Bienvenue to the French Riviera

I’ve left Italy and have arrived in the South of France. I’m looking forward to a couple of weeks of beaches, hill towns, and great meals.

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The French Riviera has amazing scenery. From the beautiful (but grotesquely touristy) mountaintop village of Eze, you can look down on Cap Ferrat. This cape is one of the most exclusive places for the rich and famous to live — Paul Allen’s mansion is next door to the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild. Cap Ferrat is also geographically significant: This is where the Alps rise from the sea and begin their ripple across Europe, arcing from here all the way to Vienna’s doorstep.

 

chagal museum.jpgThe most visited museum on the French Riviera is, understandably, the Chagall Museum in Nice. One reason this museum is so enthralling is that it was designed by Marc Chagall himself to show off his art.

 

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In the world of Marc Chagall — who mixes religion, his Russian heritage, and physical love so elegantly — couples find it’s cuddle time.

 

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I love France and find the French people charming and fun. But I’ve noticed a strange attitude among some museum curators, who seem to believe that only French-speaking people pay their admission prices. I’ve seen so many fine museums this week that have plenty of staff just hanging around, but can’t find the time or energy to translate a single word into English (beyond a list of what’s forbidden and how much it costs to enter). I’m not just worried about my American readers — people from around the world communicate in the language of travel, which is English. This museum’s video has a French audio track. It has French subtitles for extra credit. And, in case a deaf person may be visiting, it devotes a quarter of the screen to a person signing. Yet fully half of the people touring the museum don’t speak French…and understand nothing. (I would bet a thousand non-French speakers come by for each deaf person who drops in.) It’s a lost opportunity. OK, I just had to get that off my chest. Merci.

Comments

7 Replies to “Bienvenue to the French Riviera”

  1. We were at Eze last summer late in the day. We took a tour which was lead by a resident! She took particular pride in making a life, raising a family, and worshipping at the small church in very confining quarters.

  2. What I found most annoying in one museum in particular was the staff only yelling at people of non white nationalities “no photo no photo” right beside others taking pictures. If there’s a rule, fine, but apply it equally. The d’orsay museum in particular was the only museum in Paris that seemed to have this issue yet it gets great reviews. Note: I was photographing the gorgeous ceiling and not exhibits. I guess the ceiling is copyrighted. The staff at all the other museums were great.

  3. Very excited to see this blog on France, we have only been Paris North and always though about the south. Hopefully you can let us in on some back door secrets since your first line about touristy is kind of sad. We took our friends to Italy and of course had to do the “touristy” part of Italy, but we all really enjoyed the small more quiet places.

  4. So we are upset that the French are only speaking French in France and are then informed that English is the language of travel. Interesting. I hope you realize how American this sounds. My mother tongue is English, but I speak other languages and while in countries where the languages I don’t speak are spoken, it never occurs to me to feel entitled that they speak my languages. Why do Americans feel the world should speak English for them? Europeans are not this arrogant, nor most Canadians and really not anyone else. So there is my rant.

  5. I agree with you – I found that to be true esp in Paris but often English audio guides were available.
    Thanks for sharing – I really like Marc Chagall’s art – glad to know of this showcase he designed himself.
    Judy B

  6. Are you going to see the chapel at Vence that Henri Matisse designed? It is marvelous.

    Judy B

  7. For someone who wrote about Tips for Travelers with Disabilities, you just lost a lot of credential by dismissing the need for captions or a person signing. Thanks, Rick.
    We may be few, but we are a good 30% of the few who benefit from these additional tools, regardless of what language we use.

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