Monaco

View from the palace garden. See the sailboats in the background?View of the Monte Carlo casino at night

View of the bay from the palace

There are moments in life when one is made fully, if not abruptly, aware of one's status in the world. For me, this would be the status of impoverished student. And so I tell you that there is no better place in the world than Monaco to hand you this realization (on a golden platter of course.) I have never before experienced a place that exudes wealth so completely; that so thoroughly reminds you of your exclusion from a lifestyle of excess. But although it may seem otherwise, Monaco is not entirely perfect. There is discarded gum on the sidewalks and people in ill-fitting track-suits that serve, fortunately, as a reminder of the reality of the place. That said, it is also a place where orange trees and placid policemen line the streets. Where sunny, open-air markets hum with the sounds of buyers and sellers and local children. Where hundred dollar meals, thousand dollar coats, and million dollar yachts are readily available to anyone with the funds. Where the glow of a real palace rises above the rest of the city.

Although I hardly have the credibility to say so after just spending one day there, I believe the best part of Monaco is the palace gardens. As the palace itself is elevated from the rest of the city, the garden seems to hang magically from the side of a cliff, giving one a most incredible view of the sea and the nearby Italian shore. The weather was absolutely perfect the day we were there and I could not help feeling that I had witnessed a small portion of heaven. Blooming flowers, meandering pathways, shady trellises, sailboats dancing coquettishly in the distance...I wish you all could have seen it.

I suppose Walt Disney has disappointed me again as I found the palace itself to be somewhat lacking. The architecture and surrounding statues were beautiful, but not as appropriately palatial as I would have expected. The changing of the guard at precisely 11:55 was interesting to watch but, again, it seemed kind of farcical to me, as if it were all a big game of make-believe. The royal family, however, is entirely real and their presence in Monaco is a rather intriguing if not long story (their family has been in power for more than 700 years.) As history goes, the first Grimaldi arrived at the Rock of Monaco (where the palace is now) disguised as a traveling monk. He begged the guards at the existing settlement to allow him entrance. Being the humane people they were, the guards let François Grimaldi into their walls where he proceeded to kill everyone with his hidden sword. I am happy to report that the more modern members of this family are quite unlike this founding ancestor. During the Nazi occupation of Monaco, the Prince secretly warned Jewish members of the community that the Gestapo was coming for them. Now, the country has abolished capital punishment, instituted universal suffrage, and has abolished taxes for everyone except the French and Italian.

Although I can hardly imagine myself a member of such a world as this, it was wonderful to be in a place that felt so wholly and satisfyingly perfect.