Have you decided where to go for your spring outgoing? let me offer you an advice – Nice.

Nice is a city in southern France on the Mediterranean coast. The city is nicknamed Nice la Belle (Nissa la Bella in Ni?ard), which means Nice the Beautiful.

It is the capital of the French Riviera and is the 5th largest city of France. The metropolitan area is also the 5th largest with 991,903 inhabitants (2006).The area of today’s Nice is believed to be among the oldest human settlements in the world.

Throughout the ages the town changed hands many times. Its strategic location and port significantly contributed to its maritime strength. For years, it was an Italian dominion, then became part of France in 1860. Culturally and architecturally enriched over time, today Nice has become a truly cosmopolitan tourist destination. The spectacular natural beauty of the Nice area and its mild Mediterranean climate came to the attention of the English upper classes in the second half of the 18th Century, when an increasing number of aristocratic families took to spending their winter there. The city’s main seaside promenade, the Promenade des Anglais (‘the Walkway of the English’) owes its name to the earliest visitors to the resort. For decades now, the picturesque Nicean surroundings have attracted not only those in search of relaxation, but also those seeking inspiration. The clear air and soft light has been of particular appeal to some of Western culture’s most outstanding painters, such as Marc Chagall, Henri Matisse, Niki de Saint Phalle and Arman. Their work is commemorated in many of the city’s museums, including Musée Marc Chagall, Musée Matisse and Musée des Beaux-Arts Jules Chéret. The climate and landscape are still what attracts most visitors today. It has the second largest hotel capacity in the country and it’s the second-most visited place in France after Paris, receiving 4 million tourists every year. It also has the second busiest airport in France after Paris and two convention centers dedicated to business tourism. The city also has a university, several business districts and some major cultural facilities, such as museums, a national theater, an opera house with a regional library and several concert halls and casinos. It is the historical capital city of the County of Nice (Comté de Nice).

The cuisine of Nice is close to those of Provence and especially Liguria and uses local ingredients (olive oil, anchovies, fruit and vegetables) but also those from more remote regions, in particular from Northern Europe, because ships which came to pick up olive oil arrived full of food
products, such as dried haddock.

Nice has a few local dishes. There is a local tart made with onions and anchovies (or anchovy paste), named “Pissaladière”. Socca is a type of pancake made from chickpea flour. Nice is also known for bouillabaisse and various fish soups; “Stockfish” (traditionally pronounced as “Stoquefiche” with special emphasis on the first “e”). Farcis ni?ois is a dish made from vegetables stuffed with breadcrumbs; and salade ni?oise is a
tomato salad with green peppers of the “Corne” variety, baked eggs, tuna or anchovies and olives.

Local meat comes from neighbouring valleys, such as the sheep of Sisteron. Local fish, such as mullets, bream, sea urchins, and anchovies (alevins) are used to a great extent, so much so that it has given birth to a proverb: “fish are born in the sea and die in oil”

Stop wondering  about the desination and choose Nice as your next station.