On our first morning in France, we slept in just a little bit, then got up and headed out to one of Addie’s favorite cafes that is under the canopy of the daily market (le marché provençal). It’s such a cute market, and so cool that it was right down the street from Addie’s place.

Most of us opted for the pain au chocolate, which was amazing – and only 1.5 euros! Chad got some kind of baguette that was also delicious. We ended up coming back here several mornings for a yummy cheap breakfast.

We bought some fruit in the market, admired the beautiful flowers, and then took a little tour of Addie’s neighborhood, taking turns to pose in the cute archway that leads to her street.

The view above is just on the other end of her little street – it looks straight out to the Mediterranean! Below is another cute little side street in her neighborhood.

We took a stroll along the sea and admired the beautiful view of Antibes.

For lunch that day, we went back to our apartment and made some delicious sandwiches and tried some camembert chips. They were good!

That afternoon, we hopped on a train that took us to Nice to see Chad’s cousin Betsy and her sweet family. Betsy moved to France years ago after meeting her husband Olivier while being an au pair in Paris. They’ve lived there ever since.

Betsy picked us up at the station and drove us to her lovely home up in the hills of Nice, a place that felt like a postcard come to life. We were very impressed with her driving skills as she expertly maneuvered her stick shift up the winding roads. The roads were so narrow that many of the curves really only fit one car, which made for some nail-biting moments as we approached each bend, unable to see if there was another car approaching. I couldn’t help but marvel at how calmly she handled it! Clearly, she does this everyday and has become an expert at it.

Once at her house, we enjoyed the breath-taking views from their balcony. Unfortunately it was a cloudy day or we could’ve seen so much farther! It was so good to see Betsy’s family again! Their three active, adorable boys were much too busy to stop for a picture. 😉

In the two pictures above, we’re up on the second floor balcony of her house, so you can see the sea off to the right. I’m sure on a sunny day, this view is even more stunning!

Betsy had prepared a crêpe party ready for us. She made the first few and then taught the kids how to make them so they could take over and learn a new skill. They did great and they turned out delicious!

Unfortunately I didn’t get a picture of the finished crêpes – they were too irresistible that I couldn’t pause to take a pic until they were all finished!

After our crêpe party, we took off with Betsy and her son Thomas for the Carnival. Nice hosts the biggest and most beautiful Mardi Gras celebration in France, and we were excited to see it!

Betsy had joined Chad and I in New Orleans (where his parents used to live) years ago for Mardi Gras and we had so much fun together. We were ready to relive it!

The parade in Nice throws out confetti instead of beads, so we didn’t get to add to our bead collection, but the confetti was super fun too!

The parade was so colorful and fun! We had a blast!

It was so fun getting to do this with Betsy and Thomas! It was sad to have to say goodbye, but we were thankful for the fun evening spent with them.

We hopped back on the train for our 20 minute ride back to Antibes where we slept very well after our first full and busy day in France!