On Day 2 in Nice, we decided to take another "petit train" ride - on the recommendation of a friend who had just been to Nice a few weeks prior. We wondered if it would cover the same ground as the car caravan, but the route was different and we got some different vistas and history.
Afterward we walked around the Vielle Ville (old town) and looked for some lunch. We were kind of tired of the standard French bistro menu by then and ended up at a Mexican cafe. Initially with some trepidation, but actually the food was quite good - and a change from recent meals. Might be the best veggie tacos I’ve ever had
We continued our walk and unfortunately learned the hard way that once you're in the center of the old village, you cannot get a cab. There are no cars allowed. We asked what happens when you are staying at a hotel in that neighborhood - they told us you either have to bring your luggage in yourself or hire a special small electric car. So for me, one more round of walking further than I had intended, but with frequent rest stops, I managed to trudge out to the area where cars were allowed and got home. It's a lovely area, on a hilly part of town, but venture in cautiously if walking is challenging.
When we got back to the apartment, we were met with this notice:
It says that the water will be shut off at 8 am the next day for repairs and also you can't use the drains at all - so no flushing with saved water as we sometimes do when they work on the pipes at home. We thought about it for a while and finally decided that we didn't want to spend our last 2 days on vacation wondering when we could use the toilet or having to roam around looking for available ones. We're too old for that. So we made the radical decision to move to a hotel - as Linda said, we are lucky we can afford to deal with it that way. Our subsequent accomodations were not as luxe, but it was the kind of clean, but a little worn at the edges hotel that we would have happily stayed in when we were younger. I liked the name - The Hotel Paganini (there was an actual violin at the front desk). The best deal available was the triple (3 beds) and for 2 nights we were fine with that. It was a tight squeeze, but it came with a mini fridge and a bathroom with unlimited access.
And the smallest elevator so far - you can go up or your bags can go up - takes some planning:
One advantage of the move was the opportunity to explore a new neighborhood. Less touristy and for some reason it was a haven for Vietnamese restaurants (I counted 5). We looked in the windows and chose the one with the most Asian people inside. It was already packed at 7:15 although it had just opened at 7:00. But our host made room for us in the back room next to the table where grandma was keeping track of things and doing veg prep. A little later a couple and their son arrived, clearly regulars because they greated everyone by name and with kisses. Grandma was moved out of her spot and the trio was seated between the wine cases and Tzing Tao box. "Fantastique - La place d'honneur" (the seat of honor)! Exclaimed the woman of the family.
The menu was a little challenging - all pictures with mostly Vietnamese and a bit of French text. But happily I recognized one of my favorite Viet dishes - Banh Xeo a sort of cross between a crepe and an omelette, filled with bean sprouts, shrimp, chicken, onions. Served with a heap of lettuce and herbs. You cut off a slice of the omelette and make a lettuce wrap with the herbs, then dip it in the accompanying rice vinegar sauce. Messy, but delicious and this was a particularly good one - light and not at all greasy, with plenty of Asian basil and cilantro.
So all-in-all, we were happy with our move.