So, here's our personal report: Gordon's read about 33 books, Pati's studying French on Duolingo.com, and we've done our travel arrangements for an upcoming cruise.
The "Carnaval" gods smiled on the city of Nice and they did manage to get the Carnaval festivities done in spite of the weather. Carnaval, however, has certainly changed thanks to Mohamed the Dead Terrorist. There is nothing free now, because everything is done behind security lines. There are fewer parades (with aerial surveillance overhead) and no accessory activities. Silly String (that colored "string" that shoots out of an aerosol can) has in the past covered everything in Nice during Carnaval...and we mean everything. The parade floats were covered with it along with the dogs, parade-goers, and cops, as seen in our previous Carnaval postings. Not anymore. Aerosol cans are banned. Well, at least the parade floats remained pristine throughout the entire period.
What with the dicey weather, we didn't go to the parades this time, so here are our few meager cellphone shots of the major players:
The "King of Space". Very clever, the patch on his spacesuit looks just like NASA, only it's NISSA:
The Queen:
And a space bird of some sort:
Want to see the parade the same way we did? Go to nicecarnaval.com and watch the excellent videos.
Remember our previous reports and pictures? How much we enjoyed the closing ceremonies with fireworks and the incineration of the King out on the water? No more.
Don't get us wrong. If you've never been to Nice Carnaval and have the chance, don't miss it. It's great. It's just, well, not what it used to be.
Formula 1 has two test sessions, and we'll be off to Barcelona (where it's supposed to stop snowing), on a photo reconnaisance mission.
This is the first time we've ever experienced this type of weather on the Cote d'Azur and it was certainly not expected. But, we'll be back next year!
