A little time out

Going to Antibes to connect with Ursula and having some time out of Italy and the busy travelling schedule I have had since I started was such a wonderful interlude and I got to experience the Cote d'Azur - the most beautiful coast and a touch of France. It was so funny to get used to another language and to now remember to say Bonjour instead of Buon giorno and Merci instead of Grazi. I found the French so friendly and warm and it was really easy to communicate with most of the people I came into contact with.

I organised an apartment for this trip where I planned to chill and buy food and cook and hang out with Ursula - in my mind I would have had a view of the ocean and at least a balcony - I did read the blurb on the website for the booking but didn't take it all in - well first of all there were 4 flights of the steepest, winding stairs to climb up to the attic apartment - which is really good for building fitness but a 'bitch' to carry the 23kg suitcase up, and when they said in the blurb that the ceiling was low, we didn't realise how low exactly and that half the tiny attic apartment was accessible on your hands and knees.And there was a tiny little window overlooking roofs and that's it.  But it all worked out well in the end and my fitness increased - I think had a I stayed for 2 weeks I would have been running up and down the stairs - but I managed, each day it got a little easier - and getting out of bed was something that I am happy to say no-one got to experience - and this morning (my last morning) I got out the bed so easily - time is the most amazing thing for settling in :-)  But what was amazing about the apartment is the road it is situated in - Rue James Close - what a wonderful old road with clothes shops, soap shops, restaurants, smoothie and sushi bar, a tea shop that sells rooibos tea, galleries, etc.  - an adventure and so much to see and experience - well worth it and made staying there something very special.

It was such a lovely time, especially to spend time with a friend, talking and chatting and sharing and laughing - one of the hi-lites was shopping at the local food market in Antibes, for fresh wonderful food and cooking and eating veges and salads - aw how I have missed it so much - and realised that much of my lethargy and feeling flat is from eating all the carbs and a diet that is not good for my body at all - eating fresh, home cooked food showed me clearly what works and what uplifts me completely.  My challenge for the rest of my stay in Italy is to find and eat energy food for me - food that gives me the vitality that I have been missing so much.

On Thursday I took the train to Cannes - about half an hour away from Antibes, to see this metropolitan, movie capital of the French Riviera, and that is what is was for me.  Very smart and up market, with all the right shops, the cars, the hotels, the people - but for me it just does nothing.  I prefer the quaint, old villages with character and quieter pace.  But while walking up a road I came upon a Billabong shop and stopped to chat with the owner - in his broken English - about Jeffrey's Bay and Billabong in SA - there was a lady there who has visited South Africa and spoke so positively about her experiences in SA travelling around visiting places and loved the scenery and the people.  Anyway we spoke about surfing and I mentioned the Ross Taylor Benefit Surf Competition that we are now hosting each year and the owner of the shop has heard of it - that was amazing and I felt so proud of our special Garden Route and the magic that happens there - well done guys :-)

Our last evening - Friday evening - Ursula and I went to a organic vegetarian restaurant Chez Helen - Restaurant Salon De The Ve'ge'tarien Biologique (at the end of Rue James Close),  run by Helen and her husband (I didn't get his name - oops).  A lovely little space with a warm atmosphere and the meal that we were served was so absolutely delicious, healthy, loving and nurturing.  Helen is the cook and loves what she does, she has a sparkle in her eye and wants to create the most delicious food - and she does - www.chezhelen.fr

 

Visiting Antibes was a little time out for me, and my time in Italy is coming towards its conclusion quite rapidly.  I have the total of 16 days left in Italy and this will be spend visitng Damenhur, Torino, Milan (where I will be connecting with a friend whom I haven't seen for more than 20 years), Vicenza and then Venice (where I am planning on a gondola ride) and then its Ciao Italia and the next part of my journey begins.  I feel blessed to be on such an amazing adventure and as I celebrate the full moon and the Rite of the Oracle of Damanhur (Sunday 6 May) and experience the treasures and honouring of this sacred community near Ivrea, I take a moment to reflect on the absolute gift I have given myself and I say thank you  once again to all the powers that have made this possible.

Until next time, be blessed always.