Old Harbor (La Darse)

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We are back in Nice, the city located in the Côte d'Azur or the “blue coast” area. We are here in mid-February, beating the heat and crowds. Today we will walk on the streets of Nice and later walk to Villefranche-sur-Mer. We are going to return to Nice by train from there.
Nice Côte d'Azur Airport is located 6 km southwest of Nice. Unlike the case with most other big airports where there are no sidewalks for pedestrians, here one can walk along the Promenade des Anglais from the airport to the city centre. Promenade des Anglais owes its name to visitors of the resort who liked to spend their winters there. Nice is one of the most visited cities in France, hosting 4 million tourists each year.
Port Lympia is the principal harbour of Nice. The port has a ferry connection to Corsica. Now the port is the home for colourful boats and yachts. There are many cafes and restaurants around the harbour. The stone lighthouse was built in the end of the 19th century. It was destroyed during WWII and rebuilt in the 1950s.
We are now in Villefranche-sur-Mer. The name Villefranche means “free city” in French. It was a tax-free area established in the 13th century to attract people to settle there, to protect the land against invasion of pirates from the sea.
The Russian fleet used this harbour from the end of the 18th century. Russia had lost the right to keep the fleet in the Black Sea in the Crimean War and needed a naval base, which was established here in mid 19th century and lasted until 1870. During the Second World War the harbour was used by the Nazis U-boats. The American 6th Fleet occupied the port after the Allied victory until 1966, when they were asked to leave.

Equipment used: Canon 5D MkII with Flycam HD 3000 Camera Stabilizer, Canon EF 16-35mm and Zenitar-M2.8/16 Fisheye lenses

Villefranche sur mer

Villefranche sur mer viewed from above. You can aslo see the saint jean cap ferrat peninsula at 00:08 and 00:09

Places to see in ( Nice - France ) La Darse

Places to see in ( Nice - France ) La Darse

The darse of Villefranche-sur-Mer is the historic port of this city of the Alpes-Maritimes , on the Côte d'Azur . It is the former arsenal of the Duchy of Savoy , later Kingdom of Sardinia . The main buildings of the port are protected by the Historical Monuments since 1991.
Between Monaco and Nice , at the mouth of the Alps, the bay of Villefranche has always been an essential stop on the maritime routes of the Mediterranean Sea .

For who arrives in Villefranche by the cornice or the collar which connects it to Nice, the spectacle is striking. The harbor is surrounded on all sides by cliffs: Cap Ferrat , Cape of Nice , first foothills of the Alps. This amphitheater of hills protects a vast body of water of two kilometers on one and a half with funds reaching a hundred meters. Villefranche is located on the edge of an important maritime axis of the Mediterranean, halfway between the major ports of Genoa and Marseille . It was also the outlet for the Salt Road which crossed the southern Alps.

At times when shipping was near the coast with frequent supplies of water and food, the bay of Villefranche offered a healthy haven that could shelter an entire fleet. The Duchy of Savoy , later kingdom of Sardinia , was a mountain state led from Turin . The county of Nice was for a long time its only window on the sea. The bay of Villefranche naturally became the site of the royal port.

In 1792, the revolutionary troops invade the county of Nice and take without difficulty the Mont-Alban and the citadel of Villefranche. The County will remain French until the Congress of Vienna (1815) which returns to the kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia and attaches to it Liguria . The royal port is then transferred to Genoa and the Darse de Villefranche loses its importance.

In 1860, a plebiscite approved the attachment of the County to France. TheSeptember 12, Napoleon III and Empress disembark in the port of Darse and are greeted with enthusiasm. The bay of Villefranche hosts a Russian squadron whose sailors are based in the former hospital galériens. The Russians will create in 1884 a laboratory, the first fruits of the current oceanographic observatory of Villefranche-sur-Mer.

From 1945 to 1966, Villefranche was the home port of the Sixth Fleet of the United States . A supply store for sailors' families is installed in the old rope factory. A little away from Villefranche, the port of the Darse dozed until its recent revival as marina. This relative forgetfulness may have protected his extraordinary patrimony.

( Nice - France ) is well know as a tourist destination because of the variety of places you can enjoy while you are visiting Nice . Through a series of videos we will try to show you recommended places to visit in Nice - France

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