Monaco

Ah, Monaco. I'd heard of the place, of course, but never really figured out its actual political situation, or its position on the map until now. It turns out to be its own independent country, completely surrounded by France. This area of France used to belong to the House of Grimaldi, with the surrounding area belonging to the Italian-speaking House of Savoy. Monaco somehow managed to maintain its autonomous situation, and became the world's densest country, with the highest per capita GDP. I've read up about it, but I still cannot make out why France tolerated this autonomous country within its influence zone. Anyhow, there it sits. And it houses Monte Carlo, with the famous casino where 007 movies were filmed.

I pulled into Port Fontvielle, one of the most amazing ports constructed partly out of a cliff face, and partly from reclaimed land. Stella (Guizmo's engine) developed transmission problems 0.2 miles out of the port entrance on a day with absolutely no wind, so I needed to get a tow into port. This meant that I could not pull into my assigned slot, and had to moor at the farthest spot on the outermost quay. This turns out to be the best spot in the entire marina. And it was all mine.

This cliff forms half of the marina

It looks cool when it is lit up at night

There is an oceanographic museum that was associated Captain Cousteau. I have not seen it yet but it is reputed to be worth seeing.

Musee Oceanographique, some of the prime real estate in Monaco

The place is covered with signs announcing Prince Albert's marriage to Charlene. Frankly, Prince Albert seems incredibly bland. He has a lot of resources at his disposal, and we've somehow never heard of anything from him or about him. His great-great-grandfather was an important figure in early oceanography in the late 1800's. This fellow is not at all interested in science, and is not even passionate enough to have a good scandal or two. These are the signs of a boring royal family. Anyhow, his smiling visage is all over the place.

Albert, posing in military regalia he'll never have to wear in the battlefield

This royal family, more than any other, loves to pose in military outfits. It's a bit weird, as I don't think they've ever had to, and nor will they ever have to in the future, wear those outfits on a real battlefield.
It's pretty clear that Albert got the better end of the deal with Charlene, who got a guy with a really large round head and two illegitimate children. It turns out that their palace is right above Guizmo, so I'm, practically, right outside their window. If Charlene changes her mind, there is a staircase leading down from the castle down to where I'm moored.

The big attraction in the town is, of course, the casino. I cannot provide any pics from inside the casino. One of the first things they do is take away your camera. But it has only 12 tables, and no baccarat! Could 007 movies have exaggerated how people live around here? What a disappointment. There are private gambling areas (salons privee), which I couldn't enter because I had forgotten to pack a tuxedo on my mini (obviously, I never had any intention of packing any formal clothing, but a jacket would have been sufficient, and maybe a good idea). In any case, if you've been to Vegas, you'll be disappointed in Monte Carlo. I was disappointed, and I haven't even been to Vegas. Monte Carlo was in a very grand building, but the gambling operation was ultimately much smaller than the tribal casino I went to in Mukilteo, in Washington State, on a lark during a car ride. And when the minimum bets are high, which they are here, and the average age of the gamblers is high, which it has to be for the gamblers to amass the kind of money required to play here, the games get played very slowly. The Monegasque way roulette is played, for example, involves a giant table and three croupiers placing bets on behalf of the players. This goes counter to American sensibilities, where the games are much faster and people place their own bets.

Monte Carlo

Hotel De Paris, next to the Monte Carlo
Note the posh cars lined up in the front. All of this opulence can apparently be rented, at reasonable rates.