As part of the launch of the summer season, Nice Côte d’Azur airport’s Terminal 1 will be reopening on Sunday 27th March after two years of closure due to the pandemic.
When air travel came to a near standstill in 2020, Nice Côte d’Azur consolidated all flights out of one terminal, Terminal 2, for health and safety, as well as practical, reasons.
Fast forward two years and travel restrictions are being lifted everywhere, opening the door for holidaymakers itching to get away. Nice Côte d’Azur is preparing for this wave of passengers by reopening Terminal 1 to accommodate what they hope will be a busy summer season.
“To symbolise the resumption of traffic to and from Nice Côte d’Azur, Terminal 1 will reopen its doors on Sunday 27th March for the launch of the summer season,” states the airport on its website. “Under the best conditions of comfort and sanitary safety, it will be ready to handle the volume of passengers expected with a flight programme that, to date, is close to what it was before the pandemic.”
The summer season for the airport officially starts 27th March, coinciding with the start of daylight savings time and the longer days that come with it.
As reported previously by Monaco Life, there will be 106 destinations available this year for travellers, with 18 domestic flights and 89 international ones served by 52 airlines. They will connect passengers to 41 countries, 31 in Europe, three in the Maghreb, two in North America and five in the Middle East and Gulf. To compare, the airport offered 121 destinations to 44 countries pre-pandemic.
“Despite the restrictions linked to the geopolitical situation, the strength of the summer programme at Nice Côte d’Azur airport marks a new step towards a return to normality, which is both necessary and important to enable our region to re-establish an indispensable and sustainable economic and cultural activity,” said Franck Goldnadel, Chairman of the Board of Aéroports de la Côte d’Azur.
Future Planet Capital, an international venture capital and impact investor, hascloseda new €20 million Blue Ocean mandate aimed at tackling key issues affecting the world’s oceans.
The mandate, which Barclays Private Bank helped implement, is partnered with the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation and the Monaco Government in the context of the Monaco Blue Initiative (MBI) and in the framework of the Monaco Ocean Week.
The Blue Ocean mandate will be managed by Future Planet Capital’s Ed Phillips, Partner and Head of Origination, and Lyle Pentith, Portfolio Manager, and aims to invest in a portfolio of 10 to 15 high-growth and high-impact companies that are profitably tackling key issues within the Blue Economy.
“I am excited to announce the launch of the Future Planet Blue Ocean mandate and we are delighted to partner with the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, which has a deep commitment to protection of the world’s oceans,” said Douglas Hansen-Luke, Executive Chairman at Future Planet Capital. “This is a critical task if we are to mitigate the increasing challenge the planet faces today including the climate crisis and biodiversity loss. Future Planet Capital was an early mover in the impact investing space and with our track record of challenging global issues we look forward to seeing the impact of the Future Planet Blue Ocean.”
The targeted investment strategy focuses on three areas within the Blue Economy: preventing pollution, preservation of marine environments and ecosystems and sustainable marine productivity. The vehicle will make investments predominantly at the Series A and B stage in companies creating scalable solutions to challenges such as overfishing, biodiversity loss and pollution, in addition to opportunities within clean energy, green protein, shipping and carbon capture.
Future Planet manages over $300M for institutional investors having backed over 180 companies across geographies and stages. Future Planet Capital’s goal is to profitably solve the world’s greatest challenges in climate change, education, health, sustainable growth and security.
Monaco schools offered students, teachers and staff the opportunity to take Covid self-tests, two weeks after mask-wearing was dropped and one week after the end of health pass obligations. Here are the results.
With almost 3,300 people from the educational community participating in the screening campaign, only 47 came back with positive test results. This included 43 students, 30 of whom were residents, and four staff members, two of whom were residents.
The total tests represent just over half the school population, hitting the 55% mark.
The positivity rate based on the tests comes to 1.4%, less than the 1.9% seen when the same screening programme was undertaken in January following the Christmas holiday period.
Those who self-tested positive then had to confirm the results with a follow up PCR test, which partly explains the large number of new positive cases reported by the government on 23rd March.
The total cases in Monaco to date stand at 10,369. At present, there are 14 people in hospital, six of them residents. 272 are being looked after by the Home Monitoring Centre.
The government wants to remind people that residents and employees who wish can benefit from free PCR screening, without medical prescription, at the National Screening Centre located in the Rainier III Auditorium by contacting the COVID-19 Call Centre at 92.05.55.00.
AS Monaco Basketball once again stated their play-off credentials as they beat Euroleague giants Olympiacos (92-72) on Wednesday, moving into the top-eight with three games to go.
Monaco’s unrelenting charge towards the play-off positions has taken an air of inevitably in recent weeks. At times, particularly under former coach Zvezdan Mitrovic, they looked out of their depth, but their latest performance is yet more evidence of their suitability to the top level of European basketball.
