Le Lavandou
Le Lavandou | ||
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A view within the commune | ||
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Le Lavandou | ||
Location within Provence-A.-C.d'A. region Le Lavandou | ||
Coordinates: 43°08′19″N 6°22′06″E / 43.1386°N 6.3683°ECoordinates: 43°08′19″N 6°22′06″E / 43.1386°N 6.3683°E | ||
Country | France | |
Region | Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur | |
Department | Var | |
Arrondissement | Toulon | |
Canton | Collobrières | |
Government | ||
• Mayor (2008–2014) | Gil Bernardi | |
Area1 | 29.65 km2 (11.45 sq mi) | |
Population (2006)2 | 2,867 | |
• Density | 97/km2 (250/sq mi) | |
Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | |
• Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | |
INSEE/Postal code | 83070 / 83980 | |
Elevation |
0–485 m (0–1,591 ft) (avg. 10 m or 33 ft) | |
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once. |
Le Lavandou (pronounced: [lə lavɑ̃du]; Occitan: Lo Lavandor) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. It derives its name either from the flower lavender (lavanda in Provençal) that is prevalent in the area,[1] or more prosaically from the local form of the Occitan name for lavoir, lavandor (for lavador, a public place for washing clothes).
The (then) village is where the famous popular song A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square was written in the summer of 1939.[2] The words were by Eric Maschwitz and the music by Manning Sherwin, with its title ‘stolen’ from a story by Michael Arlen. The song had its first performance in a local bar, where the melody was played on piano by Manning Sherwin with the help of the resident saxophonist. Maschwitz sang the words while holding a glass of wine, but nobody seemed impressed.[3]
In the spring of 2002, an attempt was made to find the bar where this classic song was first performed with the view to having a blue plaque set up. With the help of the local tourist office, elderly residents were questioned, but it proved impossible to establish the venue.[2]
In September 2000, the mayor passed an unusual bylaw making it illegal to die in the town. The mayor described his own bylaw as "absurd ... to counter an absurd situation"; the "absurd situation" was that with the town's cemetery already full, a court in Nice had denied permission for a new cemetery because it would mar the beauty of the selected site.[4]
Twin towns – sister cities
Le Lavandou has been twinned with Kronberg (Germany) since 1973.
Events
- Lavandou Flower Parade
- Saint-Pierre festival
- Romérage
- Summer season concerts
- Halloween | Fall Festival
Beaches
- L'Anglade
- La Grande Plage du Lavandou
- Saint-Clair
- La Fossette
- Aiguebelle
- l'Eléphant
- Jean Blanc
- Rossignol
- Le Layet
- Cavalière
- Cap Nègre
- Pramousquier
See also
References
- ↑ Lehman, Doris (1996). The Riviera: Off-season and On. New York: St. Martin's Press. p. 121.
- 1 2 "Le chant du Rossignol – ou l'étonnante histoire d'une très célèbre chanson anglaise écrite en 1939 au Lavandou", Figure Libre, Reseau Lalan, Le Lavandou (No 14), Sep 2002
- ↑ Maschwitz, Eric (1957). No Chip on my Shoulder. London: Herbert Jenkins Ltd. pp. 208, p.124.
- ↑ Henley, Jon (2000-09-23). "Citizens live under law's dead hand". The Guardian. Retrieved 2008-10-26.
External links
- Official website of Tourist Information
- Official Home Page
- Informations : le Lavandou and Bormes les Mimosas
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