" The "Nord" is hardly worth talking about, the sun never
really shines there, and no garlic or oil is used in cookery in
those benighted regions. The town of Lyons is considered to be in
the "Nord," although we should consider it well in the south of
France. To the curious in such matters, it may be pointed out that
the line of demarcation between "Nord" and "Midi" is perfectly
well defined. In travelling from Paris to Marseilles, between
Valence and Montelimar, the observer will note that quite abruptly
the type of house changes. In place of the high-pitched roof of
Northern Europe the farm-houses suddenly assume flat roofs of
fluted tiles, with projecting eaves, after the Italian fashion; at
the same time the grey-green olive trees put in a first
appearance. Then you are in the "Midi," and any black-bearded,
olive-complexioned, stumpy little men in the carriage will give a
sigh of relief, for now, at last, the sun will begin to shine.
Nyons had been for two hundred years a Huguenot stronghold, so for
a French town an unusual proportion of its inhabitants were
Protestants, and there was, oddly enough, a colony of French
Wesleyans there.
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