Leaving the Tonnel's driveway I get to use the steering wheel! While driving down the twisty road, we start to see something high up on the hillside... That is our destination for today: Eze Village. Nice structural arches. The thing about steep hills is you get the occasional tunnel. We're climbing, the water is a ways below us now. Our first good view of Eze Village, which as you can see, was built as a small fortified city. Or town. Village really. Jay looks off towards the start of our hike. (We're in the parking lot.) A view from below of the church on the mountain. If you don't know what a "maillot" is, this sign could be confusing. A colourful spice merchant has setup shop at the base of the village. Old stone fortifications need old stone places to shoot your enemies from. Everything in Eze Village is vertical. All fountains in this part of France are safe to drink from. (they tell us) The old cemetary, located near the church. We were trying to figure out if this building is abandoned, or under construction. I'm guessing a bit of both. A bit of attractive greenery. Peter and Graeme, approaching the church in Eze Village. (The cemetary is located behind us.) Passing to the right of the chuch, we continue up the path. From Peter's expression, I think he's contemplating his future, say 5 (or so) years from now? Eze Village is full of little shops like this. Not stroller friendly. I made a mistake today. Unfortunately I threaded my polarizer filter over my regular UV filter. The result is this vignetting at wide angle. My bad, I should know better. These white, stone, women are "wandering" around the cactus garden. Textures. This gives you a good feel for the garden. Hi Nissan. At this point we were speculating about W&C and M's hike from the house (possibly visible in the lower left) to the summit, on the right. Jay talks to the happy couple. I could have gone and fixed the vignetting on all these photos, but it didn't seem worth the trouble to do it to all of them. I'll crop before printing. I left the angle of this one, just for the fun of it. (I found it more interesting than the vertical shot.) Happy. One of our few family photos from the trip. Let's try not to look too much like tourists. This shows a bit more of the flat, top area. Peter was really good with Graeme... ...here they enjoy a fun game of "toss the water bottle". The view from the top. Less artistic, but I included this one because it shows all of Eze Bord de Mer, where we were staying. Hi Nissan. Peter proprosed in a (rather ritzy) restaurant, in that group of rooftops just visible behind Alexia's tummy. See, my theory is, if you return another day, you'll find that these statues have been wandering around. Okay, I have several of this shot, from different angles. I'll choose just one for the "best of" page, but until then, I'm subjecting you to the collection. Inquisitive, wouldn't you say? I like this roof. I'm not sure what's under it. (maybe a crypt?) The balcony there is one of the more expensive restaurants in the region. You can't beat the view. Jenn holds both kids as she waits for the rest of us to join her. Next stop will be food. That cactus is called a "mother-in-law cushion". Alexia is the twinkle in Peter's eye. Did we mention it's hot? Now we're looking for a restaurant. It feels like the stores have been carved out of solid rock. The next few photos illustrate the high-building, narrow-street nature of Eze Village. I've discovered I'm a sucker for ornate doors. Camera tip: I used a flash for a lot of these. Otherwise the shadows would be in blackness compared to the sun-baked walls. Ivy is good too... almost as good as... ...a spiffy, fortified door. How much history is concealed on the inside, I wonder? We stopped for a much needed break and enjoyed escargot and a local wine for lunch. (when in Eze...) Arches, wrought iron, and terracotta roofs. What's not to love? Tasty. Tell me this wasn't setup for photographers. What's that? Yup, another small door. The looks like it's older than all of us put together. Venice? This terrace can be seen by looking over the edge near the previous photos. Peter tells me it's the "grounds" of the stupidly-expensive restaurant they were engaged in. Carved burls. Valet parking knows which cars to leave out. This last photo was taken from the base of the hill, looking up away from Eze Village.