying to download my tickets on my way but when I got there they said their system was down. Luckily they were pretty organized and had a list of people who had made bookings and provided paper tickets.
I was rather disappointed in the exhibit. I had read about the paintings from his blue period and there didn't seem to be that many on display. I was looking forward to The Old Guitarist and a self portrait.
I also found these art pieces (also part of ShowLoveTO) on the St. Patrick Market deserted building.
I also found a lane for Tuesday's Treasures.
My stash from the Scottish Irish store.
The hibiscus has bloomed since moving it inside.
John had golfed booked for Friday but it was raining so instead we did some chores and settled for a movie afternoon.
WATCHING
I watched Motel Makeover (Netflix) and found it interesting, as they open a motel during the pandemic in 2020 outside Toronto. Here is a link the the June Motel webpage.
I finished watching season four of the Great Canadian Bake Off. As an avid watcher of the British Bake Off and other international baking/cooking shows, I must say that the Canadian BO definitely has the most culturally diverse contestants!
Oh do I miss Dan Levy as a host (season 1) I wonder if it is deliberate but the Canadian hosts are as bad as the British hosts, so annoying!
Season 5 starts next week.
Together we finished The I-Land an American science fiction thriller miniseries.
We watched the first episode of The Lost Symbol an adaptation of Dan Brown's book. Much of the series was filmed in and around Toronto. We quickly spotted Union Station!
We're finished off Nine Perfect Strangers.
Friday was Movie Afternoon since we didn't go out.
First up was the 2000 Panic . It kept our attention as a thriller.
The Flaw an award-winning, well researched and informative documentary examining the root causes of the greatest financial crisis in 2008 the United States has seen since the Great Depression.
COOKING
Saturday John asked for curry chicken.
Sunday turkey, roast potatoes and carrots, mushy peas and maple Brussels sprouts. Pumpkin cheesecake mousse for dessert.
Monday we love to have turkey, bacon tomato sandwiches for breakfast. Dinner was leftovers.
Tuesday we had more leftover turkey with mashed cauliflower potatoes and Brussels sprouts.
Wednesday I used the last of the turkey in a diced tomato/chicken stock sauce with celery, peppers, carrots and onions and the leftover mashed.
Thursday done with turkey! Hamburgers.
Friday steak sandwiches with onions,cheese and peppers.
CREMA CATALINA - I loved this when we were in Spain!
The book that I mentioned starting last week Invisible City had to be one of the worst books I've read this year. The writing was awful but worse was the main character's ignorance. Didn't both with the ending.
Then in 1860, the fort played an important role when France annexed Nice.
Sitting in the port Vauban in Antibes is this sculpture, a creation by Catalan artist Jaume Plensa, at the far edge of the rampart, a squatting giant entirely made of letters.
Walking is the easiest way to get around Antibes' narrow, cobblestone streets, since most of them are pedestrianized and all of the attractions lie within the historic city center.
Picasso stayed at the 16th century Chateau Grimaldi shortly after World War II and donated several works to the restored museum which you will also visit. Approximate tour duration is 3 hours.
We arrive at the Picasso museum at 10, opening time.
Originally a residence for Bishops in the Middles Ages, the chĂąteau became the home of the Grimaldi family in 1385 giving it its name ChĂąteau Grimaldi. Over the years it was successively the residence of the King’s Governor, the Town Hall, military barracks and from 1925 a historical museum having been bought by the city of Antibes for this purpose.
From 1925 the chateau was known as the Grimaldi Museum. In 1946 it was the home for six months of the artist Pablo Picasso. Today the museum is known as the Picasso Museum, the first museum in the world to be dedicated to the artist.
There were sculptures outside overlooking the bay by various artists.
Quite the life.
Picasso’s work is displayed on the top floor, in the space that was his studio, leaving the ground and first floor for other modern artists and temporary exhibitions.
From the museum we walked down to the town square where we were given time on our own.
.
A glass of wine in the sunshine.
A quick ride back to the hotel and we walked to the bay for lunch on our own.
The beach area below the pinede forest and Palais de Congres plays host to a jazz festival (Jazz Ă Juan) held here during 10 days in the middle of July each year - the festival has been taking place for more than 50 years.
The festival is the second most important in the world in the jazz calendar and over the years has attracted almost every recognized jazz musician from Louis Armstrong and Count Basie and Duke Ellington to John Coltrane and Sonny Rollins. You can see some of their hand prints preserved forever near the stage area.
AND another church...
Back to the hotel by the Palias de Congres.
Dressed up and passports in hand we are ready for our optional tour to Monte Carlo.
DEPART - 4 PM Tonight, see glamorous Monte Carlo's lights glisten as you travel along the magical seaside Corniche on the optional night tour.
We did a very nice drive along the Corniche in Nice. SO MUCH MONEY!
Now this is the Lifestyle of the Rich and Famous!
MONEY? We all googled this "yacht". It is worth 250 MILLION US!!
The yacht Quantum Blue was built by Lurssen Yachts and delivered to her owner in 2014. Her interior design is by Alberto Pinto Design. She is a frequent visitor of the Cote D’ Azur. Moving between France, Italy and Spain. Her home berth is Nice.
Who is Sergey Galitsky
He is the founder of the Russian retail chain Magnit.
We made a photo stop and Laura surprised us with bottles of champagne.
Drive to the Principality of Monaco to see the route of the Grand Prix, the luxury boats in the harbour and view the Prince's Palace, atop the famed "Rock".
Border control.
There was fencing everywhere as they got ready for the Grand Prix.
The Monaco Grand Prix is a Formula One motor race held each year on the Circuit de Monaco. Run since 1929, it is widely considered to be one of the most important and prestigious automobile races in the world and, with the Indianapolis 500 and the 24 Hours of Le Mans, forms the Triple Crown of Motorsport. The circuit has been called "an exceptional location of glamour and prestige".
The race is held on a narrow course laid out in the streets of Monaco, with many elevation changes and tight corners as well as a tunnel, making it one of the most demanding tracks in Formula One. In spite of the relatively low average speeds, the Monaco circuit is a dangerous place to race and often involves the intervention of a safety car. Thus, it is the only Grand Prix that does not adhere to the FIA's mandated 305-kilometre (190-mile) minimum race distance for F1 races.
Stop at the world-famous Monte Carlo Casino, one of the Riviera's most photographed landmarks.* Monte Carlo is the epitome of wealth and glamour; a prime destination for royalty and some of Hollywood's most famous actors and actresses.
Because of the Grand Prix the bus couldn't let us off at the normal spot and instead we had to climb a lot of stairs to get to the casino. This was especially hard on people in our group with mobility issues.
The casino itself was a bit of a let down. You have to pay to enter, 17 euros which you can have applied to your food bill should you decide to eat there.
John wanted a photo of part of the Grand Prix route.
*Please note that ripped or light-colored jeans, t-shirts, sweatshirts, tracksuits, sports clothing, shorts and beachwear, sandals and flip-flops for gentlemen, and sneakers will not be permitted. Enjoy the lights of the dazzling Corniche road coastline as you return to your hotel. Approximate tour duration is 6 hours. Bank on the bus by 9 , barely even dinner time. Would I recommend this tour? Probably not unless you want to add Monaco to your list of countries visited. We started at 4, back on bus at 9, then hit some traffic snags due to Grand Prix and back at hotel at 10:30. No. Optional: Picasso Museum Tour (AM) BOOKED Optional: Monte Carlo by Night (PM) BOOKED Overnight: French Riviera Meals: Breakfast
