- A different taste of the French Riviera

by Inder Raj Ahluwalia

This is a double dose no one regrets. A blend of the accent and colours of Provence and the extravagance of the French Riviera, the two-faceted Antibes Juan-les-Pins together features greater diversity and contrasting appeal than any other town worldwide. The result of this duality is each day seemingly twice as long, and a double dose of attractions and entertainment. The oldest European jazz festival originated here, and its ancient walls echo with the finest voices, past and present. A chosen home of great artists, it is also a town for sailors and gardeners, devotees of Mozart and Ray Charles, connoisseurs of art and night-clubs, those who love the patina of old stones, and those who marvel at the antics of dolphins. Shimmering beaches and sumptuous English-style parks haven't harmed the town either. One doesn't have to dig deep to find reasons for loving the town. It could be flowers and gardens, savouring local atmosphere while strolling through narrow streets brimming with flowers, market fragrances, splendid museums, restaurants — large and small, azure sky and endless nights. Or it could be the fact that the town has remained true to itself, while offering a hundred different worlds that co-exist without mixing, and differ without clashing. The first Greek town on the French Riviera, Antibes long remained the major urban centre between Marseilles and Italy. All through, the city's incomparable artistic and cultural status was sustained by its temples, monuments and a vast 3,500-seat theatre. Their ruins created buildings of the Middle Ages and Renaissance, such as Fort Carre, one of Europe's finest examples of military architecture, and Chateau Grimaldi (now the Picasso Museum). The first great asset is 25 km of coast — among France's longest — with a series of beaches and five harbours, enable one to exult in all the joys of the sea. Port Vauban, the world's second largest and Europe's largest yachting harbour, Port Gallice, Port du Crouton, Port de I' Olivette, and Port de la Salis am all known beyond their shores. The nights are an invitation to prolong the daytime fun. In summer, the famous Pine Grove hosts myriad events, while the streets are on show until the wee hours of the morning and the shops seem to be kept by night owls. The town is more sensible with its Marineland Park of the Sea, cafe-theatres and restaurants. In front of the Vauban harbour, where Guy de Maupassant often dropped anchor on his Bel Amni, stands the prestigious Chantier Naval Opera, a former shipyard, magnificently abutting the vaulted ramparts, hosting major musical events. From the billionaires' wharf in Port Vauban, the world's finest luxury vessels contemplate the `bevelled austerity' of Fort Carre, which has witnessed it all. There is a splendid panorama on Promeinade Amiral de Grasse, from Rampe des Saleurs (where fishermen used to salt their catch). Along the sea, the parapet walk follows the outline of the ramparts designed by Vauban. This is the oldest part of Antibes, rich with three millennia of history, as seen in the remains of ancient Roman walls. History is everywhere. In Chapelle du Saint - Esprit (Chapel of the Holy Ghost), Place du Revely, the Cathedral, the `Saracen' towers and the ancient Grimaldi Castle, now the Picasso Museum and a temple to the `joy of living'. `Accelerated insouciance...' This is Juan-les-Pins! Characteristic trait of life, its cosmopolitan clientele drawn by a unique atmosphere that has no equivalent anywhere else in the world. Port Gallice, Antibes' second port, embraces the Bay of Juan-les-Pins, whose exciting nightlife and luxury hotels have given the resort a worldwide reputation as the international capital of a certain `fury of living'. A stopover for the Fitzgeralds in Juan-les-Pins in the 1920s, Villa Saint-Louis hosted their legendary socialising, enhanced by the healing joys of the beach. In 1929, the villa became a luxury hotel, the Belles-Rives, whose guest list includes Gerard Philipe, Pablo Picasso, Kng Umberto of Italy, Josephine Baker, Miles Davis and Edith Piaf, to name a few. There's also Villa La Vigie. Built in 1912, it was brought by Frank Jay Gould, who built Le Provencal. Invited to his wife, Florence's famous celebrity luncheons were the like of Andre Gide, Roger Martin du Gard, Jean Paulhan, Jean Cocteau, Charlie Chaplin, Estee Lauder. The creme de la creme came to be seen in the fabled confines of the `Art Deco' style Le Provencial, one of Europe's most elegant hotels. Le Juana remains one of Juan's flagship hotels, its unchanged facade a listed historic monument. Created in tribute to Sidney Bechet, an adoptive son of Antibes, the Gould Pine Grove is a temple of jazz, a landmark for world musicians, on par with La Scala in Milan for opera, Having featured the European debuts of Miles Davis and Ray Charles, it is also home to the International Jazz Festival. Cap d' Antibes offers still more delights. Inaugurated in 1870, Hotel du Cap-Eden Roc is among the world's most luxurious, and was the first hotel on the French Riviera to open for the summer season. Charles de Gaulle, Ernest Hemingway, Anatole France, Camille Flammarion, Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford, Rita Hayworth, Marlene Dietrich ... the celebrity list is endless. La Garoupe lighthouse is one of the region's most powerful, its 103 marble steps to the top paving the way to one of the world's most beautiful 360 degree panoramas. At the foot of the hill, the Bay of La Garoupe stretches nonchalantly, famous for its beautiful beaches. R was a favourite haunt of the writer Colette, who marvelled at the "sand, sometimes cool, sometimes warm underfoot". Graham Greene described it as the only town on the Riviera to have so well preserved its sour. Well, that's it, really...

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