“A line of railway tracks, like a zipper, speeding open to the south, to Marseille, to Nice and the Côte d’Azur” – Sylvia Plath, 1956

Hello everyone! This week’s episode is a bit late, as a certain podcast host’s bathtub stopped working, flooded her entire apartment, and delayed things a wee bit. Thanks for your patience everyone. This week, as you can probably imagine, I’m thinking about a vacation. Specifically, as the French wind up their vacations, I’m thinking about the former queen of deluxe international travel, the hottest place to see and be seen in 1920s France: Le Train Bleu. Climb aboard and let’s go!

Episode 31: “Le Train Bleu”

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Sources:

 

French Rivera and Its Artists – John Baxter

The Mediterranean Passion: Victorians and Edwardians In The South – John Pemble

Food On The Rails: The Golden Age of Railroad Dining – Jeri Quinzio

Making Monte Carlo: A History of Speculation and Spectacle – Mark Braude

Night Trains: The Rise and Fall of The Sleeper – Andrew Martin

Riviera: The Rise and Fall of the Côte d’Azur – Jim Ring

The British in France: Visitors and Residents Since The Revolution – Peter Thorold

“Sur la ligne du Train bleu, le dernier voyage des wagons-lits”, Le Parisien, December 10, 2007.

Further Reading:

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