I got back 10 days ago from what should have been my dream vacation in France and Italy (with a brief stopover in Monaco).

The itinerary was perfect – 6 nights in Nice, 1 night in Genoa and 5 nights in Viareggio – a beachside resort in Tuscany.

While the scenery was breathtakingly beautiful – and the number of yachts in each harbour unbelievable – the “tour” part of the package was too challenging for me…..starting with what felt like miles of walking in Charles de Gaulle airport!!  I’ve been in many airports, large and small, but this one ranks up there among the worst…….very spread out and nothing to see or do – just the occasional overpriced sandwich bar.  They even charged for internet service after a free 15 minutes at a kiosk.

Rather than dwell on the negatives (and there were quite a few) – suffice it to say I didn’t see everything on the agenda and I returned home in bad shape.  The trip was meant for “extreme mountain goats” – and I certainly didn’t qualify!!!

I will let pictures speak for themselves.  As you will see – we covered some very lovely territory!

The best part of the whole trip – I travelled with two of my very best friends!