From the Seine River to the Adriatic Sea—Schengen Eight-Country Self-Driving Tour (6) Tour of Southern France

August 19 Pisa-Genova-Monaco-Hapoleon 407 kilometers

Many people from Central Europe go to Italy and Spain for beach vacations, mainly because of their climate. Europe is really not hot, so if you want to swim in the sea, you can only go to places with relatively low latitudes. We are leaving Italy soon, and we also want to experience a "vacation", so one of our tasks today is to find a Mediterranean beach for swimming.

Hotel buffet

The hotel's buffet breakfast is very rich and the environment is very beautiful. It will be enjoyable to stay here for a while, so we set off at 10:30. In less than 2 hours after leaving Pisa, we arrived in Genova. Genoa is the largest commercial port in Italy and a famous tourist resort in the Mediterranean. There are many Chinese people here and many people do small business here. I and a We chatted with a young man from Wenzhou who was setting up a street stall. He said that the money here is very easy to make. The prices of the goods on his stall were not much higher than those in China. It seems that it is still very hard to make big money, but I know that the Chinese can really do it. endure hardship.

bay of genoa

I have a lot of feelings while walking in Europe these days. Through my contact with the local people, I don’t find that they are smarter than the Chinese, let alone that they work harder than us, but why are their living standards so much higher than those in China? Woolen cloth? Living in villas, driving RVs, and taking family vacations have become a common way of life here. Imported goods are often cheap in stores. Many daily necessities for Europeans (such as coffee) are not produced locally. Such dependence on foreign countries makes People feel unsafe, but local people take it for granted. On the other hand, we work hard and are self-sufficient, but we are always striving for a "well-off" standard of living. When vacations often become a luxury, we do have some doubts in our minds.

We finally came to the beach. This kind of black gravel beach should be a major feature of the Mediterranean. The ground is uneven, but the locals only spread a towel and quilt and lay on it. They were not afraid of stones or the sun. We also We spread the moisture-proof mat on the pebbles, put the food on the mat, went for a swim in the sea, and then came back to solve the stomach problem. The time passed quickly, but the sun here is too poisonous, and our skin is really not as good as the locals. Humans resist the sun.

Monaco is located in southwest Europe, surrounded by France on three sides and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. It is about 3 kilometers long from east to west, and the narrowest point from north to south is only 200 meters, covering an area of ​​1.95 square kilometers. It is the second smallest independent country in the world (the first is the Vatican City in Rome, Italy, with an area of ​​only 0.44 square kilometers). The territory is mountainous, with the highest point being 573 meters above sea level.

Bird's eye view of Monaco

When her daughter came here, she didn’t want to leave. The reason was that there were many animals to feed here, not only those that flew in the sky, but also those that swam in the water. Although the beach was only a few dozen meters away from the downtown area in a straight line, there were many tall buildings. The casino is just around the corner, but the waterfowl here don't seem to be afraid of people at all. What they are afraid of is the snatching of food by the same kind. The fish in the sea are in groups, and when you put down the bread, the fighting scene is no less than that of the goldfish in our park. The surging formation. My daughter sat by the water and stayed there until dark.

beach

Today our plan is still to visit the coastal city clusters of the Mediterranean, and our first destination is Nice.

Nice is the fifth largest city in France and the second largest tourist destination. Nice is similar to Monaco, surrounded by mountains on three sides and facing the sea on one side. The mountains protect Nice from the cold north wind. Warm winters and cool summers are the main climate characteristics of Nice. The landform near the sea also results in Nice having abundant sunshine and fine weather all year round.

Nice street scene

Cannes, 30 kilometers away from Nice, has the same urban characteristics as Nice. The small town of Cannes is nestled at the foot of the green mountains and is on the edge of the Mediterranean Sea, occupying a unique geographical location. Walking around the city, white buildings, blue sea, and rows of tall emerald palm trees contrast with each other, forming a beautiful natural scenery. Its most fascinating landscape is also the beautiful seaside avenue, which is wide and clean, with beaches and bays on one side and elegant buildings on the other. There are both ancient buildings from the last century and very modern buildings (source: Player Travel)

Cannes Beach is significantly smaller than Nice, but the ground is sand instead of stone.

