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| Cannes |
Bienvenue à la Côte d'Azur!
The French Riviera, as it is also
known, has always been synonymous with elegance and extravagance, attracting
many thousands of travellers to Southern France all year round.
Whether you want a whirlwind tour of
as many places as possible - to visit
Antibes, Juan les Pins, Nice, Cannes and the medieval villages of Eze and Saint
Paul de Vence - or a slower pace, wandering
around the art museums and flower markets of Nice, joining side trips to the
ancient Roman city of Cemenelum or taking a boat ride to the Îles de Lérins or St. Tropez, where you can watch the
locals playing pétanque and maybe spot a celebrity or two - it is possible on the Côte d'Azur!
Nice, one of the oldest French
cities, became the Capital of the French Riviera in the late 1800’s and today
is the 5th largest city in France.
With Roman sites, Baroque churches, Belle
Epoque style hotels, Piemontese and Genoese style architecture, Art Deco and the Old Town with its bars, pubs and
restaurants, Nice is a perfect place to find culture, entertainment, sun and
sea which is exactly the wonderful Mediterranean way of life.
Eze, one of the unknown jewels of the French
Riviera, is like an eagle’s nest. Legend has it that the Phoenicians settled on
top of the craggy peak and erected a temple in honour of Isis and the village
of Eze was established. It also offers one of the most breathtaking views of
the area.
Cannes
needs little introduction, as it is famous the world over for the annual Film
Festival, not to mention the wide array of hotels, restaurants and boating
tours possible to find there…………… So we come to our account of Riviera life –
A Young Australian Dancer’s Life in
Cannes
Little did 19
year old Lucinda Wilmot realize when she went to France in July 2009 to
audition for Le Cannes Jeune Ballet Company
that her life would change forever.
After
being accepted by the company, the most prestigious junior troupe in Europe,
Lucinda moved to Cannes in September, 2009 for what was to be a gruelling stint
with the Young Ballet Company.
Some forty young, aspiring dancers from all
over the world work with the group which performs all over France and Italy as
well as Cannes.
Living
in Cannes, she noticed that the climate was similar to Sydney – warm, bright
and sunny throughout the year – and she quickly fell in love with the chic,
sophisticated atmosphere of the city with its rich, famous and eccentric
inhabitants who were to be seen in the designer boutiques, sea-front cafés and
opulent hotels along the plage de la
Croisette or in fashionable restaurants, accompanied by be-jewelled collared
dogs that were pampered and treated as though they were real children.
“The people of Cannes are more friendly and
welcoming than the people of the north for example the Parisians” she
commented, and in fact, on one of her
expeditions, when looking for a birthday gift for her brother, Angus,
who was also in the Ballet Troupe, Lucinda met her future husband, Maxime while
browsing through the latest technology.
The two
soon became inseparable and when
asked what her favourite things
to do in Cannes were she replied “ Long
Sunday lunches, usually at Maxime’s grand -mother’s home with all the family or
going boating to Île Sainte Marguerite,
part of the island group, Îles de Lérins, just in front of Cannes, where we swam and lazed away the day. It was
nice to escape from the rigorous discipline of the Ballet sometimes.”
Although the eating habits of dancers have to
be disciplined too, Lucinda did recommend trying a baguette from the not to be
missed Boulangerie Paul. This chain
of bakeries is famous throughout France and (also in other destinations such as
Dubai) can be found in Paris and most large centres if you are feeling peckish.
“Last
May I was in town during the famous Cannes Film Festival and decided I had to
at least catch a glimpse of some of the stars. After queuing for more than four
hours I was rewarded for my patience when Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie arrived
with an entourage of paparazzi, flashing lights and sparkling smiles. Angelina
looked serene and unaware of the fuss” added Lucinda.
During
the festival, Cannes becomes its most chaotic, with the Palais des Festival
being the life- blood of the celebrations and self promoting celebrities. The
hotels are full, most shops stay open all day to cater to the sudden influx of
glitterati and the trendy restaurants are brimming over with beautiful people waiting
to be “snapped” for the latest issue of Who or Tatler.
In
December, 2010 Lucinda returned to live in Australia and to make preparations
for a March, 2011 wedding, which was held at her family’s home in Wildes Meadow. A fairy-tale ending to a French adventure!
