ONLY CANNES COMPARES WITH WAIKANAE

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 16, Issue 5, 9 October 1950, Page 7

ONLY CANNES COMPARES WITH WAIKANAE

(By Graham Birkett) From the Riviera in the south to the rolling fields of the north, France, with the French people, has a particular attraction. The countryside, the cities and the people are completely different from any others we encountered on the Continent.

The winding road which follows the south coast and passes through such well-known Riviera towns as Nice and Cannes, offers superb views of seascapes. Perched several hundred feet above the sea, as we travelled along the road, we often felt we were flying instead of motoring.

At the height of the tourist season the towns along this coast are crowded. At Nice, huge hotels extend right along the waterfront. Restaurants, most of them with a band blaring forth all. day, are full. The tables, with their gaily coloured umbrellas crowd pedestrians off the footpaths. At night the casinos seeth with people. Everyone is out to have a good time and “blow the cost.” That seems to be the general attitude.

As far as the beaches are concerned, only that at Cannes could in any way be compared with Waikanae. Practically everywhere else the sunbathers are forced to lie on rocks and tread warily over pebbles to enter the water. Why Perfume Is Dear

While the country near this coast is generally poor, we found that a few miles inland it became extremely rich and horticulture flourished. Thirty miles from Cannes is Grasse, a small town which since the days of the Renaissance has produced flowers and perfumes.

•Huge fields of flowers and aromatic plants surround the town and we could smell their perfume long before we could see the flowers. Thousands of tens of petals of various types of flowers and plants are brought into Grasse annually.. We learnt that 450 rosebuds weigh only lib and 12,0001 b of roses are needed. to make lib of essence. Now we know why French perfume is so expensive. Wine By Motor-Tanker

Travelling north towards Paris we found that the country was mostly given over to the growing of grain or grapes. In some sections these vineyards extended for miles, and the tending of them, and the gathering of the grapes provides back-breaking work for a large proportion of the populace of Alsace and central France.

We were surprised at the number of huge motor tankers on the road headed for Paris. We were told that the French wine-makers no longer trouble with casks, but that most of the wine is stored in huge tanks and conveyed to the city merchants in these tankers, each carrying several thousand “Gay Paree”

It was midnight when we entered Paris, but there were as many people and cars about as if it were only early in the evening. The millions of bright lights unmistakeably told us this was “Gay Paree.” The city very denitely has an atmosphere of its own —on the face of it a very gay, sophisticated atmosphere, but always just around the corner there is the old, dilipadated Paris.

The worst feature of these avenues is that they are used as speedways by the Paris motorist. No 30 miles per hour limit in this city! It is every motorist for himself, and woe betide the pedestrian if he gets in the way. With horn blowing and foot hard down on the accelerator, the Paris taxi driver and private motorist alike try to get where they’re going in the shortest possible time. Only the white baton of a gendarme will hold up that mile-a-minute stream of traffic in the Champs Elysses, and even then the wary pedestrian feels that he must run across the road, or else. . . .

Life Flows Easily Except for the motor drivers, everyone else in France seemed to have plenty of time to stop and chatter or to sit at a table on the pavement over a cup of coffee. Life seemed to flow very easily for the French people, both in the country and more particularly in the cities. Paris has so many attractions that we could have stayed for weeks but still not seen them all. A day spent at the Palace of Versailles gave us some knowledge of the

former glory of France. Views across the city from the top of the Eiffel Tower and the heights of Sacre Coeur allowed us to see something of the modern Paris. With its magnificent suites of appartments, all adorned with priceless paintings; its historic Hall of Mirrors; and its wonderfully laidout park, Versailles made us realise that at least the nobles of a bygone age knew how to live.