Cannes is world-famous for the International Film Festival (Festival International du Film) held in May every year. Our car has not yet entered the city, and the huge photos of celebrities on the walls of roadside hotels have already hinted at the atmosphere of "movie culture" to us. The Grand Auditorium (Grand Auditorium) is located by the port. It is an important meeting place for the Cannes Film Festival and attracts the most attention. The Palme d'Or is awarded here. This stadium-like theater is the most visited place in Cannes. The bright red carpet is spread from the door to the sidewalk, but if you want to take a picture on the red carpet, you have to wait in line. There are many performance artists around the auditorium. They wear armor and imitate soldiers. I don’t know which movie the characters come from.

Huge photos of celebrities on hotel walls

Marseille is the oldest city in France. It was founded in the 6th century BC. It was incorporated into the Roman territory in the first century BC. It then declined and almost became extinct before rising again in the 10th century. In 1832, the port throughput was second only to London and Liverpool in the United Kingdom, becoming the third largest port in the world at that time. During the French Revolution in 1792, the Marseilles marched into Paris singing the "Battle Hymn of the Rhine". The passionate singing inspired people to fight for freedom. The song later became the French national anthem and was called "La Marseillaise."

Marseille is also the second largest city and largest seaport in France. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea in the southeast, with deep water and a wide harbor. There are no rapids and dangerous shoals. 10,000-ton ships can sail unimpeded. Marseille Port is divided into the Old Port and the New Port. The Old Port is in the city's harbor. The Old Port (Vieux Port) is the tourist center of Marseille. It has now become a dock for yachts. There are cruise ships here going to Yves Island. Yves Island is famous for its description in "The Count of Monte Cristo" Famous for imprisoning Dantès. La Basilique Notre Dame De La Garde (La Basilique Notre Dame De La Garde) near the Old Port and the golden "Bonne Mere" statue on its bell tower are important symbols of Marseille. The new port area is in the west and is the second largest port in Europe after the Port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands. (Source: Leto European Travel Network)

Marseille street scene

The service areas of French highways are generally several kilometers away from the main roads. There are far fewer vehicles than domestic service areas, and the hotels in the service areas are often some distance away from the gas stations. Living here, the scenery is beautiful, quiet and comfortable, and The space is spacious, the decoration is high-end, and the price is not expensive. This is the most suitable choice for our family who spends a day shopping during the day and has to cook for the children at night. When we open the windows in the morning, the fresh air feels like we are staying at a resort.

Hotels in expressway service areas

Since I don’t have a GPS, I got lost when I was leaving the city. Fortunately, there are maps under the bus stops here. With the help of a compass, I can still drive out of the city. Lyon is 500 kilometers away from Paris, and we still have a short distance. In two days, half a day at the end of Paris should be enough. If we take the highway, we will have an extra full day, so I have the idea of ​​​​walking around the French countryside roads.

The rural roads in France have scenery similar to that of Germany, but the temperature here is high and the agriculture is obviously more developed. The crop fields on both sides of the road are endless. This is very similar to the scenery of the Sanjiang Plain in northeastern my country, but when it comes to small towns, it is... A European scenery of villas mixed with church bell towers. This place is really vast and rich in resources, with farmland everywhere, and there are very few cars on the road. Driving here is like taking a drive!

Walking on a French country road

In the evening, we arrived at Nemours, which is only more than a hundred kilometers away from Paris. There is a famous tourist attraction nearby - the Palace of Fontainebleau. We still had enough time, so we decided to stop here. It's better to go to the expressway and find a hotel in the service area. My stay yesterday was good and I want to taste it again.

