After deciding not to continue from Italy into Austria, we took a train (or rather a combination of four separate trains) to Monte Carlo, arriving there before sunrise Saturday July 29.  The early morning ride along the coast of Monaco and into the French Riviera provided us with some incredible vistas free of the heavy crowds and traffic that accumulated later in the day.

After several days travelling along the coast, and enjoying the beaches, we headed deeper into Provence in order to escape the busy holiday traffic along the coast.

A particularly beautiful area is the Cirque de Navacelles which includes the Gorge de la Vis (pictured above).

Eventually we did make our way back to the coast and enjoyed several more days on the beaches as we headed towards the Pyrenees and the Spanish border.