The victory isn’t a statement simply because they now occupy a play-off place, because they have won 10 of their last 11, including a six-game streak. It is also because of the calibre of opponent that they are defeating.
Greek giants Olympiacos are three-times winners of the Euroleague and eight-times finalists. They are a mainstay in the division, but that didn’t prevent them from being rolled over by a contemporary challenger in the shape of a dominant, energetic Roca Team.
No-one within the Salle Gaston Medecin was under any allusions as to where this game was won. After a tight first-quarter, AS Monaco produced one of the most dominant quarters of basketball ever witnessed in the Principality (29-9).
There is an uncanny correlation between the performance levels of Mike James (25) and the rest of the team. When he shines, so do the rest of the team. His contribution to the second-quarter routing was sizable, and so was that of Paris Lee (13). Both were livewires throughout the night, with Lee’s playmaking efforts in particular catching the eye (5 assists).
The Roca Team boasted a superior efficiency outside the key throughout the night (52% compared to 27%), exemplified by James’ impressive 71% accuracy from seven attempts.
Heading into the break in cruise control, Monaco simply needed to manage to game in the second-half. Their efforts in the third-quarter grew their lead to 20 points, before a more pedestrian fourth-quarter saw the game end 92-72.
Post-match, Sasa Obradovic reflected on that incredible second-quarter. “The team played in a collective way. To manage to get 29-9 is incredible.” On a more general performance note he added, “The players express their full potential, and give everything for the team.”
Having reached the top-8, the Serbian coach now warns against any complacency before Friday’s match against Baskonia at the Salle Gaston Medecin. “We need to remain focused on the remaining games. Baskonia are a very good team, but I believe in my players.”
Photo: AS Monaco Basketball
New Michelin stars awarded in Monaco and Roquebrune
The Blue Bay’s Caribbean Executive Chef Marcel Ravin has been rewarded his second Michelin star, while Mauro Colagreco’s Ceto at the new Maybourne Riviera has received its first star, just six months after opening.
Forget about Christmas. For foodies, this is the most wonderful time of the year, when the Michelin Guide unveils its list of restaurants that have achieved star status.
It was revealed on Monday that a second star has been awarded to Marcel Ravin, Executive Chef of the Blue Bay at the Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel and Resort.
“Marcel Ravin is the unique example in France of a fusion of Caribbean cuisine and exceptional products from the Côte d’Azur,” says the Michelin Guide in its press release. “Annatto oil, fish blaff, curcuma, moringa, lemongrass, tamarind: memories of his grandmother’s dishes, spices, products and recipes from his native Martinique infuse each plate with a creative score.”
For his part, Chef Ravin is touched by the honour and thoughtful of his roots.
“I’m very moved because I arrived in France at 16, I learned a lot from great chefs like Loiseau or Robuchon, and I didn’t expect to reach their level one day. I’m also very moved, I’m thinking of my father, and the West Indies.”
Executive Chef of the Blue Bay Marcel Ravin, photo by Monaco Life
In the Provence Alpes Côte d’Azur (PACA) region, there are three new starred restaurants to be savoured, including Ceto, situated in the new Maybourne Riviera hotel in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin. Chef Mauro Colagreco has made another home run in his latest endeavour perched in the heights above Monaco, just six months after opening.
The Michelin Guide reads: “Entrusted to the virtuoso Mauro Colagreco, the Maybourne Riviera’s fine dining restaurant offers to take diners on an intoxicating culinary journey. Sample the best of the Mediterranean in precise dishes featuring clean, bold and unfussy flavours. A delightful time is had in the refined marine-inspired interior or out on the terrace, which affords a breathtaking view of the sea, Monaco and Cap Martin. A special experience.”
Colagreco is also the owner of the three-starred Mirazur in Menton and has backed a number of ventures in Monaco including Komo and Mitron Bakery.
The second new one-star wonder is Les Glycines, run by Chef Hélène Darroze at Villa Coste in Puy-Sainte-Repardade in the Bouches de Rhône (13).
The newest third star in the area went to Villa Madie, also in the Bouches de Rhône (13) in Cassis under the direction of Chef Dimitri Droisneau.
Of the 627 restaurants in France given mention, over 500 of them are outside Paris, showing that the culinary traditions of the country are not confined only to the capital. It is also notable that since the health crisis, there are over 200,000 jobs waiting to be filled in French hotels and restaurants.
