This year, from July 18-21, the Nice Jazz Festival will once again feature a diverse array of spectacular artists both new and highly recognized from around the world at the Théâtre de Verdure and Place Masséna.
Not only will the schedule offer great jazz, but also contemporary and world music, so that there will be something to appeal to almost anyone’s musical tastes.
Headlining the festival and who most people are looking forward to seeing is the ultra-cool and legendary Sir Tom Jones, including other such talents as Herbie Hancock, Grammy winner Diana Reeve, Juliette Armanet, and bassist Dave Holland, among many others.
The Nice Jazz Festival dates back to 1948 and is regarded as the world’s first-ever dedicated jazz festival. That first year, the event was broadcast live on French radio and featured the incomparable Louis Armstrong as the top-billed act.
Tickets start at €40, with two-day passes going for €75 but get your tickets fast as the concerts tend to book out quickly.
Summer lovin’ and this month it’s all about stone properties in the Cote d’Azur.
Stone has been a longstanding material used for decades in the region not only for its look but also for being a natural insulator in the winter and also for being able to keep a more temperament home during the sunny summer months.
With that, we have a selection of three properties that have caught our eye, each with its own distinctive look and location.
Roquefort-les-Pins 1,750,000 EUR
Area: 257m²
12 room(s)
6 bedroom(s)
Land: 2771m²
Charming Stone Mas located in a quiet area, yet only a short walking distance to the village of Roquefort Les Pins.
The villa, which has kept its original qualities, offers around 257 sqm of living space and is composed as follows: On the ground floor: hallway, giving access to the master bedroom with en-suite bathroom, dressing, and laundry room.
On the top level: 5 bedrooms, 2 shower rooms, library room/office. On the garden level: dining room and living room with direct access to the garden, kitchen with back kitchen, and office.
Provencal gardens of 2,771 sqm situated east- south facing, outdoor dining terraces, swimming pool, pool house.
Possible to renovate a stone annex into an apartment, and a room in the house can be converted into a studio. Well worth the visit to appreciate the tradition and volumes of this mas.
Villeneuve Loubet
2,550,000 EUR
A unique and charming villa on the market with access to the beach and sea.
Area: 141m²
5 room(s)
4 bedroom(s)
This stone-built home is a fully air-conditioned and recently renovated villa complete with luxurious home comforts and is located in a safe and tranquil neighborhood close to Marina Baie des Anges.
The villa is only 15 minutes from Nice Côte d'Azur airport.
There are 4 bedrooms with their own bathrooms, large terraces, and a breathtaking sea view.
The ground floor includes an entrance hall with exposed stone, a large living room with an open-plan kitchen and living room, and three bedrooms with their own shower room and toilet.
A beautiful designer staircase provides access to the upper and lower levels.
Upstairs, there is a magnificent terrace that offers a 180° sea view, as well as a master bedroom. In the air-conditioned basement, there is a cinema/playroom, a large cellar, and a laundry room.
Sainte-Maxime
13,500,000 EUR
Exceptional historic property on the market with panoramic sea views.
Area: 800m²
12 room(s)
9 bedroom(s)
Land: 5.5ha
Nestled on the heights of Sainte Maxime in a green setting of more than 5 hectares overlooking the bay towards the village of Saint Tropez, this prestigious estate was the residence of the niece of the Empress of Russia in the 1920s.
Only a few minutes from the city center and the beaches, the main stone Bastide from 1921 covers nearly 550 m² and offers today's comfort and modernity with the nobility from the construction time.
The high ceilings and the wide openings onto the gardens combine interiors and exteriors with the greatest of refinement.
A private heated swimming pool adorns the outdoor area to the west.
The guest house of the same standard from 1892 offers approximately 150 m² with 4 comfortable en-suite bedrooms, a large garage, and a central swimming pool linking the 2 buildings.
A little over 3 hectares of land are landscaped and fenced and the property has a private helipad facilitating unrestricted transfers.
This is something I never thought I would write a blog post about but because of my passion for everything that makes up the beautiful French Riviera, and for the love of the work with our clients and business partnerships, I thought it was best to let everyone know of something that has been happening to myself over the past numerous years.
As those who know me personally, I am very protective of our clients and those I work with here in France. And in our social media, a day doesn’t go by without us focusing as a team to showcase the best of the lifestyle here in the Cote d’Azur and Monaco in the hopes of making the dreams of those that want to come here come true, no matter how big or small.
