CommissionerLin

Thanks for the suggestions - sounds exiting already. The boat has 2 tenders so we can also get there ourselves if we can't read the tel no. I don't suppose we need to make reservations at a beach club?

Thanks John, I managed to Google Guide Gantie and there is an online version, www.guidegantie.com in English to boot!! Thanks also for digging up the old threads. Most helpful although some are a little dated. The itinerary has been expanded to include Barcelona with a stopover in Roses if we can get reservations at El Bulli (fingers crossed). Do I ask for recommendations for restos in Barcelona or should I post in the forum on Spain?

Thanks mdbasile for the recommendations. Will definitely check out La Provencal and Paloma beach in St Jean. Will look into the others as well. Thanks.

Thanks Phyllis, I have scoured the newsstands but unfortunately cannot find a copy...

Thanks GastroChick, I have added La Reserve, La Petite Maison and La Marende to my shortlist. Would love to go to Bastide St Antoine but I fear the logistics of getting 8 pax from the marina in Cannes to Grasse may defeat us. I'll have to consult the rest of the group on this one. Cheers.

Thanks Menton, have noted Le Cabanon and African Queen. Thanks for the photo. Wow its shimmering curves are reminiscent of the pyramids as seen by Dali.

Thanks Carlbad. Thats a very sound endorsement for La Mere Germain. We will definitely go there during our stopover in Villefranche. Cheers.

I think I'm marginally on topic with this tale originally told to me by Gerald Asher of wine writing fame. He was doing a stage at Sherry-Lehman in NY, prior to assuming the big job and Christmas week 1968 or so a woman of a certain age entered and asked for a specific Italian wine, the label of which she held out. She told of how she had settled into a chair at a table in a resto on the Isle of Capri overlooking the Bay, was approached by a handsome young Italian man, shared a dinner and this wonderful wine, as the sun set over the Bay. Could he get her a case? Of course Madame, said young Asher, but I cannot reproduce the sunset, the view or the young man. Moral of the story: some meals consist of more than the food, even on coasts like that of the Azur. ← What a fine story and the moral rings true time and again. I have read Gerald Asher - his "Vinyard Tales" has had me enthralled through repeated readings. I don't know the man personally except by reputation but I know his brother, an investment banker of great repute whom I hold in immense regard.

Thanks Arley, yes I have heard and read good things about LBdSA and very much want to go there. The thing that's making us think twice is the logistics on how to get 8 people from the marina to Grasse. Are public cabs freely available? Do we take the train? From the miniature maps I'm working with I can't work out whether Grasse is closer to Cannes or Nice. But I will certainly make an effort to visit the Musee de l'Art Cullinaire. Hadn't heard about it before. The "crew" are all foodies so I don't expect anyone to veto this suggestion. Thanks.

Thanks Menton, I will look out for Port Grimaud and the curvy buildings near Cannes. From your description it sounds a bit like Gaudi's church in Barcelona

Thanks Michelle. I had intended to visit but omitted to mention it in my haste to post. I have read al lot about his paintings perticularly the sombre Pesche de nuit a Antibes , La Joie de vivre and St Jean Cap Ferrat which I believe are on display at the museum.

Thanks Busboy. Guess I will have to check out Bailleau sur Mer and Les Agaves. Although we don't mind some "Big City" exposure as we'll have our fair share of rusticity in Ille de Lerins and Ile de Porquerolles. Is there a particular reason to avoid QdA? Poor service? Poor value for money?

Thanks Menton. The trip will be of 12 days duration, timed to avoid the Cannes Film Festival and the Monaco Grand Prix when the chances of getting berths are as good as striking the national lottery or coming out ahead after a visit to the Casino de Monte Carlo. Yes, I have heard that Monaco can be very touristy and congested (particularly during the Grand Prix) but this is my first trip and I gotta check it out at least once. We're currently scheduled to berth in Port Hercule I think, but I will certainly look into berthing facilities at Bailleau sur Mer. In terms of restos in Monaco, we've been advised by all and sundry to avoid Louis XV in favour of Robuchon. Will check out the Ephrussi Mansion in Cap Ferrat which will be our next stop after Monaco.

Thanks a lot Lucy for digging up those old threads. I've gone through them and theres loads of interesting nuggets even though some of the posts date back to 2004. I will certainly bring back a food/restaurant report to this forum, particularly on the St Tropez/Ile de Porquerolles/Pamplonne Bay end of the Cote. I've also promised to post a trip report on another yatching forum I subscribe to.