See the list of all the new stars below:
Michelin Guide France 2022
New three-stars
Villa Madie, Cassis
Plénitude – Cheval Blanc Paris
New two-stars
Bommes (33): Lalique– Jérôme Schilling
Nîmes (30): Duende– Nicolas Fontaine, Julien Caligo et Pierre Gagnaire
Paris: Palais Royal Restaurant –Philip Chrnonopoulos
Paris: Table- Bruno Verjus
Paris: L’Oiseau blanc– David Bizet
Monaco: Le Blue Bay – Marcel Ravin
New one-stars
Baden (56): Le Gavrinis
Beaune (21): Restaurant Hostellerie Cèdre & Spa
Béziers (34): L’Alter-Native
Biarritz (64): La Rotonde – Hôtel du Palais
Binic (22): La Table d’Asten
Boeschepe (59): Auberge du Vert Mont
Bonnieux (84): La Bastide de Capelongue
Bordeaux (33): Maison nouvelle
Brest (29): L’Embrun
Busnes (62): Château de Beaulieu – Christophe Dufossé
Cheverny (41): Le Favori – Les Sources de Cheverny
Ciboure (64): Ekaitza
Courchevel (73): Sylvestre Wahid – Les Grandes Alpes
Dijon (21): Origine
Les Eyzies-de-Tayac (24): Le 1862 – Les Glycines
Gesté (49): Le 1825 – La Table gastronomique
Grane (26): Le Kléber – La Maison Bonnet
Lorient (56): Sources
Marseille (13): Une Table au Sud
Megève (74): La Dame de Pic – Le 1920
Montpellier (34): Jardin des Sens
Montréverd (85): La Chabotterie
Nancy (54): La Maison dans le parc
Paris: Granite
Paris: Auberge Nicolas Flamel
Paris: Ogata
Paris: AT
Paris: Contraste
Paris: Il Carpaccio
Paris: Jean Imbert au Plaza Athénée
Paris: FIEF
Paris: Bellefeuille – Saint James Paris
Paris: Don Juan II
Paris: Substance
Paris: Sushi Shunei
Le Puy-Sainte-Réparade (13): Hélène Darroze à Villa La Coste
Roquebrune-Cap-Martin (06): Ceto
Saint-Emilion (33): Les Belles Perdrix de Troplong Mondot
Saint-Grégoire (35): Ronan Kervarrec – Le Saison
Vannes (56): La Tête en l’air
Versailles (78): Le Grand Contrôle
Special Awards Michelin Guide France 2022
Promotion Passion Dessert
Les Belles Perdrix de Troplong Mondot – Adrien Salavert
The new Covid-19 vaccine Nuvaxovid, from Novovax Laboratories, is now being administered at the National Vaccination Centre in the Prince Rainier III Auditorium.
Nuvaxovid, the brand name of the inoculation, is what is known as a “protein sub-unit” vaccine, meaning it works differently to viral vector jabs, such as those by AstraZeneca and Janssen or the mRNA vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna. The Novavax one is activated by injecting a piece of the virus, in this case a spike protein, into the patient.
The patient’s immune system then reacts and learns to recognise the spike proteins, which makes for better protection against the virus. It is administered in two doses, spaced three weeks apart.
This vaccine is not intended as a booster, or third jab, and is only for those who have not yet been vaccinated or those who have had only one dose of any other vaccine other than the Janssen one.
The European Medicines Agency, which signed off on Novavax last December, has approved the jab for those over the age of 18, but not yet for children, though clinical trials are showing it to be very effective in kids aged 12 to 17.
Clinical trials have been encouraging, showing a 90% effectiveness at preventing symptomatic Covid and 100% effective at warding off serious illness. Other preliminary data has shown that it is successful in neutralising Omicron antibodies.
The company has also launched educational programmes aimed at those who have thus far been reluctant to get vaccinated, explaining that this alternate technology may be for them.
“Novavax vaccines are built on a well-understood protein-based platform used for other vaccines for decades, and we are committed to fighting the current pandemic and aiding in overall global public health,” said John Trizzino, Chief Commercial Officer and Chief Business Officer of Novavax. “We’re proud to do our part to ensure that all stakeholders have awareness about their vaccine options through the launch of educational programs such as these.”
According to IMSEE, as of 13th March, 78,708 vaccines have been administered to people aged 12 and over in Monaco. They include nearly 27,700 first doses and around 28,500 second doses. The number of additional doses sits at around 19,300. Vaccination is equal among genders, with 50.6% being women.
The highest age group to have received a complete vaccination schedule is the 75+ at 95%, followed by 82% among those aged 55 to 64.
The number of people aged over 12 to have received a full vaccination schedule in Monaco sits at 71.6%.
To take advantage of this latest round of vaccines, people are asked to ring the Covid Call Centre on +377 92 05 55 00 seven days a week, or visit the website at https: //vaccination-covid19.gouv.mc
Photo source: Government Communication Department
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