Cannes (from the Cheap Seats)

After joining the nuns for their morning mass (entirely in Italian so I didn’t stand a chance), I hop on the train to leave Florence. The journey takes me via Pisa and then along the Riviera coast of both Italy and France. Much of the route seems to be through tunnels but the glimpses I get of the Mediterranean Sea are stunning! I have a change at Ventimiglia, my last point within Italy, and I have just enough time to grab a quick station Macdonald’s just before my next train. I discover that Italian Macdonald’s sell hunks of Parmesan cheese as a snack (upon googling I’m informed it falls under the concept of ‘Pocket Cheese’) and I quickly add Italy to the list of places to consider relocating to.😉

I reach my hostel a few hours later than planned thanks to some unattended luggage being left around Cannes station. As I’m hauling my luggage up to my €25 a night bed, people come down the stairs towards me dripping in designer gear. It’s an apt metaphor for Cannes itself as I quickly discover that it’s a town full of people with money and those pretending to have money. The front street is lined with top line designer stores and the other streets are full of upmarket brands that certainly aren’t cheap but wouldn’t require multiple lottery wins to shop in. Most tourists flock to the second, while the first is lined with new range Lamborghinis, Porches, and Rolls Royces with foreign license plates.

Obviously Cannes is known for its film festival held each year in May. In summer however it’s very much a beach resort. There is still however ‘the’ red carpet and a small walk of fame with handprints of people like Leonardo DiCaprio, Angelina Jolie and Nicole Kidman. It’s incredibly understated to say it’s probably what Cannes is best know for.

Although it’s a small town, Cannes is incredibly busy and you’d be forgiven for thinking you were in a suburb of Paris. The waterfront is pretty but there’s only a tiny bit of public beach, the rest all fenced off for private clubs and restaurants. While it’s in a beautiful setting, I haven’t quite found the magic of Cannes yet but I settle in, enjoy the sea and get lost in a few French bookshops.Read more