Walking with Paolo: Nice to Cannes

May 1, 2026 – Nice Airport to Cannes – 29 km – Clem de Soleil apartment
May 2, 2026 – Cannes to Agay – 27 km – Emplacement Privilégié

Now that I have a few kilometres behind me, I’m starting to relax. While I was awake in the night before we started, my mind continued to catalogue everything that could possibly go wrong. Why don’t I use those moments to overthink the best-case scenarios rather than the worst?

My new bike is working well and may fit me even better than Grandma Friday. None of my imagined breakdowns have happened so far as I’ve cycled along this magnificent coast. I haven’t named her yet, but it will come to me at some point as we get acquainted.

These trips do push me a little beyond my comfort zone. I’m pretty good at this, but still, travelling on my own without Gord within a metre radius always causes me a bit of anxiety. As I settle onto my first bench overlooking the sea, I breathe and relax a little more.

We enjoyed our day in Nice and would like to return to spend more time there. We reunited with our friend Paolo in Nice, and we’re travelling with him for a couple of days.

I often start my sketchbook before a trip with a map and my first sketch. This time, I painted a view of old Antibes from a photo I found on the internet. Sitting by the sea next to one of the towers I painted, I am slowly making sense of my painting, unhooking what I imagined from reality. It was May Day, and the Picasso Museum in Antibes was closed, but the music and people made the beautiful old town delightfully lively.