FRIDAY, JULY 4th, MY BIRTHDAY!

No one was told of the plans other than that the evening would be spent in Monte Carlo.

Everyone dressed up for the glam night and our drivers first took us to Eze to the Fragonard perfume factory. Suspended above the sea on the Moyenne Corniche between Nice and Monaco stood this perfume, soap and 

cosmetics factory equipped with the most modern laboratories and workshops. We had a tour and saw how the perfumes were made, then we got to shop for all the “goodies,” and shop we did.  You can’t expect to let 12 gals loose in a perfume and cosmetics shop and not expect us to enhance the local economy.

The word ‘perfume’ is derived from the Latin per (through) and fumare (to smoke) because, long before the use of modern techniques, the first perfumes were obtained by burning woods, resins and other complex mixtures. Fascinating!

In the parking lot of the perfume factory I revealed to the gals what the evening would be. I explained that ever since I can remember I always dreamed of going to Monte Carlo. I didn’t know if this night would exceed the “wow” of the others but I knew I wanted to share this special birthday with these special friends in this special locale. It turned out to exceed allour expectations including my own.

There are some exceptional palaces which one day cease to be merely an address to become a legend. The Hôtel de Paris is one of them. We arrive at this fairy tale-looking principality, Monaco, which is no larger than Central Park. It is pristine, it is almost surreal except for the incredible display of arriving cars…the Bentleys, Rolls, Maseratis, Ferraris and some we’ve never seen or heard of. What yachts were to St. Tropez cars are to Monte Carlo. Prince Rainier’s palace sits on a hill overlooking this hamlet and the gals wonder if I’ve arranged for Prince Albert to stop by. We pass the curve of the hill where Princess Grace was taken from them and we cannot believe we are living this dream. 

We enter the opulent lobby of the hotel after a major amount of camera clicking and proceed to the eighth floor to Le Grill where we are dazzled by the elegance of our surroundings, awed by the view of the harbor and overwhelmed by the circle of chairs set up for us in the bar to enjoy Bellinis (champagne and peach nectar) and pre-selected hors d’oeuvres. 

My eyes meet my friend Pam sitting opposite me and her eyes are filled with tears of sheer joy as she will be sharing her big birthday with all of us tomorrow. I glance over at Sharon, my college roommate who has never ventured past Florida or the Poconos, her eyes also filled with tearsand I am sharing in her wide-eyed wonder like a little child at her first amusement park. I am overcome with emotion. 

We proceed to the dining room and our table at the edge of the wrap around terrace when the most magnificent display of fireworks begins and we all dash to the balcony to capture this moment on film, on video, in our memories, in our hearts. We sit down to dinner and turn over our menus which reveals a watermarked photo of me with the menu printed over it and the title and date of the event. It is packaged for all of us to take home. 

I proceed to toast each gal individually as to what they eachmean to me and to thank them for sharing this night and to let them know that they are my guests for this evening and I am making the party for them.There is not a dry eye at the table.

After a truly gourmet dinner and great conversation they wheel out an indescribable piece of art called my birthday cake and again the audible gasp (or was that for the waiter?).

We cross the courtyard to the adjacent, famous Casino de Monte Carlo. It is hard to imagine that in the middle of the 19th century this prestigious square - known all over the world - was nothing but overgrown grassland under which, according to forebears, were seawater-filled caves. The visionary François Blanc, founder of the Société des Bains de Mer, transformed it completely within three years. In 1878 he gave this huge project to architects Charles Garnier and Dutrou in keeping with Marie Blanc's wishes, and in a record time of just seven months they were to build an opera house and a new casino in Monte Carlo. They did it and the dazzling inauguration ceremony was attended by the celebrities of the epoch. Dutrou was in charge of the Atrium; he created a magnificent vestibule featuring columns supporting a gallery with balustrades.

We spent an hour watching the international jet set throw countless bets on the blackjack table. We walked through the silence of slot machines so un-Vegas like. It was the quietest casino we ever experienced, minimum bets starting at $500, more beautiful people, it was a feast for the senses. The only interruption, much to the delight of my gal pals, was a handsome Italian from Milan, shouting, "Bella, bella, bellisimo," and to my surprise he was captivated by me. The gals all stood to the side smirking with glee like 11 pourd mamas as they watched and listened to this beautiful man try to get me agree to a date, a lunch, a dinner. I politely told him that I was there to spend my time with my friends but certainly did enjoy the compliments and attention. Soooo when I do get to Milan someday..., I will be sure to look up Franco with the number that he gave me.

From there we were whisked to the most famous of all nightclubs, Jimmy’z. It’s the rendezvous for the international jet-set. A portion of the nightclub is situated outdoors which helps deal with the incessant smoking of the French.

Jimmy'z has seen every celebrity and sports star in Christendom pass through its doors and models and millionaires are ubiquitous.We drank champagne, danced till dawn and returned to our hotel at 4 a.m. The only time I see 4 a.m. is on a trip to the bathroom. To say a good time was had by all might be the understatement of the year.