Plane: Charles de Gaulle (CDG) - Doha (16:00-23:25); Doha (Doha) - Hong Kong (HKG) (10:05-14:50) are all local time

The Palais de Fontainebleau (Palais de Fontainebleau) is one of the largest royal palaces in France. It is located in Fontainebleau (Fontainebleau) in the Seine-Marne region of the Ile-de-France region in northern France. In 1137, King Louis VI of France ordered the construction of a castle here. Many famous architects and artists participated in the construction of this palace of French emperors. Later, it was rebuilt, expanded, decorated and repaired by successive kings, making the Palace of Fontainebleau a magnificent palace. French emperors such as Henry II, Henry IV, Louis XIV, Louis XV, Louis XVI and Napoleon all lived here. Royal weddings and funerals are often held here. Queen Christina of Sweden, Tsar Peter I of Russia, and King Christian VII of Denmark have all stayed here. After Napoleon became emperor, he chose Fontainebleau Palace as his imperial monument. From 1812 to 1814, Pope Pius VII was imprisoned here by Napoleon. In 1814, Napoleon was forced to sign abdication here and delivered his famous farewell speech to his Guards Corps. From 1945 to 1965, the military headquarters of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization was located here, and the "NATO" mark still remains outside the walls of the Fontainebleau Palace.

The main building of Fontainebleau Palace includes a main tower, six palaces, five unequal courtyards, and four gardens. The main attractions in the palace include the ballroom, conference hall, Diana Fresco Gallery, Porcelain Gallery, Queen's Salon, King's Guard Hall, Queen's Bedroom and Pope's Bedroom, King's Office, Francois I Gallery, etc. The Chinese Pavilion in the palace can be said to be the reappearance of the Old Summer Palace in the West. It has a collection of more than 30,000 famous Chinese paintings, gold and silver jewelry, porcelain, incense burners, chimes, gems, gold and silverware. The area surrounding the Palace of Fontainebleau is 17,000 hectares of forest, including oak, cypress, birch, beech and other trees. In the past, it was a hunting, picnic and entertainment place for the Wang family. There are many circular clearings in the forest, and star-shaped forest paths spread out in all directions, criss-crossing. (Source: Baidu Encyclopedia)

At three o'clock in the afternoon, we finally returned to Paris. The flight is tomorrow morning. My wife also wanted to use the afternoon to visit famous stores in Paris. I left them on the Champs Elysées and then drove around the city by myself. Paris's highways and There are a lot of vehicles on the main road, and we often encounter traffic jams. But when we drive into the residential area, it feels very smooth, and I found that free parking spaces are easy to find. It seems that if you just want to spend a day in Paris, you can definitely stay there. on the outskirts of town, and then park your car in the city.

back to paris

Summary of the trip

1. Road conditions

This trip covered a total of 5,000 kilometers, of which about 3,000 kilometers were highways, accounting for 60%, 1,300 kilometers were rural roads, accounting for 26%, and the rest were 700 kilometers of urban roads, accounting for 14%. There are no bad roads.

2. Refueling

A total of 223 euros for refueling (refueling in Switzerland has been converted into euros). Calculated based on an average of 1.1 euros per liter, 202 liters of diesel, and the whole journey statistics is 4.05 liters of diesel per 100 kilometers. It should be quite fuel-efficient.

3. Cost

The visa fee for three people is 2,440 yuan, the air ticket is 15,900 yuan, the Hong Kong transportation fee is 192 Hong Kong dollars, the car rental fee is 510 euros, the highway toll is 161 euros plus 30 Swiss francs, and the parking fee totals about 35 euros. In addition, the Paris Metro ticket costs 20 euros. The total cost of meals and food (including travel, excluding the cost of treating friends and classmates) was 420 euros, and the total cost of accommodation was 869 euros and 189 Swiss francs. The most expensive accommodation was 169 Swiss francs in Geneva, and the cheapest was 50 Swiss francs in a small hotel in Venice. In euros, the ticket costs 203 euros, mainly spent on Versailles Palace, Swan Castle, etc. and tour bus and boat fees. See the table below for specific details.