July / August 1988
Monaco awakens from the tranquillity and elegance of the winter season of opera, ballet and symphony concerts with the coming of Spring and the Grand Prix de Monaco. Tranquillity in the sense of few tourists and few year-round residents, but not in the sense of peace and quiet, this year at least. Even the ground beneath the palace has been shattered by the grind of drills and roar of cement trucks as the rock was "Gruyered" by new roads to and from the new town of Fontvieille and the dust has still not settled in Monte Carlo as the huge new parking garages in the Place du Casino and Avenue Princesse Grace are still under construction.
The tar-macadam on the road around the casino and down towards the Loews Hotel was literally a last minute, overnight job only days before the Grand Prix, and the Monaco bus drivers could qualify for best driver categories as they wrench the buses between trucks and barricades with only inches to spare and a schedule to keep.
Traffic snarls and ‘rain stopped play’ notices for the first day of the Grand Prix. Notwithstanding, the GP brought in around 60,000 fans, who paid up to 850 francs for the privilege of suffering hours of ear shattering roars and the hope of witnessing an almighty squeal of brakes and a Formula One crash at their feet. One visitor from London proudly announced he had shot seven rolls of film and the high spot of the day was the demise of Britain’s driver "right in front of our seats".
What with the French driver winning the trophy and the Monaco football team at the top of the league, serenity has become a thing of the past. As a gesture of thanks to their faithful fans, seats at the final Monaco–Auxerre game were free and fans tooted and yelled through the streets of the Principality, waving red and white anything in noisy joy. A football signed by the whole Monaco team was a special attraction at the Spring Fair held by the American International School in Monaco and hand-painted T-shirts autographed by Glenn Hoddle and Mark Hateley (star British players now on the Monaco team) were an absolute sell out.
Fans of Hoddle will know that he’s not only a mean soccer player but no mean musician either … had a hit record or two back in jolly olde … maybe he and Princess Stephanie should get together and make an Anglo-Monegasque sell out disc for their favourite charity. But he’s a shy guy … and she’s a super busy lady …
June highlight for British cricket fans was the match between the Lords Taverners X 1 and the British Association of Monaco X 1. With obvious lack of respect and understanding of the importance of the game, the American school in Nice scheduled their summer garden fete for the same day. They missed a great game, superb gin and tonics and typically topping afternoon teas served with supreme gentility by some of the leading ladies of the Drama Group of Monaco, taking time out from rehearsals for July’s "Shakespeare on the Rock", their fourth rendition of the Bard on the Côte d’Azur. This year’s play is "As You Like It", playing at Fort Antoine on July 18 and 19 and at the old Chateau de Roquebrune on July 22nd.
Great news for A.I.M. members ... they've found a restaurant in Beausoleil (the French bit that runs cheek by jowl with Monte Carlo), where they organized dinner with wine and coffee for a most un-Monaco bargain price of 65 francs (two minutes from Barclays Bank) ... that's what it says on the invitation ... and "Fragrans Tortuosa"... who could resist that! Le Grillardin, here we come. The Texas restaurant just off rue Grimaldi has just had a face lift ready for the summer and is all set to welcome anyone wanting a little Tex-Mex food. But if you're American and starving for a real steak, I had a magnificent one at the American Club of the Riviera's lunch last month at the Hotel Beach Plaza ... flown in from the good old U.S. of A. Something else! ... And then, just across the border, there's Italy ... ah! have you found that great Italian restaurant 2 minutes past the Bordighera exit from the motorway! The zabaglione is ... to die!
The Monte Carlo Country club is gearing up for the Monte Carlo Golf Open tournament ... very popular with the Americans and great PR for Monaco as the television camera pans across luscious green links and azure blue Mediterranean, with side shots of millionaires sipping champagne. Then, in July, in come the stars and celebrities from Hollywood for the Pro-Celebrity tennis tournament. If you're a stargazer, it's a great place to be, as all those faces you know and watch from Dynasty and Dallas drift by and the tennis pros battle with Prince Albert for the trophy. It's all très chic and très cher and so like Beverly Hills by the sea ... or Malibu on the Med.
The high spot on the social calendar for July will be the opening of the new, improved Café de Paris, which has been completely refurbished, but leaving the outside in the old original Belle Epoque style. Scheduled for the last week of July, it will be a grand occasion. A special coffee table book is being printed to commemorate the opening, and for forty or so thousand francs, you can have your name printed in it (in gold, perhaps?).
If this is all too high powered and you'd rather be on the beach, watch out for jellyfish and the ubiquitous cigarette ends ... Monaco last year issued an edict to dog owners and the streets are a great deal cleaner, but smokers are everywhere. Health conscious California now bans pop-up drink cans and the flip inwards type cans are in vogue. They found too many children cut their feet on the sharp, flip-off tops left lying around the beaches. And you can't find a quiet place to smoke anywhere in California outside the home! You can get shot in Watts, smogged in downtown L.A., but ... no smoking!
If you're into smelling sweetly, rather than smoky, Princess Grace's rose garden, near the Heliport, is a blaze of colour and fragrance. A lady from Tyler, Texas (famous for its yellow roses) visited Monaco last month, saw the rose in full bloom, then went up to visit the perfume distilleries near Grasse. With typical American business initiative, she's sure she can export rose petals from Texas, or start her own perfume factory there and import rose petals from Monaco.
And summer in Monaco is full of princely things ... like music in the courtyard of the palace, fireworks flowering in the night skies, and the open air cinema next to the Summer Sporting Club showing its original version films each evening. "It's so late," groaned one resident (the film begins around ten p.m.) — but it's early in a town where dinner is rarely eaten much before nine and they're dancing in Jimmy'z until four in the morning.
If it's magical ... it must be Monte Carlo ... But if you're thinking of moving here, consider carefully. For the price of a studio by the sea in Monte Carlo, you could buy a 34-room chateau and 12 hectares in the centre of France ... only three million francs!
M.B.
