FORT CARRE
We spent an amazing morning at Fort Carre (The Square Fort) in Antibes with Jean-Claude and the mayor of Antibes, Dr. Jean Leonetti.  Fort Carre was built in the 16th Century to defend against invasion by Italy.  I don’t think they ever repelled an actual invasion, but boy were they ready.  The mayor was very kind to arrange a private tour with an English-speaking guide.  In the first photo, he, Barry and Jean Claude are standing in front of Port Vauban, the largest marina in Europe, named for the designer of the fort.  One of the biggest problems at the fort was having an adequate supply of water.  In the second photo, Mayor Leonetti inspects the cistern used to gather water for the fort.  In the third photo, our guide describes the layout of the fort.  The hole in the wall to her left is the oven for baking bread and to her right is a pantry, gated to prevent the soldiers from stealing the food.  Ben and Kate enjoyed the stockade as well as the view from the cannonade, or the “Mouth of Fire.”  In the last photo, you can see the walls were angled so cannon balls would bounce off.  The small windows about a third of the way down were for pouring boiling oil on invading troops, and the rounded ledge half-way down was built to keep rats from climbing in.  Vauban thought of everything!