The casino was built in the 1860s and is beautiful! Unfortunately we couldn't go during gambling hours. They have a pretty strict dress code. We were at least able to go in and wander around for a bit.
Next we headed up to the Palais Princier to see the changing of the gaurds. After the ceremony we went to tour the palace. We were only allowed in certain rooms and photos were forbidden because it is the current residency of the reigning monarch and many of the rooms we saw are used for special ceremonies. Prince Albert II is the current sovereign of Monaco. His family is the longest ruling family dynasty in Europe.
After lunch we headed to the Cousteau Aquarium. It houses 2,000 animals and plants, 290 different species. There is also an oceanography museum there that has a few fish that were caught by Prince Albert I in 1901 and have been preserved in alcohol.
Next we went to the Napoleon Collection. One of the previous princes was very interested in Napoleon and was an avid collector of anything related to him. We saw his hat, many of his medals and swords and we even got to see a letter written in the hand of King Louis XIV, recognizing Monaco as a sovereign nation. I am not sure what that had to do with Napoleon but it was neat to see. There was also a little Monaco flag with some moon rocks. The flag had been taken on the first trip to the moon and the astronauts brought back some moon rocks for Monaco.
By this point we were kind of tired so we walked the promenade back to the bus stop and headed back to our hotel.
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