smelling like roses..

Olivia and I now have our own personal scent. We dont really wear perfume, but
when in Grasse..

Most of Grasse's parfumeries are unknown and understated. They sell their essences to couture houses for perfume and aromas out for foodstuff and toiletries. There are a few large, well known parfumeries such as Fragamond and Galimard (where we had our workshop) that have a big presence in the town, but most are tucked out of the way. Grasse is still considered the world capital of fragrance.

The town itself is perched high up on a hill with lots of steep,curving, one way streets. It is not an easy place to navigate. I was expecting lots of endless fields of jasmine,orange blossom and violet, but instead was greeted with a very densely populated,sprawling town. Charming, but not at all what I was expecting....that seems to be the theme of the trip.



We had a very fun, informative morning at Galimard Parfumerie. We learned about the "fond" note, the "heart" note and the "peak" note and how they are combined together to make a scent. I cant tell you how many essences we had to smell. When all was said and done my perfume had a combination of 15 different essences. After a time, I admit it all started to smell the same, but that is where your instinct comes in...and an fully trained perfumer to help lead you in the right direction.
Olivia and I had a similiar 'nose' but I ended up with a modern fruity smell while hers was more floral. We have to leave them to rest for 2 weeks before we use them. (I have to admit I have already had a little sneak peek and smell of mine... how could you not?!)

Max sat beside us and listened to his ipod for most of the seminar.

Mike went on a great ride through Tourrettes sur Loue. I believe there was a random laying down of cash - during his ride - for a bigger cassette(bigger, better gears to get up the hills!) He has been great at getting out by himself and exploring on his bike. I know he would love to share his rides with someone though.

The rest of the day was a bit of a comedy of errors which has to be expected when you are in a foreign country that has very similar words for absolutely everything.

The kids and I took a number of different buses here, there and everywhere to complete a 30 minute journey in just under 2 hours. The last leg of which was a 2 km walk uphill.

You can only imagine the whining about being hot and hungry..no, starving...

Once again we survived and I believe the kids are slowly starting to appreciate the adventure in everything.They now just shrug and laugh about being 'lost' ..once again. Mike still likes to pretend that he knows where he is going. I usually throw my arms up in the air and confess.



We met Mike in the little town of Mougins, at the pre-determined meeting time ,and had a tasty lunch and tour of the village. It is a picture perfect spot, just outside of Cannes, with lots of restaurants and art galleries. I found it to have the most interesting/ varied display of art to date. Picasso lived here with a lover..or two. He has lived and worked in most of the small towns here on the coast..

In Cannes for another couple of days. We have really been enjoying the beach scene here. There are still many places we have yet to explore along the coast, but it is hard to hop in the car when the weather is so beautiful. The kids are a bit done with medieval villages...no matter how high they are perched in the sky.

All pics of Cannes are in Flickr account now.....click on "flickr" to right of blog.