In 1948, Picasso came to live in Vallauris where he stayed until 1955. During his time there, he created a great many sculptures and paintings including War and Peace, which was one of the major artworks of the period. He also developed a fascination for the two techniques of ceramics and linocuts.

In the heart of a beautiful olive grove on the hills of Cimiez that echos to the sound of Jazz in July during Nice's wonderful Jazz Festival, and not far from a Franciscan monastery with fabulous Italinanate terraced gardens, the majestic Hotel Régina and Gallo-Roman ruins, lies the quite stunning Villa Garin de Cocconato, today known simply as the Matisse Museum.

This modern art museum is located northwest of St Paul in a pine wood on a hill, the Colline des Gardettes. Its full name is the Aimé and Marguerite Maeght Foundation and is a unique example in Europe of a private foundation.

There are some places on earth that are just sheer magic and Cap d’Antibes, the small peninsular jutting out between Antibes and Juan-les-Pins, must surely be one of them. Against the dazzling backdrop of immense sky and sea are tantalizing glimpses of sumptuous hotels and villas, screened by high walls and beautifully decorated forged iron gates. Immaculate gardens, surrounded by tall elegant palms, dense pine trees, and a riot of Mediterranean plants, have made this small stretch of rocky coastline into an idyllic paradise.

Just Like Old Times

The Gorges de Verdon present one of Europe’s most spectacular series of vistas and they justifiably attract tens of thousands of visitors every year. But further downstream beyond the lac de Ste-Croix is a less obvious attraction that offers both spectacle and an insight into the distant past.