Festive and popular ambiance last weekend in Mandelieu-La Napoule where the entire town population and the surrounding communities gathered for the 2009 Mimosa Festival. On Saturday, February 14, the streets were packed and the evening was quite a success. Tens of artists of all kinds, two brass bands, lovely misses, floats, and four tons of mimosa were on the evening’s program.
Music and dances from around the world was the theme this year for this mini-carnival in Nice, the mimosa capital. Mimosas were indeed a central topic as four tons were provided by the producers of the Tanneron massif. More than 300 volunteers from Mandelieu associations participated in decorating the floats on Saturday morning, “but we spilled over into the early afternoon, we were a bit late,” confides Héloïse Gemehl from the Tourism Office promotion service. They are easily excused. When you see the beauty of the floats, you quickly realize the difficulty of the task. Arranging these acacias is one thing, making the affair beautiful is another!
The Mimosa Queen, Moved to Tears
Saturday afternoon was dedicated to the election of the Mimosa Queen. In a boiling and packed Europa Congress Center, eight young women aged 16 to 25 paraded three times. Interspersed with choreographies presented by the dance school and the Municipal Cultural Center of the city, the show was of high quality.
After two hours of show, Sandra Guercia, 25 years old and a singer in her spare time, was elected Mimosa Queen 2009. “I am very proud to be from Mandelieu,” she whispered in the ear of Henri Leroy, the mayor of Mandelieu-La Napoule, who rushed to reveal it to the entire hall. Moved to tears and very excited, she still couldn’t believe it several minutes after the result.
Sunday saw the Flower Parade. So, only next weekend remains for a full dose of awe…
