The Bastion of the Elite

We were bored out of our shells this Friday since we have a stretched holiday until Monday, so we decided to drive to close-by Monaco, about an hour by car from Fontan.

Bordering the azure Mediterranean sea, the place can be easily recognized by the sudden emergence of skyscrapers between the sleepy towns of Menton and Beaulieu-sur-Mer. The national road leading to the place was quite insignificantly-sized but very regal; let me just remind you all that this is also where the equally glamorous American actress Grace Kelly used to be the princess. That makes the view, while driving towards the very exclusive gambling hub of Europe, simply magnificent.

We were rendered tongue-tied by the beauty of Monaco, the magnificence of its panorama, its port with huge private yachts, the commanding Royal Palace built on a giant rock, and the modern-day labyrinth of apartments and office buildings. Monaco is located on top of rocky ranges so it is taxing to imagine how apartments and houses were put together on the natural spaces created by the giant rocks.

The interiors of Monaco's apartments are patterned after the most extravagant hotels; the old-world atmosphere of the villas and the government buildings are simply amazing. We could clearly see that everyone has lots of money and there is a huge amount of wealth all over the place, which makes the option of living there open to only a select few people.