France

Surprised that I got as far as I did. I had only travelled about 40 KM by 2;30. The road from the Italy / France border to Monaco / Monte Carlo was very windy, with lots of ups and downs. The wind wa snot overly helpful, either.

Monaco was very compact. The whole country was like being in downtown in a big city. The road through Antibes and Cannes was more of the same boardwalk atmosphere I had encountered on the Italian Riviera.

Monte Carlo had a "high roller" feel to it - lots of glitz. Although, the McDonalds was within sight of what I believe was the main palace. Cannes was very upscale and expensive - seemed to be lots of nice shops as I rode by.

I made it to la Bocca where I stopped at the Ibis. Only 2 stars, but it still seems pretty pricey - guess I didn;'t get far enough away from Cannes. Spena an hour on the phone trying to arrange a wire transfer to pay the Russian taxes. My US bank tried to tell me that they require me to to physically visit a branch before they can effect a wire transfer. This, despite the fact that I have been wiring funds like this for the past 3 years without visiting a branch. Nevertheless, perseverance finally paid off when I found someone who actually tried to help.

Went out to dinner and found a restaurant that served both pizza and had internet. Talk about service.

Camping, finally. I committed myself to doing this as soon as I had a free nighte without the need to use a hotel for telephone or fax.

The wind was a real bitch today. It was blowing real hard in the exact opposite direction. I saw some flags blown off of flag poles at one point. The heat at least has broken tonight. It was up to 38 degrees C today, but tonight it is almost cool.

In the camp, I got space 41. The camp has showers, lavatories, and toilets (all separate). It also has a restaurant (where I wolfed down two pizzas for dinner) and a grocery store. Some of these 4 star camps have pools, but I do not see one here. It is interesting how everyone gets dressed up here. I mean this is a camp site for goodness sakes. People at the restaurant looked like they were going out on the town - which I guess some might be as there is also a disco here.

It scares me to see the tents some people have. It lookes like they are sitting in their living rooms - what with the furniture and lighting they have going on. These aren't even the RV's. I am talking real tents.

It took over an hour to set up the tent (a little practice at this would obviously not hurt). But it and the pack-safe appear to be working well.

Wind continues to be unrelenting in the wrong direction. So many things to talk about today.

Camping. The ground was hard. I did not unroll the sleeping bag as it takes me forever to stuff it back into the coin purse the vendor called a compression sack. The wind blew quite hard throughout the night. This turned out to be a good thing as it dried my laundry by morning - I ussually have to hang it on the bike while I am riding the next day to achieve this. The grocery store was very well stocked - this camping thing is quite the life. Though I was up by 7:00 this morning, packing added an hour to the routine.

Riding. I was lucky to make it as far as I did. Late in the afternoon, I decided to ride inland to see if I could make better time, rather than riding along the coast. It did not. Although, I did pass along a truly exceptional route between Ollioules and St. Anne. It was only about 5km in length, but it was a very narrow gorge from which you could view a castle at the top of a distant hill. I kept waiting for a clear shot to take a picture, but it never came. Once I was even with the castle, I could no longer see it and the terrain, beginninng to open up, changed dramatically - no longer nearly as picturesque. For a while, though, it reminded me of travelling in the Rockies with the added benefit of the hilltop castle as a backdrop.

Stopping. I thoguht I was going to die from fighting the wind all day. I wanted to stop after Toulon but could not find any hotels. Luckily Le Beausset had a couple and I actually found one for only 150 FF (USD 25) per night. Although, the German Shepard looked like he wanted to eat me when I first arrived.

An interesting day. I got up at 8:00 but could seem to get on the road until 11:00 - too much time reading King's It this morning.

I stopped for lunch at 12:30 in Cuges les Pins. I had only made 16 km at this point. As I was taking off from here, another touring cyclist (Eric P.) road up. We chatted briefly and ended up riding together for hte nest hour or so. He had just finished his compulsory military duties and about to start his university studies in physics. He was only on day 10 but had already done over 1000 km. He seemed young, but mentioned that he had done this type of touring in past years. I understand that this year's ride involved a circle from Switzerland, Italy, France and back to Switzerland. We parted ways in la Destrousse - he was going to Avignon, I to Nimes.

By 4:30, I had only made Gardane (at 50 km). This was depressing, but primarily due to the uncooperative wind. It started to rain pretty heavily at 5:30 as I neared Lenfant. I threw on all the rain gear (slicker for me; cover for my bags) to minimize the soakage. The change in weather made the ride more inteersting, being the first time this trip I have ridden in the rain (which will probably be the last time I find it interesting). From here, the terrain flattened out, the wind settled somewhat, and I made good time the rest of the day.

The Aqueduct de Roquefavour (near Vestabrew) was stunning! I wasn't even expecting it, so was surprized as I rounded a curve and saw a massive stone trestle in the valley below. At first, I guessed it was Roman, but plaques along the route referenced the 19th century (a little too late for the Romans). Unfortunately, I was always too close to the thing to get a nice picture.

After la Fare-les Oliviers, the road began descending toward Ang de Berre. I was admiring the stunning rock formations at a distance when I noticed some flashing lights and smoke at their base. Then I noticed that the rock formations to the right were covered in lush, green vegetation, whle those to the left (through the smoke) were singed black. Due to the distance, I hadn't noticed this difference at first. However, once observed, the extent of the destruction was awesome. As I rode further, the charred ground approached the road I was riding along and even jumped across in places. The railroad tracks had been jumped as well. The total extent of the destruction was awe inspiring.

Made it into Miramas around 8:30.

Finally, Nimes! The wind continues to fight me. It seems to come from every direction (or at least any direction toward which I decide to ride). Even when I turn, its always in my face.

I stopped at the Pont du Gard aquaduct before reaching the outskirts of Nimes. I decided to knock off early (6:30) with the hope of getting an early start tomorrow. I don't think I will take a day oof like I had planned earlier.

I passed the Rhone River at one point today. It reminded me of the Danube in Bavaria - broad, flat, and slow moving.

The Pont du Gard was impressive. It is still mostly intact, though not operational. Lonely Planet says you can walk along the top. However, I found the very top of the aquduct to be fenced off. Nevertheless, the postcard I bought to mail back home shows people walking there. The current restriction must be recent.

The Formula One hotels are a novel concept. They have rooms which include a full size bed with a twin bunk above, an in room sink and TV. The toilete and shower are communal single units in several separate rooms. Everything is automated - the lights come on when the door opens; the toilet flushes when you unlock the door to leave. If breakfast is passable, this may turn out to be a good arrangement (though I could live without the TV). Also, there are no keys - all the doors have access codes which you are given (and hopefully change) when you check-in.