Nice (cont'd)
Masséna
Make a right turn at the Negresco, walk one block on Rue Rivoli until you reach Rue de France. You might want to visit the Jules Chéret Museum of Fine Arts, which is a fair walk west on Rue de France to Boulevard François Grosso (turn right and then next left into Avenue des Baumettes to No.33). This magnificent 19th century mansion houses an extensive art collection from the 17th century to the 1940's, including sculptures by Rodin, a fine collection of Flemish school paintings and works by Raoul Dufy and Picasso.
Walking east on Rue de France you reach the pedestrian only Rue Masséna, which is lined with elegant shops, cafés and restaurants. You will reach Place Masséna, Nice's most impressive square with imposing red coloured buildings lining the square. Walking south you will reach Jardin Albert I, with its outdoor modern art, especially Bernard Venet's huge yet elegant arc.
Vieux Nice and Cours Saleya
The highlight of a visit to Nice is walking through picturesque Vieux Nice, old town. Narrow streets with colourful old houses, the boutiques, shops, cafés and restaurants - you are back in the 18/19th century. Between Place Garibaldi to the north, Place du Palais de Justice and Cours Saleya to the south you find this surprisingly genuine part of Nice, largely untouched by gentrification and with an Italian vivacity. Walk down Rue Pairolière with its little shops and you will be tempted to buy some cured olives, Provençal herbs, or taste the farcis (vegetables stuffed with meat), the socca (a chickpea pancake) or have a pissaladière (Niçoise onion tart) for lunch.
On Rue Droite you find the baroque style Palais Lascaris, a Genoese mansion house, the former residence of the Counts of Ventimiglia. The palace is beautifully decorated, the tapestries and trompe l'oeil ceilings are outstanding. On the ground floor an 18th century pharmacy from Besançon has been reconstructed. The fish market is held on Place Saint François. On Place Rossetti is the 17th century Cathédrale Sainte Réparate, a couple of cafés and Glacier Fenocchio, the famous ice cream store. On Rue Gallo you find a false door and behind it a vaulted passageway and staircase leading to Boulevard Jean Jaurès. Rue du Marché is lined with many pottery and souvenir shops. Picturesque Rue de la Préfecture has a lot of pubs. Rue de la Poissonnerie will lead you to the small Église Sainte Rita, the patron saint of lost causes.
At the northern end of Vieux Nice, on Rue Neuve, is a bas-relief erected in 1923, the Monument de Catherine Ségurane, the "Eroina nissarda", who allegedly defended the then Italian town against the French and their Turkish allies in 1543. She was a bugadiera (laundress) and myth has it that when she lifted her skirt and showed her bare behind the enemy fled. Nearby on Place St.Agustin is Église St.Martin-St. Augustine a marvelous little gem from the end of the 17th century with a beautiful baroque façade. Inside are works from the famous Niçois painter Bréa, including a Pietà and fine polychrome marble work.
Cours Saleya is loved by locals and visitors alike for the many cafés and restaurants and above all the market - fruits and vegetables on its western part, flowers on its eastern part (go in the mornings, Tuesday to Sunday). A flea market is held here each Monday.
A bit further west is the Place du Palais de Justice, which like many other areas in the center of Nice has been given a much needed facelift. Attractive stone pavement, a pretty fountain, the impressive staircase of the recently renovated law courts, the small bell tower - a fine place to sit in one of the cafés and enjoy this relaxing atmosphere.
Nearby, on Rue St.François de Paul is the Opéra de Nice, central to the city's cultural life with its opera productions and concerts. The current structure, the third on this site, was built in 1882, a gorgeous façade with pink columns, but easy to overlook as it is located in a relatively dark street.
