Pétanque & Pastis

Paradigm in Antibes

It was just nine days ago that Rick & Joslyn disembarked in Calvi from their week-long cruise around Corsica aboard the sumptuous Paradigm, with tales of gastronomic meals, costume parties, water sports, and thoughfully planned itineraries.  When we picked them up from the Port of Nice, they mentioned that Paradigm was on her way to Barcelona with another group of lucky guests of Ted & Arline, the owners of the luxury yacht.  We were also told that Paradigm would be heading to Antibes afterward, and we assumed that it would be moored in Port Vauban here in Antibes, which is the largest pleasure craft port in Europe.  With the arrival of Dave’s brother, Mike, yesterday, and our imminent departure to Burgundy, we didn’t expect to be around to see it while it was here in Antibes.  But, lo and behold !  A quick glance out the window, and then a double-take, and then a closer inspection with the binoculars, brought Paradigm clearly into view – right in front of our apartment.  It’s too bad that we didn’t know how to get a hold of Ted & Arline to invite them over for a glass of champagne, or maybe a Pastis.

Heading to the West Coast of Corsica

After a relaxing beach day yesterday at the nearby Plage Palombaggia, and hanging out in lively Porto-Vecchio for one more day and night, we headed out this morning with a goal of seeing the west coast of Corsica, just north of the historical city of Ajaccio, which we spent some time visiting on our last trip to the island.

Our first stop was in familiar territory in beautiful Bonifacio, where we stopped for an alfresco lunch at a restaurant called Vista Da Rocca, overlooking the bright white cliffs and the recognizable Grain de Sable against the azure Mediterranean Sea. 

Invitation for a Swim in Bonifacio

After lunch we took an impromptu dip into the irresistible crystalline water before heading back to our car by way of the colorful harbor, where, much to our surprise, we spotted Paradigm ! 

Paradigm in Bonifacio

  

Beach on the route des îles Sanguinaires

We made it to our hotel on the route des îles Sanguinaires in plenty of time to explore the beach, take a short swim, and to watch the sunset over the rocky red islands, the largest of which (the Grande Sanguinaire) is home to an 1840 lighthouse and the ruins of a Genovese tower.

Les Îles Sanguinaires 

Corsica – Playground of the Rich and Famous

Labor Day weekend found us making a return trip to Corsica.  A four-hour ferry trip, with our car in tow, got us into Ajaccio around 11:30am.  Our first order of business was to deliver my cousin, Rick, and his lovely wife, Joslyn, to Porto Vecchio to meet up with Joslyn’s sister and brother-in-law, Arline and Ted, for a week-long tour around the island aboard their amazing 115-foot Benetti-built luxury yacht, named Paradigm.  In addition to the four of them, and the captain and crew of 6, they will be joined by two other lucky couples.  Since they were not planning to meet up until tomorrow, we were able to take our time getting to Porto Vecchio, with plenty of stops for swimming, picnicking, and sight-seeing on the way.

After we settled into the Hôtel Alcyon, we spent some time wandering around the colorful streets of Old Porto Vecchio.  We came across the Bastion di A Funtana Vechju, which houses an art gallery with lovely views overlooking the harbor, and here is where we got our first glimpse of Paradigm, the largest boat in the port.

We decided to head down to the port to say hello to Arline and Ted.  They were gracious enough to invite us aboard for wine, hors d’oeuvres, and a private tour of their amazing yacht.  Dave and I were exceptionally nice and polite – we tried not to be ourselves – just in case one of the other couples had to cancel out for their week-long cruise, and they might need us to substitute for them.  Alas, our good manners went for naught, but we still really enjoyed hanging out like the rich and famous for a short while.

