Ferne Arfin has 3 audiobooks on Listento.it, narrated by 3 narrators. The most-rated is Cannes, Cap d'Antibes, Nice, & Menton.
Cannes & Cap d'Antibes: Travel Adventures
Summary
Cannes is probably the most urban of all the Riviera resorts. When not lounging on terraces overlooking the water (the quintessential Cannes accommodation is a rented apartment with a sea or pool view), experienced visitors spend a lot of time "en promenade." Before lunch on La Croisette is the traditional time and place to stroll, window shop, see, and be seen. For aficionados of "old towns," the area known as Le Suquet around Cannes' oldest harbor is where what little remains of the city's pre-nineteenth-century history can be found. A medieval castle atop the old city, the views over La Croisette, the Bay of Cannes, and the Iles de Lérins make it clear why the first defensive structures of ancient Canoïs were built there. The castle now standing was built at the end of the eleventh century. The keep, the Romanesque Chapel of Sainte Anne, and the cisterns date from the original structure. I discovered that I loved Antibes on my first trip to the South of France. Maybe that is why it has remained my favorite town on the Riviera ever since. In the ruelles of the Vielle Ville, every house seemed bursting with flowers. Geraniums, oleanders, bougainvilla, grapevines, palms and yucca plants framed windows, tumbled out of pots, and covered golden stone walls. Rounding a bend we would be surprised by a sudden view of one of the ports, of the ramparts and fort. Or a market table loaded with oranges and lemons, their fragrances saturating the air. Or a shady square. Or the tiny shop where I bought needles in paper packets, embroidery silk, brightly printed Provençal fabrics, and armloads of fresh flowers. Some afternoons we chilled, drinking menthe et l'eau or Ricard along the front at Juan les Pins, watching women in high heels and gold bikinis shop the designer stores while my friend hummed "Music to Watch Girls By". At night we watched fireworks set to music over the harbor, listened to fabulous jazz in Juan les Pins, or tried our luck at the casino. American millionaires discovered Antibes-Juan les Pins at the beginning of the twentieth century. They built enormous mansions on the Cap d'Antibes or took over ones built half a century earlier, like Eilenroc, designed by Charles Garnier in the the 1860s. By the 1920s and '30s, the era the French call l'age du pyjama, they had turned it into a winter resort on their social schedule of Europe. Everything you need to know is in this remarkable guide: the history, what to see and do, the culture, the activities, the restaurants, and all the hotels. The author lives near the areas she writes about and visits them often.
©2012 Hunter Publishing (P)2015 Hunter Publishing
St. Tropez, Frejus, St. Raphael & the Western Cote d'Azur
Summary
Starting just east of la Ciotat, the great sweep of Mediterranean coast, all the way to the Italian border, is referred to as the Côte d'Azur or the Riviera. It is a large area with dozens of beaches and, despite the coast's reputation for toney glamor alternating with brash vulgarity, it's a great location for watersports, boating, parascending, climbing, hiking, and gliding. The Western Côte d'Azur is a deeply indented coast, characterized by many small towns, miles of sandy beaches, and three great mountainous headlands, called massifs. The Massif des Maures, Massif de l'Estérel, and Massif de Tanneron foreshadow the march of the Alps to the sea farther east along the Riviera. They offer stunning long distance views and provide miles of good walking. For years, French vacationers kept the region their secret, staying in their holiday homes or with friends and family. As a result, the massifs remain largely undiscovered territory for foreign visitors, who usually race around and between them on motorways for the coast. If you stop to enjoy this region, you'll find it has its own personality and surprises. Covered in depth are the Mauresque Coast, including St. Tropez, Le Lavandou, Grimaud, Ste Maxime, then on to Fréjus, Saint Raphael, the Massif du Tanneron, and the Esterel. All the places to stay are described, as well as the places to eat, the history, sights to see, plus adventures on foot, on horseback, and on water.
©2012 Hunter Publishing (P)2014 Hunter Publishing
Cannes, Cap d'Antibes, Nice, & Menton
Summary
In 1834, the British Lord Chancellor, Lord Henry Brougham, was on his way to Nice, still part of Italy and already a popular winter resort with English aristocrats. Because of a cholera epidemic in Provence, the governor of Nice had closed the border so Brougham and his daughter Eleanore were turned back. On their way to Grasse, they stopped for the night at an inn on what is today the Rue du Port in Cannes. Brougham was so taken with the little village of Canoïs that he stayed on, ultimately commissioning a splendid villa named after his daughter. Two years later, the crême de la crême of London high society, fleeing Britain's dull winter climate, followed Brougham to Cannes. By 1838, the port was under construction and the spectacular seafront, La Croisette, was underway. Ten years later, palace hotels were going up, a poor fishing village had been transformed into a fashionable winter resort with vast mansions, gardens bursting with exotic blooms, grand avenues and promenades. Cannes had become the coast's leading resort. Then there is the Cannes Film Festival. Every May, film stars and starlets, filmmakers, film buyers, film investors, producers, publicists and autograph seekers take over the whole town. If you can elbow your way into Cannes during the festival season, you'll find them parading along La Croisette, partying on the yachts that fill the harbor, wheeling and dealing in hotel rooms, restaurants and bars. And then there is Antibes. I discovered that I loved Antibes on my first trip to the South of France. It has remained my favorite town on the Riviera ever since. Every house seems bursting with flowers. Geraniums, oleanders, bougainvilla, grape vines, palms and yucca plants tumble out of pots and cover golden stone walls. American millionaires discovered Antibes-Juan les Pins at the beginning of the 20th century. They built enormous mansions on the Cap d'Antibes or took over ones built earlier.
©2012 Hunter Publishing, Inc (P)2015 Hunter Publishing, Inc