The 10th of April

Today was a fantastic escape from the stressful traveling- We woke up when our bodies were fully rested, took long showers, taking in the sun, basically having a leisurely Good Friday. Karla and mom took off shopping while Sam and I simply took our time getting ready for once. We were all craving a traditional "American Breakfast" which is practically impossible to find, except if you order an omelette for lunch. We wandered over to the downtown area to a restaurant called "Quebec" and had omlettes, coffee, and soup for a mid-day breakfast. While we were eating, we were being entertained by an old man with a boom box which was synthesizing a beat while he every so often strummed a tune.
Afterward Sam and I wandered around town to check out the neighborhood. Nice is an old city, but with a very modern vibe. It's buildings and streets are very bold, bright colors, its fashion is impeccably contemporary, and the seafood is one of its most important commodities. Our little hostel was squeezed in between "Armani" and "Louis Vitton". Nice reminded me of a fashionable Orange County in California but with more character.

That night, we had been recommended by the locals to go eat all-you-can-eat-mussels by the water. Of course, that's exactly what we did. The restaurant we discovered had several different sauces you could have on your endless mussels and french fries... mustard, salsa, garlic, white wine, seafood sauces, etc. A couple of buckets of this delicacy, plates of french fries, a carafe of wine and voila- we were in "Southern France Heaven". As we watched the sun begin to set in the distance- we hurriedly decided that we wanted to spend this sunset directly on the beach; how often are we on the Mediterranean?

We rushed over the rocky beach and played in the sea with our pant legs rolled up (in Karla's case her playful spirit carried her in the water with stockings on and all) and took what seemed hundred of pictures of us laughing, running away from the freezing cold waves, collecting stones, and forming some of the best memories any of us have ever had simply watching the sunset. After the sun was well tucked away beyond the horizon we were craving some more gelato and crepes! We walked around the Old Port until we found a tiny square that didn't seem to busy at the time and sat down with our plates of chocolate crepes and looked up at the beautiful cathedral that was lighting up with the darkness. Within 10 minutes it was very dark out, but this square happened to be a special place that we just so happened to have stopped at. As the sky got darker, this square became brighter... crowds of locals had gathered in front of the cathedral and people all of a sudden were lighting candles in fashion of the domino effect, and in perfect unison these crowds began to sing and chant. People were standing shoulder to shoulder in the square all looking towards the middle of this massive circle. What was this? How could we have been so lucky to stumble upon this square out of all the places in this huge city?

We watched this gracious ceremony of singing and candles glowing; Sam and went right to the middle and just watched. After about an hour the gathering migrated down one alley like slow moving molasses squeezing through a small tube. It was just us and the local tradition. It was beautiful to watch and I felt very lucky to see this event that no other tourist knew about.