Octopus Sighting

On this noteworthy day, which was made so by the arrival of Dave’s brother, Mike DeMoney, for his first visit to the Côte d’Azur, we had the great pleasure of finding Paul Allen’s Mega Yacht, Octopus, in its normal berth at Port Vauban here in Antibes.  It’s been quite some time since we’ve spotted the 414-foot Lürssen, which held the distinction of the world’s largest Mega Yacht in 2004.  Although it has slipped down a couple of notches from its 2004 ranking, its size still takes one’s breath away, and it most certainly dwarfs every other yacht we’ve seen anywhere.  Also notable about Octopus is its professional recording studio and cinema, along with its glass-bottom lounge on the lower deck, its two helicopter pads, its full-length basketball court, and its personal submarine.

A Day of Sailing

Thanks to an invitation from Magali & Michel, we headed out for a day of sailing from Port Camille Rayon in Golf-Juan to les Îles des Lérins, aboard Michel’s beautiful 9 ½-meter sailboat named Tara.  Along with Christiane & Michel, the six of us spent the day sailing, swimming, eating, drinking, and laughing, with good wind and lots of sunshine.  After a previously failed attempt, this also turned out to be the perfect opportunity to share the bottle of rosé that we received as a gift from the proprietor at the Domaine de Marchandise winery in the Var.  It was given to us with strict orders that we drink it together as a group.  It went down perfectly with our oil-drenched pan bagnats under the warm sunshine, moored in the clear blue water between Île Sainte-Marguerite and Île Saint-Honorat.  This bottle of rosé is featured in a story I wrote for blueVicar, called A Bottle Among Friends.

Lido di Ostia – The Rome Harbor

It was a short flight from Nice to Rome on Alitalia, and it was great to be greeted by the smiling faces of Pat Mikkelsen and Marco Cesareo, who chauffeured us into Lido di Ostia (approx 6 kilometers from the airport-FCO).

Lido di Ostia is part of the municipality of Rome, and is a popular beach destination for families in the summer.  The dark-sand beach was pretty deserted this time of year, except for a few bicyclists and people strolling on the long promenade stretched out alongside it.

The new Tourist Port of Rome is a private marina with about 800 berths and brand new modern facilities, which has been open only since 2001.

It is here that Pat calls home this winter, on her beautiful Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 37.  And it is here where she treats her guests like royalty with afternoon lunches on the sun-drenched deck, and with mouth-watering dinners in the teak-paneled dining room, decorated with an artist’s touch.  

Méduse - Paul Allen’s Baby

We spotted Paul Allen’s smallest Mega Yacht in his fleet of three at his normal berth at the Quai de la Grande Plaisance (a.k.a., Quai de Milliardaires) in Antibes this morning.  At 198’10, Méduse was the 14th largest yacht in 2003, and the 72nd largest in 2004, but reduced to the 84th largest in 2005.  Apparently it was built with extra headroom in order to accommodate a 7-foot plus basketball player.  We also noticed that the 2nd largest in his fleet, Tatoosh (301’8”), has moved from the no. 12 position in 2004 to no. 15 this year.  And finally, his largest Mega Yacht, Octopus (414’), has moved down from the no. 1 spot in 2004, to the no. 3 spot in 2005, making way for the new no. 1 Mega Yacht owned by the son of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia, Al Salamah, at 456’10”, and the new no. 2 Mega Yacht owned by Larry Ellison, Rising Sun, at 452’8”.

Sailing to Ile Ste-Marguerite

We took off from Port Vauban before 11:00am into “le grand large” (the big open sea).   Although, I suppose that technically, it’s not really “le large” because we were sailing mostly in La Baie des Anges, which is a large bay that extends from Nice to the Cap d’Antibes.  We also ventured out a little bit into Golfe Juan and into Golfe de la Napoule, with Ile Ste-Marguerite and Ile St-Honorat sitting exactly in between the two Golfes.  Even though Bert and Pat thought that the sea was not ideal today with its very irregular wave pattern, it was very smooth and peaceful and pleasant to Dave and me, compared to what it’s always like in the Bay of San Francisco.  Apparently, the Mediterranean off the coast of Italy has been much milder with a very regular wave pattern the last several months that Pat and Bert have been sailing on it.  The sea surrounding the islands is beautiful and warm and so clear and so inviting that it’s hard to resist. We waited until after our picnic lunch on the boat, before we jumped in and swam around.  Our water activities included snorkeling, swimming, and zipping around in the tender.  Although we have visited Ile Ste-Marguerite in the past, we never stepped foot on it this time.  It seemed to be very crowded with a kazillion other sailboats anchored around it, so we just anchored a little bit away from the island while we ate and swam.

