The Fête du Mimosa (Mimosa Festival) in Mandelieu-La-Napoule is a popular festival held annually in February, during the blooming of the mimosa, a shrub cultivated in the Massif du Tanneron overlooking Mandelieu which is the largest forest of mimosa in Europe. The mimosa having participated in the development of the local economy, it is celebrated every year by the people of Mandelieu-La Napoule. Officially celebrated for the first time in 1931, the Fête du Mimosa has since experienced a great success. It has continued to expand, growing from a flower parade into a large festival now widely recognized. The festival lasts 10 days with major events that floral parades are during the two weekends. At the end of the festivities, 12 tons of mimosa flowers have been used to decorate the floats and supply the flower parades.
Despite an uncertain weather until the last minute, the Fête du Mimosa great final corso on February 24 was held at the pace of a big flower parade and miraculously without an umbrella. It is in front of thousands of people from all corners of France and the world or simply from Mandelieu, that 8 floats filled with gold accompanied with street animations marched on Clew Avenue in La Napoule, telling a story on the theme of fairies tales who delighted the young and old. As in an open book, Cinderella, Snow White, Ali Baba or Aladdin let the amazed audience revive an entire chapter of their childhood. The floats made with clusters of small golden pompons blooms have filled the hearts with the sun absent from the sky and sprigs of mimosa fell like rain over the crowd, profusely thrown by children and pretty girls come to inhabit this magical world for a few hours.
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