Another Surprise

I forgot to mention something that surprised us soon after we arrived in Nice; the boom of a cannon! We noticed it happened everyday at noon. I finally looked it up online today.

In 1861, an English gentleman, Thomas Coventry, persuaded the city of Nice to fire a cannon from the hill of the Castle to mark the exact time of day. Legend has it that he was disturbed that his wife used to go for long walks and talk with her friends and would forget to come home to fix lunch for her husband. So, the city of Nice allowed the man to set up a cannon to call her home, or at least to remind her she was late to prepare her husband’s meal. But the reality is a bit more boring. Thomas was a wealthy lawyer who retired to Nice with his wife. He pursued his passion for astronomical observations and measuring time; and he persuaded the city to fire a cannon based on his science. After his death, the tradition lapsed for a few years but popular demand brought it back!