The joy of walking without purpose - on the French Riviera!

The best of all worlds IS to be had here in the Alpes-Maritimes - we are, of course, delighted to be tucked away just North of Nice in the Mercantour National Park.  

However with a strict renovation timetable allowing us to be ready for guests over the festive season, we haven't been too far afield!

We were however tempted by some culture on the coast,  and the chance to escape for the day.  Getting on the €1.50 bus, albeit at 07.15, is an instant step into no-responsibility'ville - no concerns over bad driving, parking on the coast......your fate rests with the usually not too!, manic driver who will deposit you at the "seaside"....

We can't guarantee this beautiful dancer from the Alonzo King Ballet company - but lots of other excitement awaits!!

Ah to wander without purpose and gaze, and window shop....nothing bought aside from some great coffee - local coffee roasting - yum!!

Our new Nice Museum Pass  - available to residents of the Metropole (with ID and a proof of address) - allowed us back into the Musee des Beaux Arts after a gap of some 10 years - a gorgeous building and much lovely art including one of our favourites, which will shortly be gracing our kitchen wall!!

Thanks to winter opening - only from 11-6! - we did walk back and forth from central Nice several times,  just taking our time and enjoying the buzz for the Nice marathon which took place on November 5 2017.

Lunch - at the always generous Le Socrate - just off the main shopping street - Jean Medecin - a Lebanese feast at its best - and great value - even on a Saturday - they do offer an astonishingly good value lunch platter for c €12 from Monday to Friday.

Another recent recommendation has been for the Portuguese restaurant - Peixes ...fish orientated as you would imagine!!

The Opera in Nice remains quaint, a hop from the flower market, and some of the most pretentious/expensive restaurants in Nice.  It reminds me of being in the Theatre Royal in Bury St Edmunds - let's hope that they don't knock it down and create a modern monstrosity.

Mahler's 6th - not everyone's choice for a light couple of hours but amazingly complex and "listenable"!! - the Philharmonic has a new musical director - a Mr Rath,
and talented he was too in achieving success with this tricky piece. 

We were magic'd back to our Mercantour lair with a kind friend who had made the effort to do the return trip - after a short sojourn in Ma Nolan's Irish pub in Old Nice.

Yes - there is everything down here!! - and now we have SNOW!! - and accommodation, still available, for the Christmas week here in Berthemont les Bains.

Planning a long weekend in February for snow shoeing - not yet on line!!

www.space-between.co.uk

Walking and adventure holidays in the Mercantour - and Provence, plus Gran Paradiso in Italy.

Christmas snow shoeing in France

Want to get away from the hustle and bustle of commerce overload over the festive season?

It's fun to be with like-minded people on holiday - good walking - good eating - good company - sounds the perfect break.

The obvious snow holiday is of course to slap on the planks or the surf board and zip down hill in your pretty resort.

What your hosts - spacebetween are very pleased to offer are snow holidays, just a stone's throw from the French Riviera, where you can pad around in the wilds on snow shoes, and enjoy both views down to the Med, and up to the massif of the Mercantour.

These holidays start over the Christmas and New Year period and then continue until the end of March.  However with mountains up to over 3000m there is snow (even now as I type) on high level walks until the summer.

Snow shoeing is quite strenuous as an exercise but does not require any great skill - with a bit of "oomph" in your thighs - it takes a tiny amount of time to master your "tennis rackets! - no they are not really like that these days!! - and be proficient. 

What is then a delight is to put your "heels" on to help you up hill, and then "yay" attach the back of your shoes for some downhill "pfloofing" - a spacebetween  trademark word - if not registered!

For the inexperienced, this is running down hill in powder like a maniac and then diving over!

What could be more fun!!!

 Fly to Nice and let spacebetween take the strain!!

snow shoeing holidays in France
snow shoeing holidays over the festive season
Christmas holidays in the snow
New Year in the snow
Vegetarian holidays over Christmas
Vegetarian holidays New Year

Snow - Now there will be snow shoeing!!!

