France Month by Month - Discover France: Experience the Best of France - page 80

January
With New Year festivities finished, it's time to play snow bunnies in the Alps.
Crowds thin out once school's back, but this is still a busy month. On the Mediter-
ranean coast, mild winters cast a wonderful serenity over an area that's mad busy
the rest of the year.
Vive le ski!
Grab your skis or board and hit the slopes. Resorts in the Alps, Pyrenees and Jura
open in mid- to late December, but January is the start of the ski season in earnest.
Whether a vast purpose-built station or a lost Alpine village, France has a resort to
match every mood and moment.
Hunting Black Diamonds
No culinary product is more aromatic or decadent than black truffles ( Click here ).
Snout them out in the Dordogne (southeastern France) and Provence (southwest-
ern France) - the truffle-hunting season runs from late December to March but
January is the prime month.
February
Crisp cold weather in the mountains translates as the ski season in top gear. Alpine
resorts are mobbed by families during the February school holidays; don't turn up
without a reservation.
Nice Carnival
While northern France shivers, Nice makes the most of its mild Mediterranean cli-
mate with France's largest street carnival ( www.nicecarnaval.com ) , As well as the
usual parade and costume shenanigans, merrymakers pelt each other with blooms
during Carnaval de Nice's legendary flower battles.
Citrus Celebrations
It's no surprise that Menton on the French Riviera was once Europe's biggest lem-
on producer, given its exotic Fête du Citron ( www.feteducitron.com ). These days it
ships in lemons from Spain to sculpt into gargantuan carnival characters.