Thursday 18 August 2011

Eze Village


Eze Village is one of the most charming, if these days a bit touristy cutsypie, hill top, stone villages in France. The income from the summer tourist season has enable the village elders to restore the town to a pristine condition that it probably never enjoyed in it's long history. But on either side of the summer, there are no crowds and you can enjoy strolling the narrow lanes, sipping an espress or a pastis at one of the many cafes with tables tucked away in whatever nook or cranny that presents itself.
There are two fine hotels and several fine restaraunts as well as endless art galleries, gift shops and more. Do find your way up to the gardens at the very top where the ruins of the chateau offer an incomparable view out over the coast line east and west. A eagles view if ever there was one.
A little history: The oldest places of inhabitants on the communeof Eze go back to the neolithic era towards 2000 BC on the Mount Bastide. At the iron age, the celto-ligurians population
who lived in this area erected many castellaras along the coast. These constructions were built with dry blocks of stone and were generally heighly located.
The one on the Mount Bastide dominates at 567 m above the sea level and it is one of the best preserved of the region.The city and surroundings were occupied by the romans and the gallo-romans.


Eze and Antiquity: The name of Eze originated either from the port of Avisio located in the bay of Saint Laurent of Eze (east of the commune) mentioned by Antonin in his maritime route, or according to an oral legend that the phoenicians would have erected a temple in Eze in memory of the goddess Isis.
With the end of the roman empire, the barbarians invasions followed, the inhabitants gathered in the old celto ligurians site.
Eze acquired quickly its defensive character. 


this was lunch-nicoise salad and it was even more amazing than the photo


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