A slice of lemon with that, madam? The waiter leans in and drops it into my glass with a small flourish.
It’s February in Menton, and lemons are everywhere – spilling from market stalls, brightening shop windows, catching the light at every turn.
You don’t just see them – you begin to notice them all around you.
Surrounded by lemons
Sweet dreams are made of this.
It’s February in Menton on the Côte d’Azur, and the carnival season has arrived. Or rather, something altogether more unexpected: a festival devoted almost entirely to lemons.
The Pearl of the Mediterranean
Menton calls itself the Pearl of the Mediterranean. Hugging the coastline between Monaco and the Italian border, this little French town is a riot of colour at any time of year.
Along with Thollon and Scotland, it’s one of those places that stays with me.
The facades of the higgledy-piggledy houses of the old town are painted in rich sienna, warm ochres and soft rose-petal pinks.
As they wind their way down the hillside alongside alleyways, cobbled streets and lantern-lit staircases, they look as if an artist has dropped a palette of ochres, sienna and soft pinks across the town.
In a summer state of mind, even in winter
The colours flow down into the sandy Garavan Bay. Where once a string of beachside restaurants and bars lined the promenade there’s now a more open, streamlined boardwalk- though it feels as the cafés will return, perhaps tucked beneath the arches of the road.
Out on the water, little white boats still bob in the sunlight.
The golden light of winter
People have visited Menton in winter for years, drawn by its mild climate, but also that soft, golden light that seems to settle over the town and linger.
In the late 1800s, local hoteliers came up with the idea of a winter exhibition of flowers and citrus fruits. It was a way to bring colour and life to the quieter months. Those early exhibitions eventually evolved into the Menton Lemon Festival we see today.
Lemons and Oranges
Why lemons? Menton has been known for them for centuries. Once one of Europe’s leading producers, the town exported its fruit far and wide. Used to combat scurvy and prized as a small luxury on the dining tables of the wealthy.
Oranges are everywhere in Menton too.
In winter, the streets are lined with heavily laden orange trees. And everywhere, of course, serves freshly squeezed orange juice.
What’s so special about the Menton lemon?
Menton’s lemons are quite different from those grown in Italy and Spain. They’re generally larger with a thick, knobbly peel. They can be sliced and eaten whole, and have a sweet, delicate flavour.
They’re higher in citric acid and richer in essential oils than other lemons. And they grow in clusters – sometimes fifteen to a branch, instead of the usual five. No wonder they’re prized.
Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy
Lemons and Love
Legend has it that it was Eve who first brought the lemon to Menton.
When they were expelled from the Garden of Eden, Eve took with her not an apple, but the golden fruit of the lemon.
On leaving the garden, she told Adam that she would place the fruit in the most beautiful country she saw.
They were so enchanted by Menton that she threw the lemon onto a terrace, saying “Go, prosper and multiply. Make this place a paradise, so that people who stay here throughout the ages will find a little taste of the Garden of Eden”.
…or something along those lines.
Paradise is anywhere with lemonade
The Lemon Festival Today
By the time the festival begins, Menton has taken on a slightly surreal quality.
In the gardens at the heart of the town, enormous sculptures rise up- built entirely from lemons and oranges. Figures, scenes, entire worlds, all glowing in shades of gold and amber.
Look closely and you’ll see that each fruit is carefully fixed into place with a rubber band, one by one. It takes 400 people to design and build the sculptures, and over 140 tons of lemons and oranges. It’s a painstaking process in the days leading up to the festival.
Elsewhere, the streets fill with music, colour and movement. There are parades. lights, and just enough chaos and confetti to make it fell like a proper celebration.
But for me, its the contrast between the quiet winter light of Menton, and this sudden burst of colour and exuberance that stays with you.
The lemon, they say is a symbol of abundance, prosperity and good luck.
Perhaps that’s more than enough reason to head for Menton.
