Another perfectly sunny day in Southern France.  The headlines in the local paper are that Tracy Champan triumphed last night at the jazzfest. Vive Le Tracy!

Breakfast on the patio at the hotel overlooking the water, watching families gather on the beach for another day of relaxation.  I love the French breakfasts, which include lovely crepes which I load up with Nutella!
Tremendous.  Lots of fresh fruit and yogurt at every meal, plus croissants with jam and an assortment of cheeses. As always, a large selection of different types of specialty hams and that delicious French butter wrapped in silver foil. To die for!

I wanted to tell you about the Jazz Walk of Fame here in Juan.  It's located on the sidewalk just in front of the venue where the music is performed.  As you walk, look down and see the handprints of the great talents who've performed here, and you realise what fine sounds have come down here over the decades.  Stephane Grappelli, '93. Little Richard (no date), Shirley Horne, '99. Sonny Rollins, '95.  Wynton Marsalis' surprisingly small handprint...with a beautifully-drawn trumpet next to his name...Jack DeJohnette, '95.  George Benson REALLY pressed his thumb down in that cement like Superman!  and then the ENORMOUS AND BOLD hand of Chucho Valdes.  Based on this sidewalk, if I needed help lifting a car, I wouldn't hesitate.  I'd call Chucho.

David Sanborn, '99. Chick Corea, '96.  Dee Dee Bridgewater's etheral signature.  Then three lefties in a row ( I notice these things cuz I'm a lefty, too).  PAT METHENY'S upper case signature and slightly slanted left hand, '99.  And the one that stops my heart--the beautifully centered print of Ray Charles' small hand, placed delicately in the true center of the tile, planted just so. Fingers meticulously close together, as if he were being graded on the placement.  And he wrote out the complete date:  7-21-1999, as though he wanted to hold on to this moment in time forever.

Then Al Jarreau's jaunty hand waving hello, tilted all the way to the right in a friendly fashion, making me smile.  So like Al.  And finally, the hand of B. B. King.  Incredible, but you can see clearly his long, long lifeline in the print.  Not on those of the hands around his, but prominent in his tile.  As if to prove he'll outlive us all.

As I gaze fondly down at the street, and bend to place my hand on these prints (who knew my fingers were an inch longer than Ray Charles' and yet he was such a musical giant!) people around me start to become aware of the sidewalk on which they're stepping, and start to smile and make comments about the artists.  It's a really nice way to spend some time, and I hope you get to come to this walk of fame sometime.  I don't think there's another like it.  (please correct me if you know of one, and tell me where it is!)

Yesterday we toured the most amazing old fortress perched on the highest point in Antibes.  It's called the Fort Carre and it was built in the shape of a star in order to protect the town from all sides--from the Corsicans, from the North, and from Nice, believe it or not!  Nice was once Italian, and therefore the enemy at the time. There were only 3 of us walking through this ancient structure, and we definitely felt the presence of the soldiers who once guarded the city, baked their own bread and did their own laundry! (see guys? if soldiers can do it.....)  Anyway, it's pretty astounding to touch
doors and their hardware that were hand-crafted in the 13th century.

Those were the days when if you had red hair, they burned you because they thought you were a witch. Yet craftsmen's work was so superb, it survives and operates well to this very day.  Soldiers have carved their names in some of the stone blocks, and you catch your breath looking at their
antiquated "penmanship".  No one wants to be forgotten.

Then we took a different tour--this one of the uspcale variety.  We drove a few miles up a curvy road to a place called Billionaire's Bay.  Disembarking from the hired Jaguar, we felt a bit underdressed for such a grand villa and its gardens.  This was the Villa Eilenroc!  Where a beautiful French opera singer  lived with her very wealthy American husband. This is where they entertained the grand society of the mid-century.  After her husband's death, the lady of the house stayed on for several years, but finally 'downsized' considerably and moved to an apartment in Monaco, as not to rattle around that ginormous home and grounds all by herself.  There's even a map on the wall of the house's interior in case you're to get hopelessly lost in the warren of different rooms.

It's a real feast for the eyes, and it was so nice of the housekeeper to let us view the property, since it's normally closed to the public on Mondays.  The gardens offer an absolutely breathtaking view of Billionaire's Bay....which is inaccessible by foot.  In other words, think of the island in the movie King Kong where they capture the beast.  Erase the fog, and you've pretty much got a mental picture of the craggy rocks that stick up and prevent any boat landing whatsoever at this coveted spot. It's thrilling to watch the waves crash on the shore, and to look out at the lazy boats that have made this spot their homme for a few hours. The water here is a delicious blue-green like the Caribbean, and the air is rarified.

The estate now belongs to the town of Antibes, and is used for private and government functions. Just last week there was a classical music festival held on the grounds, and I'm sure it was a fantastic experience for those lucky enough to attend.

Sandra from the New York Post told me about a story she heard yesterday from a local journalist, since we're on the subject of billionaires.  Apparently a couple of weeks ago a very wealthy Russian entrepreneuer threw a party for his 8 month old son...somethingn to do with a Jewish custom when a baby turns 8 months old.  The party was lavish, to say the least.  Proud Papa spent 50 millionn dollars on the affair, and the entertainers included Mariah Carey, Shakira, and Ricky Martin.  For an 8 month old BABY!!!  I hope he appreciated it!  Sandra saw the video of the party with her own eyes and was stupefied.  Take that, "Sweet 16" reality show!  You've been outdone.  Somehow, I think the baby might have been happier with a new rattle and a few hugs from his daddy rather than a loud party with a lot of strangers....but I guess they do things differently here on the Riviera.

After all this walking, we were working up a fierce appetite, so we hit the local market (one of my favorite things to do in France!) and checked out the local produce and cheeses for sale. The pride with which these products were displayed was very apparent, and each individual green bean (haricot vert) was scrubbed and gleaming.  I'm a sucker for presentation, so to me, this was thrilling.

Lunch was served at a beautiful restaurant called L'Auberge Provencale, which was formerly a chapel. We dined in the garden next to a fountain, where the nuns used to sing.  So charming !  So delicious!

We had beet salad, fresh oysters from Bouzigues, and filet of perch flown in from Egypt and sauteed in olive oil and provencale herbs. SO delicious!  Dessert was heavenly, too--glacee framboise--strawberry ice with whipped cream and fresh strawberries..as well as chilled peach soup presented in a martini glass.  Superb! Our wonderful guide, Leticia, was full of love for Antibes, and imparted the vibrant sprit of the town to us and told us why she has chosen to live here. (not that we needed much coaxing to love it here, after a day like today and a dessert like that!)  But thank you, Leticia, for making our pleasure complete by adding your personal feelings for Antibes to the mix.

We strolled through the ancient town after lunch and wished fervently we'd remembered to bring our cameras with us.  Make sure you bring yours--every time--when you're strolling old Antibes.  I'll happily come back tomorrow on my own and take some shots to share with you.

That's the beauty of travel.  Experiences that are un-duplicatable. Personal. Mind-opening. And even spiritual.  Thanks for reading, and do thnk about where you might want to go on YOUR next opportunity to take a trip!  See you on the radio on Monday!