Dave spent some time piloting the boat, which he really enjoyed, and he only grounded us once.  Some areas around the islands were pretty shallow, but fortunately, it was only a sandy shoal that we got stuck in, and not a rocky one.  And now Pat and Bert know that their new boat requires a depth of at least 1.6 meters. 

La Capitaine aboard her new Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 37

We got a call from Pat and Bert  to tell us that they were passing through Antibes for a couple of days in their new Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 37, currently named Daste (this name will change eventually).  They invited us to come over for an onboard dinner at the port.  It’s a beautiful boat, with a living room, kitchen, dining room, large deck, and three double berths which allows plenty of room for guests.  We soaked up the beautiful warm evening on the lovely deck with champagne, paté with slices of a fresh baguette ancienne, cheese, and spicy olives.  We moved on to sautéed côte d’agneau, fresh green salad with an herb vinaigrette, and perfectly cooked asparagus spears.  We finished with a dessert of charlotte framboise – of course, with a name like that how could that be anything but delicious.  Pat is a great cook, and dining on the water in her beautiful new boat (and home) with Fort Carré behind us – well, I cannot imagine any restaurant with more ambiance.

Pat and her brother, Bert, have spent the last four months purchasing the new boat in Viareggio, Italy, and then island hopping in the Mediterranean.  They arrived here into Port Vauban after a straight 24-hour day and night sail from Corsica.  They loved the people and the scenery in Corsica.  Before Corsica, they also spent time on the island of Capria (not to be mistaken for Capri) and on the island of Elba, as well as some other Italian islands whose names I cannot recall.  Each place they visited was even better than the previous place.  It sounds like they have really enjoyed their adventure.  It also sounds like Pat has made a lot of progress in her sailing education.  From everything we’ve heard, the trip between Corsica and Nice (and Antibes) can be extremely challenging.

And more good news is that, if all goes well, we get to take Daste out for a sail on Saturday.  The plan is to sail over to Ile Ste-Marguerite, which is one of the Iles de Lerins just off the coast of Cannes, and we will swim and picnic, etc., etc.  Can’t wait !

Tatoosh - One of Paul Allen’s Toys

We spotted Tatoosh last night at the port in Antibes.  We’re not sure how accurate this is, but we’ve heard that Port Vauban is the largest pleasure craft port in Europe.  It very well may be true since some of the largest power yachts in the world periodically stop in for a few days at a time.  We went back to the port this morning to get some pictures of just one of Paul Allen’s three Mega Yachts.  In 2004, Tatoosh was listed as the 12^th largest  yacht in the world by Power & Motoryacht magazine.  It measures 301’8”, and has a helicopter pad on the upper back end and a full-size sailboat that it carries around with it on its port side. 

In the past we’ve also seen Octopus docked in the same spot as Tatoosh.  Early last year Octopus was considered the largest private yacht in the world measuring in at 414 ft, and it also belongs to Paul Allen.  Among other things, Octopus has two helicopter pads, a full-length basketball court, and a submarine.  Of course, these numbers regarding the largest yacht in the world change pretty quickly, as people like Larry Ellison feel the need to claim title to the biggest and the best.  In fact, Larry Ellison just recently built and launched the new largest private yacht in the world called Rising Sun which measures 452’8”.  I also read that when he heard that an even larger yacht is close to being launched, he decided to put Rising Sun on the market.