Man-Capris and Monaco

Some places have an unmistakable charm to them.  Today we travel to Monaco near the French border.  It's a beautiful and expensive little country along the Mediterranean sea.  We stopped here for a brief visit in 2005.  And it was okay to visit.....briefly.  It's overpriced and in my opinion, not all that...unless you like to gamble and spend money.  My two topics today are about what I was thinking about on this day in Monaco....Man-capris and Fragonard.

The Mediterranean sea winds made for a beautiful outing and great visit that day.  So I have a question.  Really several troubling thoughts that passed through my head during this trip. What is wrong with a man wearing "Man-Capris"?  They are normal capris pants that are worn by both men and women in Europe.  They are highly accepted in society....until you reach the United States.  Then you are ridiculed and laughed at.  Put these pants on for work at a high school and you'll hear the snickers and stifled laughs from teenagers all over.  Well if I cared, I would be self conscious, but instead I laugh as well at their own reactions.  It's actually quite funny.  I've learned to build a thick skin and let things bounce off of me. And that in its own right teaches kids that it's okay to be who they want to be:)  So back to my topic....what IS wrong with Man-capris?  What is not to love about them?  Extra pockets for all kinds of things.  A little protection from the sun below the knees. Did you know that skin cancer many times is found to develop behind your knees?  Think about that one.  They are light weight.  When you sit down, you know that everything is covered properly.   They look great.  Now put them with "Mandals"(men sandals) and you've got perfection.  Well maybe not.  Again another American taboo.  That's even worse!  Hahaha....ahhhhh it's funny how culture changes from one place to another.  Today my mandals and mancapris sit and wait for me to unveil them again......and I vow that I will.  I wore my Mancapris and Mandals for the first time in Monaco....proudly.

We went to Monaco after a morning visit to Fragonard.....almost every person's dream.  But I didn't know about it.  So why did I spend lots of money there at this expensive perfume store in France?  Well I'll tell you.  There were Germans....and Italians.  Some of the most brutal and aggressive women I have ever seen in my life.  Some of them had hair growing on their upper lip.  They were drooling for a certain cologne and perfume.  As soon as this picturesque perfumeria opened up, the Germans and Italian women rushed in and nearly knocked me over to get to whatever it was that Fragonard was selling.  There was some fighting between the ladies and within minutes the perfume was gone!  I laughed because it reminded me of chickens fighting over a cob of corn.  But the smells made me think of my sisters and mom and I too gave into the need for buying something special for the ladies in my family.  And so I did.  If there's one rule to remember.....France sells wonderful things so bring extra money with you. That day I purchased 200 dollars worth of perfume.  And it was money well spent because my Mom and sisters loved the gifts.  The pictures of Monaco are "meh".  Beautiful landscapes but the city/country is okay.  Worth a visit? Depends.  I will never go back again.  But we headed north that day into Italy and that was worth it. Stay tuned for more.....