PEEPS OF FRANCE.

Otago Witness, Issue 3883, 14 August 1928, Page 77

PEEPS OF FRANCE.

(Special for the Otago Witness.) These articles, from the pea of a New Zealand girl, who has.gone to France to complete her education, have been specially written for mv Little Folk. We hope that after reading them, you will have a new idea of a country which, to many of you, is known only as ,another place to be learned about in a ceocranhv lesson.—DOT. ’ XXVIII. * ’ CANNES. Mes Pctites, —Easter has come and gone, and in Paris and everywhere all the churches, great and small, have bee packed with worshippers. It’s a very festive time in France, and a very beautiful time here in France especially, where the sunshine and the spring flowers seemed particularly in keeping with the joy of Eastertide. Still visitors throng to Cannes and Nice and Monte Carlo, and just now English people are interested in the arrival .of our. Mediterranean Fleet, which is ".ssembled along the coast’ There are several cruisers lying out in the bay here, and it seems strange to see some British sailors in the town. They appear to have a very good time wherever they go. Some of the cruisers are about 20 miles west of Cannes, along the coast, at a little place called St. Raphael, a picturesque spot, and within very easy driving distance of Cannes itself.

The road along which the cars go round the coast is particularly weau..ful. The sea is in sight all the way, and the brick-red shade of the rocks and of the san. stands out in vivid contrast to the deep blue'of the sea and the sky, giv'og a wonderful panorama of colour.

As we drove back towards Cannes with the setting sun behind us we could see the Alps, away on the Italian frontier, thickly covered with snow, and looking perfectly beautiful in. the soft evening sunshine. Lately the mistral, or westerly wind of France, has been busy, tossing the roses and the palms about; but now all is still, and the Riviera lives up in full to its reputation—a land of sunshine and flowers. The lilac is in bloom now, and the wisteria; and at Grasse, the centre of the scent and perfume manufactures, the flower harvest seems to occupy nearly the whole year round. It begins in February with the violets, and lasts till April. In March anu April also hyacinths and jonquils are plucked. May is the great month for the roses and orange flowers, which harvest usually comes to an end about June. Mignonette and carnations are also gathered during this month. In July comes the gathering of the jasmine, and the harvest generally lasts until October 10, so that, really, as the country round Grasse is given up entirely to the cultivation of flow.ers, one might imagine it as a Garden of Eden—a mass of colour and sweet scents.

In actual fact, however, the flowers grown entirely for the sake of commerce are treated very much like turnips in the field, and are very different from those grown entirely for pleasure. Flower lovers, in fact, might be rather sad to see in the perfume factories the once beautiful orange blossoms lying at the botto i of a pit, sodden and macerated, or to watch roses being slowly boiled alive, or jasmine flowers crushed to death for the purpose of scent-niak-ing. The factory, of course, is the main attraction of Grasse for 99 tourists out of 100. In addition, however, to its interest as a “ soapmaking ” centre it is in itself a most picturesque and charming little French city, with an individuality all of its own. There are few cathedrals in France which are so beautiful as that at Grasse, and if one takes the trouble to wander a little from

the beaten track the sight of the little mediaeval bypaths and alleys, and the quaint houses, centuries old, will prove fascinating in the extreme to anyone who loves something a little picturesque and “ out of the way ” in his rambles through France. The outskirts of Cannes are attractive, and there are many very lovely little spots to be found, quite apart from the “ real Cannes ” itself. One of these is Le Cannet, a few minutes away by tram or bu», a fast-growing little place, with a wide boulevard shaded by eucalyptus and plane trees. There are some small hotels and a few little sleepy-looking cafes. It is not fashionable, and nobody seems to be in a hurry, and here, as at Grasse, one must wander a little from the high road to catch a glimpse of the little old town itself. Le Cannet is older than it looks—as old, in actual fact, as Cannes itself. Long years ago the monks of St. Honore and of St. Marguerite established a sanatorium here at Le Cannet, and retired there when worn out with the hardness of their strict monastic life; and even now there are many remains of old Roman villas, evidently occupied long centuries ago by those' who preferred the drier air of Le Cannet to the strong sea air of his mother city, Qannes. Here, too, in those very early days the monks built towers to defend their domain, which was very often raided by Moorish pirates, who harried the coasts, and attacked the old monasteries as Well. One of these towers, the Tour de Caluys, is right n the centre of the old town; the other some distance away, near the hamlet of Danys. Le Cannet was originally composed, of a number of scattered hamlets or “ quartiers,” as the French sometimes call them, and each little hamlet has, to a large extent, its own independent history.

Of these hamlets that of St.- Catherine, near Danys, is the most picturesque of all, still self-contained, and to all intents and purposes quite a little world apart. Much blood, has been shed here in past ages, and much history has been made altogether.

The litt 1 j church, strong and solidly built, dates from about 1587, and is a well-known landmark everywhere. This church has suffered many attacks at the hands of invaders, both pagan and Christian, among them the Sarac«B, who at

one time pillaged and defiled its altars. Still; it stands, however, full of tranquillity and peace. To look at it and at the quiet little lanes and meadows sufrounding it one would never dream of the fights, struggles, and massacres that have taken place in the past in the tiny, narrow street's. As for “ new ” Le Cannet, it is much like Cannes, only quieter and less smart. Everywhere there are white and yellow stone villas nestling against the green hillsides, and the: roses in the gardens, and the wisteria and purple stocks are very sw'eet. Between' Le Cannet and Cannes there is a good deal of jealousy, for although smaller Le Cannet is by no means inferio- as regards'healthful air, and many invalids prefer it for its bracing climate and peaceful surroundings. Perhaps in time the; two places will become more friendly, but at present a great rivalry exists. “Au revoir. JEANNE.