At last the Alpes-Maritimes is able to join company with its friends in the North and throw open its doors for some snow activity. Traditionally, it seems at least, there has been enough snow for the Christmas and New Year period to make it worthwhile to dig out your gaiters and gloves, but this year the sun just kept on shining - almost three months with just two grey days. Our winter walking holidays over the festive season were a great success, thanks to fabulous guests who were delighted with the clear blue skies, a variety of walks, excellent food and good company....what we do at its best and most satisfying....since then the department has been rather holding its breath - with the higher ski resorts hanging on by the skin of their teeth, offering hard grainy snow chucked out by snow cannons - not always a perfect solution either given the dearth of rain fall in recent months. After a tense month, where did January go?, there has been a flurry of activity on Facebook this weekend, all movers and shakers in the Alpes-Maritimes being cock-a-hoop about the precipitation.....and the dull weather offering the perfect excuse to sit down and watch one of the most exciting tennis matches ever!!!! Not sure that the horses were too thrilled about the concept but they did have a good roll around in it before realising that munching the hay was a wiser idea.....we are looking forward to our two weeks in mid February now very much......blue skies are promised from the middle of next week...and we may even add a further week in March if there is sufficient interest. Flights from the UK to Nice, given that it is not a "destination" ski airport remain good value - plus if you time it correctly you can enjoy the Nice Carnaval and the Menton Lemon Festival too.....we may have all the tools to create perfect walking holiday in the Mercantour for you but don't forget that the mimosa will be out soon on the coast on the French Riviera. Check us out!!

Why snowshoe?? The ultimate winter walking holiday!!!

We are just offering our final places for our winter walking holidays in the Mercantour for the winter season 2011/2012.

It is great to see that snow shoeing is gaining in popularity - and you don't have to be a super fit hard nut to enjoy the sport either!!! The crazies might be interested in snow shoe running events - yes really - but for most mere mortals - snow shoes are an excellent way of getting out in the white stuff with minimal effort.

Snow shoes - used by Man for centuries used to be tennis racquet type affairs - formerly crafted from wood and animal gut - which attached to the foot allowed hunters and keen beans, the chance to move around in the snow, without sinking in too much. Today, and fortunately, the equipment is more sophisticated. The cheaper end of the market does recreate the tennis effect, but these shoes, with rubber attachments are best avoided as you slide around like nobodies business. Best to stick with a reliable brand such as TSL - these wonder items - can be adjusted to fit your boot size and have attachments around the toe and the ankle area. Wearers are armed (or footed!) with a studded base, and a super evil front "claw" which can be kicked into snow on steep inclines, It is best to leave the base plate loose from your foot on ascent, or even engage the natty "heel" which raises the back of your foot and puts less strain on your calves. Coming down hill - and to prevent balling up of the snow (surprisingly heavy!) - it is best to attach the base plate so there is no flapping around and you can floof (spacebetween trademark verb!) downhill - scree running style with less danger. This also avoids the risk of making an unside down "v" with your snow shoe - not recommended at all!

What we at spacebetween particularly like about snow shoeing is its suitability for all ages, sizes and fitness levels and the opportunity it gives to get off piste and into the wilderness. In the Mercantour , we have little shortage of that!!! Starting out in at say 1700m in a snow free zone, it might seem a pest to have to strap the blighters to your ruck sack but once you are in the snow - you will be grateful indeed. It's also useful to pack a pair of rubber over shoes into your sack for areas of little snow but some ice - these are cheap, compact, and easy to pack away.

You quickly gain confidence in your snow shoes and just need to remember to walk a little like a duck (legs slightly apart), so you don't fall over your feet. Sure it's quite strenuous exercise but you can take it all at your own pace. Poles are a great boon, allowing you to get into a rythmn, nordic walking style, plus offer a bit of support for difficult traverses.

Minded to act to get away from grey skies in the UK and into some great walking terrain - well give us a shout.