La Mer

No, this is not a post about skin cream. It is partially about the sea. I love the sea, I love the smell, the sound, the feel. I live near the water now. It is one of the reasons I decided to move from Atlanta.To me the sea represents freedom and adventure, two things I would like to have more of in my life.

As I have been researching France I have discovered that all of the towns and villages I am attracted to are near the sea. One of my favorites is Villefranche-sur-mer. This litle town is located about five miles east of Nice on the Cote d'Azur. Despite being a heavily touristed area, most of the large cruise ships anchor here for visits to Nice and Monaco, it feels like a quaint and quiet fishing village. Small sailing boats dot the harbor. It is not as big as Nice or as fancy as Cannes and St. Tropez and that is what appeals to me. I have been lucky enough to have visited twice, both times I wanted to stay forever. In addition, I have recommended the village to a few friends all of whom thanked me for the suggestion.

Villefranche-sur-mer has everything I need to live a nice life: parks, museums, beaches, shops, markets, cafes, trains, and lovely architecture. There is also an excellent French language school, the Institut de Francais, that offers a French language immersion course. In addition, being so close to Nice, it has easy access to high speed rail for travel throughout Europe and an international airport should I need to get home in a hurry.

I found this video on YouTube and thought I would add it so that you can get an idea of the beauty of the village.