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Day: 27 December 2021

2022 reopening of Jardin Exotique in doubt

by: Stephanie Horsman
27/12/2021

The Jardin Exotique has been closed since the spring of 2020 for repairs. Now, there are concerns that the scheduled opening date in 2022 will be delayed due to a lack of funding.

Monaco’s Jardin Exotique has been a drawcard for both tourists and locals since it’s opening in 1933. With a unique collection of succulent plants from South America and Africa, it is a veritable oasis of flora rarely found outside their natural habitat.

The gardens were closed during the spring 2020 lockdown as the site was in need of urgent repairs. False rocks and footbridges, which had been original features constructed between 1913 and 1933, had begun to feel their age and were in desperate need of renovation. The situation was so dire that the government stepped in with emergency funds by year’s end to assist.

A team of 11 gardeners have maintained the site in anticipation of the time when the gardens can welcome visitors again. The original idea was in 2022, but that date is now in jeopardy, according to municipal officials.

Speaking to Monaco Matin, the officials allege that there has been no money allocated for them in the 2022 budget for further works.

The Jardin Exotique, voted in 2021 to be amongst the world’s most beautiful gardens by the prestigious Ulysses guide, is now in jeopardy of not being able to reopen as planned in June 2022 to coincide with the 100-year anniversary of the death of Prince Albert I.

At a recent municipal council meeting, Monaco Mayor Georges Marsan said: “To date, the phase of demolition of false rocks is completed. However, we unfortunately learned at the end of the year that the Princely government would not have entered any sum in its 2022 budget, even on the line corresponding to studies.” The mayor said he has written to Minister of State Pierre Dartout but is yet to receive a response.

“To date, we have no companies selected for further work,” André Campana, deputy delegate to the Exotic Garden, told Monaco Matin. “This non-registration has the consequence of not coinciding the end of the work on the parking lot entrance to the city scheduled for 2023 with the opening of the garden. There is a lack of will from the government. We are talking about a national heritage.” 

The project’s architect François Lallemand went on to add that, “If no budget is allocated in 2022, it will be done in 2023. So, no work before 2024. It would be dramatic for the garden but also the quality of life of this district, long devastated.”

There are still significant works that need to be completed before reopening can occur. The Department of Public Works secured a tumble-down cliff in 2020, while the Mairie secured false rocks and footbridges in the second half of the same year.

Since then, there has been no movement, though much is required. More false rocks must be rebuilt, pergolas need to be redone, old walkways taken up and rebuilt, and gazebos rehabilitated. Then the mammoth task of re-landscaping the site must occur.

“Without the reconstruction of the footbridges, no passage is possible in the garden, so no opening of the site, even partial, is possible,” argues the Mairie.

The bottom line is that, as of now, the date for reopening this historic site hangs in balance.

 
 
Photo source: Mairie de Monaco
 
 
 

Monaco Red Cross continues aid to Lebanon

by: Stephanie Horsman
27/12/2021

People still affected by the massive explosions that shook Beirut last year are being given renewed assistance by the Monaco Red Cross after an international Red Cross appeal.

On 4th August 2020, the Port of Beirut in Lebanon was rocked by two explosions when a large quantity of ammonium nitrate being stored at the port detonated. The blast caused 218 deaths, more than 7,000 injuries, and €13.26 billion in property damage, resulting in an estimated 300,000 people being left homeless.

The timing could not have been worse as the world was in the early grips of the Covid pandemic and resources were scarce. Lebanon’s government declared a state of emergency as people desperately tried to find food and suitable, albeit temporary, lodgings.

The Monaco Red Cross released funds at the time to support the victims and were able to lift some of the burden from the struggling populace.

Over a year later, on 18th November 2021, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies put out an urgent call for additional support as the situation in the area is still precarious. The Monaco Red Cross responded quickly with a donation of €25,000 of their own funds.

The target of this request is assistance for 625,000 people, as well as support for the Lebanese Red Cross’s 2022-2024 strategic plan, which will focus on specific areas such as health and care, protection and prevention and the integration of assistance.

For those interested in helping the effort, the Red Cross of Monaco is accepting donations on their website at www.croix-rouge.mc/faire-un-don or by visiting their offices at 27 Boulevard de Suisse.

All funds raised will go toward the projects underway in Lebanon.

