On the train to Nice we met this gorgeous black girl, Colette, from Morocco. We got to talking and she said she has a friend who lives in Nice and would probably let us stay with her. So the friend, Amelie, meets us all at the train station and we go out to lunch. Djeneba only spoke French, but she said we could stay with her. It was so awesome.

Unfortunately, Colette had to catch a train a shortly after, so we had to say goodbye to her. Amelie's apartment was pretty nice. The shower was in the kitchen, which was bizarre, but she had a spare room for us, so who am I to complain? She took us to the beach to hang out while she went shopping with some friends.

After an hour or so, both mine and Becky's watches stopped working. Just completely died within five minutes of each other. It was pretty bizarre, but we thought maybe it was because of the heat.

After several hours past when Amelie was supposed to come back and get us, Becky and I started getting worried. So we managed to make our way back to her apartment, but she wasn't there. There was a little restaurant below her place, so we hung out there. I think the manager and the waiter, Belu and Jillani, felt sorry for us, because they gave us free Cokes. We hung out there for probably two hours before Amalie showed up with her two friends. They all seemed much less worried than us, but everything was fine and she was letting us stay with her for free, so we got over it quickly. Her friends spoke a little more English, so it was fun talking with them in a mix of French and English.

The next morning, we got up and went to the bus stop, but for some reason the buses weren't running. So we had to walk to the whole way to the airport. It took forever, but we managed to get there only 1/2 hour late. And there was no line for security, so we actually had a while to decompress before boarding the plane. We were so hot and sweaty and gross.

So here's what I learned from Nice:

-If you stay with a friend, always get a cell phone number.

-Keep your passport with you at all times.

-The stone beaches are great in Nice. You can get a good tan in 10 minutes, so bring lots of sunscreen.

-Watches stop working ... if they get too hot?

-Always write down the address of where you are staying.

-Learn about the public transportation if it's a crucial part of your plan.