You can groan now, or you can groan later (at my puns)…but I’m here all year!
While housesitting in Divonne-les-Bains, we took advantage of our location to visit some of the highlights in the area, and spent a lovely day in the picturesque town of Evian, France. There were many beautiful streetscapes to be seen as we wandered through the town.
Although Evian is probably best known for the bottled mineral water found in stores all over the world, water also plays an important role in the town’s daily life. Water can be found everywhere in fountains throughout the town, both in parks and even on street corners.
Evian grew into a spa town slowly over time. The spring source was discovered in 1789, and in 1790 the waters became known to have healing powers. This occurred when the Marquis de Lessert, who suffered from kidney stones, began drinking the water on a regular basis, and let it be known how the waters had helped him. Soon, doctors were prescribing waters from the springs for treatment of a number of ailments.
In 1826 a Genevan businessman named Francois Fauconnet saw the opportunity that the the healing powers of the springs provided, and founded the first Hydropathic Establishment. In 1869 the Mineral Water Company of Evian-les-Bains was created.
The Cachat pump-room for the Hydropathic Establishment remains today, and is now a museum to everything water. The domed roof of the museum is covered with coloured tiles outside, and with beautiful stained glass windows with plant patterns in the upper courtyard. Through the windows from the outside you can see the statue at the top of the fountain within called “Apotheosis of the Cachat Spring”.
Behind the pump-room, on Avenue des Sources, are two spring sources from which you can draw water for drinking. One is called Source Cachat, the second is called Source des Cordeliers. Both have been remodeled over the years and are each a beautiful oasis in their own right. Local residents and tourists alike flock here to fill multiple water bottles.
Evian became a place for the privileged to visit, relax, and enjoy the waters. As the town grew, new and beautiful buildings were built.
City Hall – Hôtel de Ville:
Next door to the Hôtel de Ville, the Palais Lumière used to be the spa in Evian. After many years and a number of different owners, the Palais was purchased by the town of Evian in 1996 in order to ensure the preservation of the building and the longevity of its historical significance. The building is now a cultural and conference centre where a variety of exhibitions are placed on display over the course of the year. Again, the water motif is prevalent. Each side of the entrance to the building has a painting – Nymphes a la Source” and “Nymphes au bord de l’eau”.
Our curiosity to discover where Evian water came from turned into a real treat, with plenty of beautiful things to see and an interesting history. I have been to different spa towns before, such as Bath in the United Kingdom, but this was the first time I have learned how a town could grow from essentially a trickle of water to becoming one of the most well-known and financially successful towns in the world.
It goes to show you – sometimes the simplest idea can become a huge success.
Comments
9 responses to “Evian will put a “spring” in your step…”
Great story Oliver. It is great the way you all are exploring and capturing your experiences in this blog. Gives lots of ideas for future trips and very educational!
Harriet
Hi Harriet,
Glad you’re enjoying the blog…it not only serves as a way to share our journeys, but will also be an important archive of this trip for all of us when we’re done.
Great story Oliver. It is great the way you all are exploring and capturing your experiences in this blog. Gives lots of ideas for future trips.
Harriet
One of the things that has caught my attention is how these European countries/ cities have focussed on beauty, energy and conservation. AND the preservation of all that is good and cultural…
Think we , over here, will learn form our ‘elders’?
Hi Herta,
We have certainly seen a lot of wonderful and beautiful things along the way. “In the old days”, it seems that function did not triumph over form, there was always a balance. It would be simple enough to build an ugly building and say “well, it does the trick”, but fortunately now we are seeing the benefits beauty in design right from the start. It is also encouraging to see conservation and preservation of the historical buildings. Several times we have heard about old buildings that were to be torn down and were saved by a small group of vocal residents who did not allow this to happen.
We are seeing that in Europe at least, people take the time to enjoy beauty, whether in a glass of wine, beautiful art, or attending theatre. Even seeing the number of people who are sitting in a cafe and drinking a coffee really says a lot about how leisure time is enjoyed.
We need to bring this back to Canada.
I will never drink another bottle of Evian, without thinking of your blog Oliver….Doreen
Hi Doreen,
Neither will I!!! The thought of all those people bathing in the water and then bottling and drinking it kind of makes me queasy! 🙂
I love your puns, Oliver! You are so right about”…… the simplest idea can become a huge success!” Francois Fauconnet must have been the beginning of some great visionaries for Evian. Photos are great ! Mom P,
Hi Mom,
It sounds like you are granting me permission to continue with my “unique style” of blogging! 🙂 I’m not sure if any of the other readers will agree, but if there’s one person who likes my humour, then I’ll keep on!
We can see how the various industries in and around Evian have grown from the founding of the spa…the trickle of water has resulted in multi-millions of dollars in revenues not only for the Danone company (parent company of the Evian brand), but countless other industries as well.
Maybe our trip will help to spark a tiny idea that grows into something awesome!