 

 
 

CSM to analyse for Covid variants

by: Cassandra Tanti
27/12/2021

The Scientific Centre of Monaco will soon be equipped with the technology to detect new Covid variants, including the fast-spreading Omicron variant, allowing the Principality to better understand the local health situation and contribute to international research. 
The Centre Scientifique de Monaco (CSM) has been screening nose and blood samples for Covid-19 since May 2020, and on 16th December passed the symbolic milestone of analysing 100,000 PCR tests. It is responsible for determining the outcome of around 500 Covid tests each day, as well as over a hundred blood samples to detect the presence of antibodies.
Now, the CSM is set to equip itself with new sequencing apparatus that will allow for the genetic analysis of virus samples, something that is only currently possible in Marseille.
“This tool will give us independence and therefore allow us to respond quickly to the exact identification of new variants,” says Dr. Christian Lavagna, in charge of screening at the CSM. “We will also be able to follow the mutations of the different strains and contribute to the international monitoring set up since the start of the pandemic.
“Systematic verification of the genome also makes it possible to decode the resistance profile of the virus, an essential means for the development of effective vaccines. In these circumstances, it will no longer benecessary to acquire screening kits, such as those we are currently using, which only detect the presence of known variants.”
Like last year, the CSM has increased its screening activity during the holiday period to cope with the “fifth wave” and the high number of PCR and antibody tests being conducted throughout the Principality.
“This year, determining the level of protection by the analysis of neutralising antibodies has been added to the nasopharyngeal examination and the large number of positive samples, linked to the strong contagiousness of the Omicron variant, have led us to set up an activity seven days a week to offer even more flexibility and support for the Monegasque population,” says Dr. Lavagna.
 
 
Photo source: CSM
 
 
 

Stylish Roca team return to winning ways

by: Luke Entwistle
27/12/2021

AS Monaco Basketball brought their three-game losing streak to a comprehensive end with an emphatic 94-56 victory against local rivals Fos-sur-Mer on Boxing Day.
The Roca team were given a pre-match boost as the talismanic figure of Leo Westermann returned following a lengthy absence through injury. In stark contrast, Fos-sur-Mer were left without many key players. Their roster was decimated by Covid, leaving a squad of only eight players, of which just six were professionals.
Monaco didn’t take long to take advantage. Paris Lee started as he meant to go on, registering a flurry of assists and converting a sumptuous three-pointer to give the Roca team a healthy 18-4 lead after just six minutes.
The first-quarter was also marked by the return of Westermann, who wasted no time adding to the scoreline, chipping in with a three-pointer of his own.
An efficient first-quarter from Sasa Obradovic’s men opened up a comfortable eight-point buffer, which was quickly extended in spectacular fashion in the second-quarter. Fos-sur-Mer were feeding off scraps and could only register seven points in the whole quarter.
Monaco, meanwhile, continued to score freely. The side’s phenomenal 60% three-point accuracy was the source of a whopping 54 points over the course of the evening.
Lee and Brock Motum were the main architects of this thrashing. Lee’s incision and vision allowed him to register 24 points and six assists on the night, whilst Motum, after a relatively barren spell, registered 17 points, converting all of his three-point attempts.
Monaco outscored their opponents in every quarter, and the 38-point difference in the score was a fair reflection of the Principality side’s dominance throughout the encounter.
It was an overwhelmingly positive evening for Obradovic’s men, although the victory must be caveated by Fos-sur-Mer’s Covid-disrupted preparations. The return of Westermann, the emphatic scoreline and another man-of-the-match performance from Lee will all give the Roca team confidence heading into their difficult Euroleague tie against Maccabi Tel Aviv at the Salle Gaston Medecin on Wednesday.
 
 
Photo of of Leo Westermann, source: AS Monaco Basketball
 
 
 

Concert tickets available for 39€

by: Stephanie Horsman
27/12/2021

Former First Lady of France Carla Bruni is coming to the Grimaldi Forum on 7th January to perform songs from her anticipated new album, and there are a few seats still available. 
The former French First Lady, fashion model and singer-song writer will be in  Monaco for one night only to showcase songs from her latest self-titled album with 17 new tracks. Carla Bruniwas released in late 2020.
Carla Bruni started her musical career in song writing for Julien Clerc before turning to the microphone herself in 2003 with her smash debut album Quelqu’un m’a dit (Someone told me), which spent 34 weeks in the French Top 10 charts.
Bruni went on to win the Victoire Award for Female Artist of the Year at the 2004 Victoires de la Musique. The same year, Bruni released her second album, No Promises, then the following year she released her third, Comme si de rien n’était (Like Nothing Ever Happened).
After marrying French President Nicolas Sarkozy in 2008, she took a break from music until her husband was out of office and returned in 2013 with the acclaimed Little French Songs. Her follow up, French Touch, was released in 2017, and was the last album she made before returning seven years later with Carla Bruni.
Carla Bruni was produced by the dynamic Albin de la Simone and was their first collaboration together and shows traits from both singer-song writer and producer. His multi-instrument style is evident as is her wont for sweet, poetic lyrics and refined arrangements.