A group of us (8 pax) are planning a maiden trip to the Cote d'Azur in late April and early May. We're on a boat and will be sailing from Monaco to St Tropez calling at the following ports/marinas - Monaco/Cap Ferrat/Cap d'Antibes/Ille de Lerins/Cannes/Ile de Porquerolles/St Tropez/Pamplonne Bay/St Tropez. We're planning to spend a night at each stop. From reading previous posts and recommendations in this forum and consulting various guidebooks and websites, I have cobbled together an initial list of restaurants/cafes to consider; Monaco - Louis XV, Robuchon, Quai des Artistes, Jimmy'z, Sass Cafe; Cap Ferrat - La Reserve du Baillieu; Cap d'Antibes - Bacon, Les Vieux Murs, Hotel Belle Rives, Eden Roc; Nice - Tetou, Le Palm d'Or, La Marenda; Cannes - Villa des Lys, Mantel, Gaston-Gastounette; Ille de Porquerolles - Le relais de la Poste; St Tropez - Les Mouscardins, Spoon Byblos, La Pinede, Le Gorille; Pamplonne Bay - Voile Rouge, Club 55. Any suggestions on how to expand, trim, tweak or even replace the list would be gratefully received. Not having been to the area before, I would be very happy to receive any further advice from this community in terms of restaurant suggestions as well as advice generally on "must dos". I've got the Musee Matisse, Musee Chagall and the Cours Saleya on the "must do" list. Any other recommendations? Finally, we're hoping to play some golf on the Cote. St Maximes and the Royal Mougins come highly recommended. This may not be the right forum to bring this topic up but any other golf course recommendations would be welcome.

Any chance of supplying a link to the article for non-US egulleters?

Beyond the masculine or feminine determinants of the articles in certain languages, there are vegetables that are considered (based on their individual shapes or some other defining feature as you mention with fennel) masculine or feminine. Eggplant is another example. The "sex" is determined based upon the bottom of the eggplant where the bud would have been before falling off. If the eggplant is more flat there it is one sex, more indented another. It is also believed that one sex is more full of seeds than the other, and the other more solid and meaty. I really don't mind seeds in my eggplants, so I can not remember which is supposed to be which. Perhaps someone else will chime in on this. . . Really I don't know whether this is folklore or "real". Either way, it makes the world a more interesting place. Edited to add this link: Sex and Eggplants ← Thanks Pedro, thanks Karen. Checked out the site and hv done a bit more asking around. Its folklore and not rooted in Science. I am not familiar with Spanish but apparently Spanish and other latinate languages assign a feminine or masculine descriptor to nouns. Is this correct? If this is so then I begin to understand how sex and gender can be attributed to objects even fruit.

Great article which I enjoyed reading tremendously. Without meaning to detract anything from the article, I feel compelled to query the concept that there are male and female fruits, parts of flowers and plants yes, but fruits? Can someone more familiar with biology or botany shed light on this? The misconception (if indeed it is one) may arise from a confusion over nomenclature - as far as I know the name of this fruit which is native to South Asia (Genus - Mangifera) originates from the Tamil word "mankay". The English derivative "mango" is in turn derived from the Portugese "manga". In Malay/Indonesian/Tagalog the word for mango is "mangga". As the article correctly points out, there is a huge variety of mangoes (more than 500 named varieties) and some types are more pulpy than others. The Alphonso mango from India is an excellent example of the less pulpy variety and IMHO ranks far ahead of the "Tommy Atkins" variety found in most Western supermarkets.

There are several different Pyrat rums being sold and some are quite expensive in the US as well. You need to make sure you're looking at the same rums. Pyrat Pistol, XO or Cask 23. ← Yup, just checked the bottle, Pyrat XO Planter's Reserve 750 ml retails for approx US$ 165 in Asia...if you can find it. Steep.

Indeed. But you still can't take durians into the Bangkok subway, etc., etc. ← True, if you're referring to the whole fruit, but the truly determined have been known to transport the flesh, minus its thorny husk, ensconsced in layers of clingwrap and sealed in an air-tight tupperware-type container lashed with reams of cellotape for good measure. Thats how durian wends its way cross-border to chinatown grocers and supermarkets everywhere so that the addicted can get their fix. Come to think of it thats one way of getting your epoisses into the metro without incurring the wrath of fellow commuters. Here's an example of how durian suppresion technology can be applied to other endeavours There must be a growing appreciation for this fruit worldwide - I hear they have started growing it in Queensland, Australia.