Of late, a local business associate and friend let me know that he saw a very slanderous and libelous post on a forum that was aimed at myself and my business that was generally all over the map.
Reading it, although it shook me up, I knew who was behind this right away.
For a number of years now I have had to deal with being criminally harassed online by an individual I once knew back when I was still living in Canada.
We had been good friends, but that seemed to change once I made the final move here to France as his life was not going well at the time. So instead of focusing on the issues he had going on, he decided to spend hours of his days attacking me online through a community of fake Facebook characters he developed and on any other platform he felt he had a voice to tear me down.
When he was running out of ideas on how he could attack me personally, he started to go after my close family and friends, and eventually my business and business partners. This would all be interspersed with death threats to me which lead to more police involvement in not only Canada but also in France.
Dealing with this on a day-to-day basis has not been easy, except for the fact that I love my life and where l live, and I have the support of everyone around me, and that anything he was posting was all just lies.
Lawyers both here in France and Canada have always been involved, he has been notified legally to stop. Still, he continues to stalk me, claiming it is freedom of speech along with any other excuse for his actions, and that he is untouchable thinking he is a lawyer and media star.
After years of living in this abusive private situation. Since I have had to keep a timeline of his actions to go with the summaries for police and lawyers, along with the thousands of screenshots of his posts online, threatening emails, comments, etc. One way I was advised that might make him stop was to write a book about it, which I have done also in the hopes of helping others in a similar situation.
Although it has been published, it is available for free to read here with the complete details:
Writing the book seemed to make him stop about a month after it was published over a year ago. But now he is back at it his online harassment including the latest community of fake profiles to “support” each other with libelous comments.
In his latest, he seems to be grasping at straws with what he thought he knew of me in the past and is now focused on my business (since it is the busy season) which has been in operation for the past 12+ years to try and dissuade clients. He is seeking personal details to further his actions in a myriad of ways thinking it will take me down.
I have spent more than half my life dedicated to the region and wouldn’t have been able to make business transactions in month one if I didn’t have everything in order but he seems to have his own ideas on how things work here yet he has never been to Europe.
I am letting people know that for any questions you may have for me or my business, I am available to ask at any time. I am also open to hearing any further advice on dealing with such a situation.
Feel free to contact me directly at: Info@experiencethefrenchriviera.com
I also have the backing of anyone around me personally and pertaining to my business that can speak on my behalf.
At one point years ago this whole situation did take a toll on my personal health, which is exactly as he wanted stating in the hopes I would die.
I also then became a very private person due to his actions and wanted to protect those around me because if he found any indication of who I knew, he would then go after them.
I was deeply depressed from these daily ongoing attacks and acknowledge that I did consider suicide a number of times. I’d literally go to sleep at night feeling burdened and concerned about what he would do to me next, not only mentally but possibly physically, and my first thoughts in the morning would be, what did he post online overnight? He was going after my Mother in Canada in the last years of her life and is still going after my elderly Father who barely knows how the internet works.
Fortunately, I have wonderful, supportive friends and family around me, along with amazing clients and a robust business network who understand what is happening and continue to support me.
I have never felt stronger and more happy and passionate about everything I do here than now.
I have an amazing life here and absolutely love everything about the Cote d’Azur. Clients visiting regularly ask me what it is like to live here full time and I always say, even a bad day is a good day in the Riviera, and I feel my enthusiasm for the region shines in my work and through those I am associated with.
The best decision I ever made was to make my life here surrounded by truly wonderful and gifted individuals and nothing makes me happier than to see a client arrive and have their dreams of France realized.
In speaking with my lawyers and media professionals this past week pertaining to this criminal harassment situation, we have a plan in place to hopefully put an end to it all legally. If by chance you come across something online that doesn’t sound right or is attacking in nature, please let me know. As hard as it is to read such things, copies need to be made for legal reasons so that further action can be taken.
I want to personally thank everyone for their ongoing support.
If you are seeking a truly wonderful experience in the Principality of Monaco, I suggest spending part of an evening watching a movie under the stars at the Monaco Open Air Cinema.
I first wrote about this place almost a decade ago but it’s definitely worth repeating as upgrades to the cinema over the years have been made, and as of today (June 14th) it opens again to the public for the height of the summer season.
