[Four Months in France]

Splitting in to two month chunks sounds good to me.

If you prefer to be near cities, but want scenery, then how about Vence for two of those months? I moved here at the end of August and am finding it a near perfect combination, being close to Nice and Cannes (40 minutes drive if the traffic is good) and right next to the mountains - the start of the less populated arrière pays. If fact, as I type this I can look south down the hills and past the villas to the Med, or north east to the rocky cliffs of the Baou des Blancs - and it's a lovely sunny day . We're 30 minutes from the sea (not great beaches though) and an hour from skiing - though you'll be a bit early for that. There are some lovely walks along the GR51 with fantastic views of the coastline.

Vence is a nice sized town, with enough shops for your immediate needs - a large choice of bakers, cake shops, butchers, fishmongers, vegetable shops and so on. It even has a small English library run by volunteers. The old town is lovely, especially at dusk when the shops spill light into the narrow cobbled streets.

More info here: http://www.beyond.fr/villages/vence.html

[New Year's Eve on the Côte d'Azur]

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm particularly glad to hear of a good sushi place - the one we tried in St. Laurent was pretty dreadful.

If anyone else is interested, I mailed La Bastide Saint Antoine, and here is the menu for the 31st.

Menu

Les Frivolités d’une Bouchée

~.~

La Glace de Caviar Oscietre Royal d’Iran

au Coulis de Concombre Parfum de Volka,

Symphonie de Jaune et de Blanc d’Œuf,

servie avec ses Croustillants de Pommes de Terre

~.~

Les Noix de Saint Jacques en Mousseux de Noisettes,

aux deux Céleris, Purée d’Aubergines à la Truffe

~.~

La Sole à la Chapelure de Coques

aux Baies de Genièvre fraîches, citronnée

sur ses Petits Oronges au Curry, Jus de Sauge

~.~

La Cambéronne rôtie à la Ratatouille de Tubercules

aux Jus de Basilic, Fenouil, Olive et Safran

~.~

Le Millefeuille de Truffes au Ris de Veau,

Lait de Truffes aux Choux verts

 ~.~

Le fin Carré d’Agneau de Lait simplement doré, servi en Chiffonnade d’Artichauts, Fevettes,

Pommes de terre écrasées aux Truffes et à l’Huile d’Olive ,

 ~.~

 Le Mont d’Or dans sa Corolle de Croustille de Parmesan

 ~.~

La Douceur tiède de Champignons au Sabayon de Marrons, Caramel truffé

 ~.~

 L’Élégance de Mandarine aux Fraises des Bois,

au Blanc Manger Croquant de Coco

325€ ttc

[New Year's Eve on the Côte d'Azur]

My husband and I are looking for a top-notch restaurant for a New Year's Eve splurge. We particularly like to eat innovative cooking, often with an Asian feel. (In London, some of our favourite restaurants were iThai, Sugar Club (in W11 incarnation) and Vong (may it rest in peace).

We're new to this area, now living in Vence, and have failed so far to find anything so imaginative here. Don't get me wrong, we love trad French cuisine too (the more offal the better) and the local Provençal food, but we'd like to indulge our yearning for something more eclectic on a really special night out.

Does anyone have any suggestions for where we might go? Ideally the place would have a special celebration on for New Year, or be near clubs where we could dance the New Year in.

If we are searching for the impossible, does anyone have any recommendations for the more traditional places - in particular one doing something special for New Year's Eve.

Thanks in advance,

...Jane