(Continued from the San Marino blog post)

A Bit About Monaco

Like San Marino, Monaco is a tiny country with a long history. It became a Genoese colony (granted to them by the Holy Roman Empire) the same year the Magna Carta was issued (1215). At other points in its history, it was a part of Spain and France. The Genoese Grimaldi family has ruled it for most of its history though, after Francesco Grimaldi seized the Rock of Monaco in 1297. Part of their early wealth apparently came from sacking Southampton, England, during the Hundred Years’ War. Later, their wealth grew with a transport link to Paris, tourism, and favorable tax laws leading to growth in the financial services industry there. That’s it for today’s brief history lesson – on to the trip!

Monte CarLO(ST)

Amazingly, the long day of multiple forms of transportation ended with an on-time arrival in Monte Carlo just before 8pm. It was a bit cloudy when I got there- not like the nice sunsets I’d been lucky with for most of this challenge so far. I’d be staying with my first Couchsurfing host for the night, so I opted to just head there directly, as it was already getting dark.

I proceeded to make a beeline out the wrong side of the station. Great start. GPS signal does not seem to work there properly (or my phone is just old), and the routes chosen by Google Maps made no sense. I spent probably 15 minutes just finding the right path to start the 15-minute walk to the apartment, which was technically in France (though there is no border control…or even a sign to let you know you’ve entered another country).

“Lost” ended up being the theme in Monaco. I headed up a few flights of stairs (50+ steps after a long incline) right into a wall. The road I was meant to turn onto wasn’t too far above it, but it was too high to jump/climb. There was no other way up except to descend and try another way. I’d seen ads for Citymapper in the station (it’s a great app for London), so I pulled that up, and it was honestly no better than Google Maps. I don’t have advice for you, except to prepare to walk more than you think, with more stairs than you think.

I had some leftover snacks in my bag and wanted to avoid the exorbitant prices Monaco is known for, plus I wasn’t feeling more stair-stepping adventures that evening, so I ate those and headed to bed early. My Couchsurfing host was so kind- when I had to change my trip with the cancellation of the Vatican portion, he still offered to have me crash there, despite not being around. I hope to go back one day to see it properly, but I did get to practice some Itañol with his son and brother. I highly recommend Couchsurfing and have met some great people already (only joined in March of this year). There are meetups as well, if you have a place to stay but just want to meet locals or other travelers.

The High Point

The next morning, I woke up early to attempt another sunrise (just 24 hours before, I was atop Monte Titano!), hoping for better conditions than the cloudy sunset the previous evening. Monaco delivered!

The map accuracy was no better this morning, though. I saw the dreaded stairs symbol, but as I approached it, I was pleasantly surprised to see that it was actually one of Monaco’s many public lifts/elevators I’d be taking. The joy lasted all of 2 seconds, before I noticed the hours printed on the sign. It wouldn’t be opening for another 40 minutes. I headed inside anyway, figuring there must be stairs somewhere instead. Inside was a half-lit, deserted lobby. I headed up the only stairs in sight, which brought me to the landing with the lift entrance. It was closed, and there was no other way to continue up. I went back down the stairs, where I saw a runner also wandering around, confused. I asked if he knew another way up, as I was trying to find the highest point of Monaco. He said that he wasn’t from here (Venice), but was also looking for the highest point! We checked our maps and opted for a route around the corner. He resumed running with a “see you at the top!”

I ended up finding a path/shortcut along the way and emerged onto Avenue Prince Rainier III de Monaco (seriously, who names a road this??), not far behind the runner. The country’s highest point is where this road intersects with Chemin des Révoires. However, I saw his red shirt bobbing up another trail that continued higher. I’m not sure If he knew where Monaco ended, but his route into France would surely take him to some beautiful panoramic views regardless!

I spent a few minutes walking back and forth along the stretch of road that intersected with Chemin des Révoires. With no border signs, it’s a bit difficult to determine the highest point, but I settled on standing in a spot that felt highest, around the fresh patch of pavement. Based on Google Maps, though…the high point name is a bit of a misnomer, as you don’t actually turn onto Chemin des Révoires (that would mean leaving Monaco and entering France).

After the photos, I thought about what to do with the hour before my train. It was a bit too early for the casinos or any other major attractions to be open. That trail into France did look a bit more scenic than Monaco’s highest point, so I followed it for a bit. It led me along a nice path with views over Monte Carlo. The park is called the Parc de Grima. My French isn’t great…but in Spanish, this is something creepy or disgusting, or something that makes you feel uneasy. In French, it’s apparently a grimace. I’m not really sure what they were going for here, but I did come across an abandoned backpack in the middle of the trail, and no one was around, so the name kind of fit. Beautiful views, though! For more info on this park and the trail map, here is its website.

From there, I headed toward the station, as I expected locating my platform to take quite a while (based on my excellent track record so far of finding anything efficiently in Monaco).

The thing to know about the station is that it spans multiple levels. Before arriving at the point Google Maps considered to be the station entrance, I saw a sign for a lift. The problem: there were 14 floors (from -1 to -14…yes, negative), and none were labeled properly. I wasn’t sure if this was the station, but it was close enough that it would have to be connected, I thought? Of course, being Monaco, nothing clearly said ‘GO HERE FOR THE TRAIN STATION’. I hopped on the lift as someone else was getting on, and he pressed -14. I decided to go with that and exit at the same level. It turned out to be right where I’d (correctly) exited from yesterday! If only I’d known about that lift then…could have saved the legs a bit.

I found the platform for my train to Nice within minutes. There were still 40 minutes before my train was scheduled to depart, and Port Hercule was only a 15-minute walk away. It was downhill, so I decided to walk as far as I could before turning back uphill. It turned out that any spot I wanted to see was barricaded for Formula E (Monaco E-Prix). I know nothing about racing, but if you’re not there specifically for it, research any events that might be happening! I knew about a big Formula 1 event happening later in May, but not about this one. Some areas you could pass through after having your bags searched, but others required event tickets. You really couldn’t see anything without ticketed access; you could just hear engines revving along what was presumably the course through Monte Carlo. I was happy to know I hadn’t missed out on much sightseeing, given the closures. The best views were from the random detour I’d taken that morning!

I expected the race tickets to be extremely expensive (Formula 1 tickets start from almost 500 euros and can exceed 5,000), but some quick online research showed E-Prix tickets available for as low as 30 euros. If you’re not that dedicated to Formula 1 and just want to see some cars race the Monaco circuit, this could be an option for you. The “E” stands for electric, as the race is for electric cars only.

I made my first and only Monaco purchase at the station: a decaf latte from Starbucks. Still not as expensive as NYC. Then, onward to Nice and back to London.

I know I’ve not given the best representation of Monaco, with my multiple strokes of bad luck here (maybe it knew a 12-hour stay wasn’t nearly enough and decided to mess with me). The malfunctioning maps, closed lifts, cloudy sunset, and closed roads during the short time I had to sightsee. Two black cats did cross my path here… Anyway, I’ve heard from others that it’s a wonderful place to visit, especially for climbing! It’s not just a destination for luxury, but also nature.

THANK YOU ❤

Thanks for reading my ninth Crown of Cureope blog post. Having just received a donation while in San Marino, Monaco’s total <1 day later was unsurprisingly also $1,275 raised. (: Your contributions are all going directly to the American Association for Cancer Research to fund lifesaving discoveries ❤

Next up, Malta! 🙂