Located next to the architecturally beautiful Oceanography Museum, just a few minutes walk from the Prince’s Palace in Monaco, the Monaco Open Air Cinema is set up outside next to the edge of the Mediterranean Sea and offers a variety of movies both new and vintage throughout the season.
Seating depends on your comfort level and budget as there are standard outdoor chairs and even more lounge-like areas, all are on a first-come, first-serve basis in order to try and be fair for everyone. Refreshments are also available to purchase.
The cinema opens at 8:45 pm and starts getting underway at 9:30 pm with the movie starting at 10:00 pm. A suggestion would be to get to the location early as tickets also cannot be purchased online. This is more of an old-school idea of going to the cinema but also a memorable experience.
Something else that not many people will know about is that the fortress wall behind the screen is also part of the Monaco prison, but there are few windows and it is all located near the top of the fortress wall.
So, if you are looking for something slightly off the beaten tourist track that locals tend to enjoy this time of year, make a night of it at the Monaco Open Air Cinema.
Something that will certainly get locals talking is a new production that is set to tell the historic story of the Grimaldi family and Monaco itself.
Produced by the Casiraghi family themselves, and so far offering a hint of the series of films being slightly reflective of the widely watched series, “The Crown”, the Princely family of Monaco is now set to have its story told on screen and who better to do so than one of the family members? The series, which will be filmed in English, will be overseen by producer Dimitri Rassam, who is the husband of Charlotte Casiraghi, Princess Caroline’s youngest daughter.
The project, named “Monaco”, was announced at the 79th Cannes Film Festival, and is due to go into production in 2024.
Chapter 2 and Pathé, the production company, will join forces for this franchise of several films on the origins of the Grimaldi family, starting with the conquest of Monaco at the end of the 13th century. And Chapter 2, which is owned by Dimitri Rassam, will also work with Astrea Films, a Monegasque film production company run by Béatrice Borromeo, her husband Pierre Casiraghi, and her brother-in-law Andrea.
Speaking to the American film magazine Variety, Astrea Films said: “We were overwhelmed by the number of untold, intriguing, and epic stories that have been hidden in old documents and private correspondence over the centuries".
Last night I was fortunate enough to attend the second annual
Monaco Pride, and I have to say, it was one of the most memorable Pride
events I have ever experienced.
One could feel a
sense of optimism and comradery as everyone gathered in the main social
area of the hotel, set aside, especially for those of us in attendance.
Over 150 representatives of the State, including three National Council
members, public authorities such as the Department of External
Relations, the Directorate of Judicial Services, the Directorate of
National Education, Youth & Sports, the Office of the High
Commissioner for the Protection of Human Rights and Freedoms and the
French Ambassador to Monaco honored the event with their presence, along
with various business owners, volunteers, and the Monegasque community celebrating
the second edition of Monaco Pride on Thursday, June 1 at the Hotel
Novotel (the first Monaco Pride took place in June 2022 at
Stars'n'Bars).
Speakers included Gérald Mathieu, CEO of Barclays Private Bank Monaco,
Hervé Aeschbach, Fight Aids Association coordinator, Guillaume Rapin,
General Manager of Novotel Monaco, and the phenomenal Annette Anderson,
who in my opinion is the glue that keeps us all together.
Barclays Bank and Novotel have dynamic programs set in place to
encourage diversity and inclusion in the workplace and their efforts
were greatly appreciated by all.
Speakers highlighted positive developments in Monaco for the LGTBQIA+
community, including the support of Princess Stéphanie and her family
for the Fight Aids association. Also mentioned was the participation of
the ASM Football Club, which in recent years has worn rainbow-decorated
shirts on the International Day Against Homophobia every May 17th.
In 2022, the European Commission Against Racism and Tolerance
(ECRI) asked Monaco to examine and eliminate unjustified differences in
rights between same-sex and opposite-sex couples. And although signs of
progress have been made, there is still more to do.
This
past April, the Commission organized a round table in Monaco to discuss
its recommendations with representatives of the Principality's
government and community.
All the speakers on Thursday evening agreed that diversity,
inclusion, and equal civil rights for all Monegasque workers were
essential elements of a growing economy and a healthy community.
This
Pride event is sponsored by Barclays Private Bank and the Fight Aids
Association. This year, during the month of June, the front façade of
Barclays Bank will be illuminated in rainbow colors to mark Pride Month.
With
positivity, we all look forward to what is yet to come by working
towards equality together and by presenting Monaco as a gay-friendly and
safe place for visitors.
