Three Countries. One Day.

The “pinch me” part. Along our drive I had been seeing “travel-guide Italy”, scenic, seaside towns, cliffside old buildings, palm trees, polished hotels and trattorias. The statues, the weathered stone and white columns were brilliant against the blue sky we had been given, and were just the sights that make people book a vacation. Incredible. It was all here.

We drove west along the Ligurian Sea route, through Bordighera and Ventimiglia to the border town of Menton, France. We got out and strolled the seaside walk, the streetside markets, the town squares. I heard French all around me but forgot to switch to “Merci”.

Most of the details on this yellow building are painted. Can you tell which shutters are real?

We continued on to Monaco and the Casino Monte-Carlo…